Oldie But Goodie

By Vince DeCarolis

Many of our past journal articles have focused on all the new media now available to make our marketing more effective. Social media, email marketing, SEO and the focus on building relationships are all essential. Yet it often seems to be more than we have time to keep up with.

But what about the use of an effective, easy to measure program that goes back many years? Yes, I’m talking about Direct Mail – not the postcard or mass catalogs in the mail kind – but the edgy, structured pieces delivered in a highly targeted campaign that knock the stuffiness out of B-to-B marketing. In our world of Facebook and Twitter, we often forget how effective these programs can be as part of a lead generation program.

If you can put something creative and dimensional on a person’s desk there is no doubt they will look at it. And a follow-up call from sales will always elicit a response. It’s important to keep in mind, though, at a time when business can ill afford to squander marketing dollars, you need to have laser-like focus in these campaigns.

Here are a few points to remember:

Dimensional Pieces Work
A gatekeeper will throw away half the mail that comes in to a corporation – but not a big box. The outsized and awkwardly shaped packages almost always wind up getting past the assistants and aides and on to the desk of the intended target. And recipients often hold on to posters and useful or engaging objects long after the campaign has ended.

Humor
Business-to-business mail is too often stale and straightforward. A common mistake is to assume that B-to-B pieces always have to be serious. It might not seem like it, but even CIO’s have a sense of humor. They aren’t disconnected from media and society. So, crafting something that is “tongue-in-cheek” yet related to the key message can be very effective. After all, the goal is to get a meeting or the next presentation. Put a smile on their face - they will not only remember the mailing, but they will take your call.

Cost
If you are going to get a meeting with a management level decision maker, a post card is not going to do it. Compared to a postcard or fold-over mailer, crafting a structured mail piece is not an inexpensive proposition. You’ll spend on average $10 to $15 a unit or more. The key to the effort is to be as highly targeted as possible and send out fewer pieces. For example, on one structured mailing program that we did for Citrix, names of the top few prospects were solicited from each of the U.S. territory sales managers. And the list was based on these names alone.

The campaign can easily pay for itself, since even a single contract on a large ticket item or service can offset program costs.

Examples
You can leverage anything to promote your product or service, but you may want to bypass the usual tchotchkes (t-shirts, mugs, etc.) in favor of something unique. Just some of the items we have used to support effective marketing campaigns include vintage toys, picture viewers, waste can basketball hoops, Mardi Gras masks, miniature golf shoe key chains and Razor Scooters. Combined with creative packaging design, it presents a totally innovative way to put your message in to the hands of your target audience.

The impact of structured direct mail doesn’t diminish the value of other media, but it can engage unlike any other channel – and engagement is the key to winning new customers.