As a business owner, finding and acquiring new customers is essential to business longevity. The ease and convenience of direct mail offers a viable option for gaining and solidifying a customer base, since it acts as a low cost, results-driven marketing and advertising method that can reach almost any conceivable target group quickly. Direct mail is one of the most heavily used forms of direct marketing—and is appealing to business owners because it puts a full description of their products and services as well as offers directly in the hands of potential customers. Whereas, people can often click off a television ad or leave an email unopened, the chances of that happening with direct mail diminishes greatly because it is handled as part of the daily personal routine of receiving and reviewing the mail.

How Does Direct Mail Work?

There are 4 main components of direct mail: the offer, mailing lists and databases, the direct mail piece, and a call to action. 

• Offer – this is the one element that differentiates direct mail marketing from general advertising. The offer can be tailored to meet the needs of individual recipients.
• Mailing lists and databases – more than just house numbers and street names, a good mailing list uses information from an up-to-date database that allows you to send direct mail offers to individuals or defined groups. The database can also be used to trigger graphics, offers and design variations to increase the effectiveness of the mailer. For example, companies making baby products need to know which households on their mailing list include families with children under the age of 2 to ensure a healthy response.
• Direct Mail Piece – The standard direct piece includes an envelope, a letter, a brochure, or both. Keep in mind that the direct mail piece is customized to the specific mailing list being used. A direct mail piece made for potential residential customers wouldn’t do well if it was sent to businesses. Another form of a direct mail piece that is popular are postcards. Not only do they help reduce postage, but they are really versatile in that it offers special design and coating options for businesses to stand out. Furthermore, at Rex 3 we can customize a direct mail campaign that when a preset trigger is activated, your customer’s information is sent to our specifically designed software and a personalized post card is generated. The postcards are printed and mailed the next business day.
• Call-to-action – this invites the recipient to take action; make a phone call, use a coupon code when ordering online, or schedule an appointment, as examples. A prominent call-to-action is a must for any direct mail piece and campaign.

 When Does it Work?

Direct mail works when each component has been thought through and precisely handled. Using careful research and targeting, companies can assess which mailing lists are appropriate and whether repeat mailings are necessary to take advantage of a product or service’s potential for recurring sales. At Rex 3, we designed our direct mail operations to save you money with the strongest in class database management, list analysis, and postage service. We presort all our lists using BCC Mail Manager Software—and we perform list hygiene services such as merges, removal of duplicates, and removal of undeliverable and inaccurate addresses.

For more information on how we can help you with your direct mail marketing campaign, please contact us at (954) 452–8301 or submit your information here.