Direct Mail Marketing, AKA Direct Mail Advertising, or simply Direct Mail, is any advertisement you send through the mail, most commonly via the USPS. However, it can also include flyers, door hangers, and similar materials, which individuals can deliver, whether they are hired for the job, your current employees, or even yourself.
Direct Mail campaigns are written by a copywriter who understands the audience. They conduct the research, create the ad copy, and design the Call To Action (CTA) for the business sending out the campaign.
Direct Mail can take various forms, including a letter, a bulky mail campaign (something to make the envelope stand out, causing people to open it instead of tossing it), Outrageous Marketing, multiple deliveries as part of a campaign, or just a flyer or ad on a postcard delivered to homes and businesses.
EDDM, or Every Door Direct Mail, is a program of the USPS that allows you to reach one postal route or a whole town at a time. I will discuss this further in the section below.
Is Direct Mail Marketing Dead?
According to top marketing watch group companies, the bottom line answer is a resounding no. To summarize, what they are saying is that online marketing has recently reached its peak. It is still active but on a downhill trend. These are all facts you can verify with just a little research.
Due to the prevalence of scams, advertising overload, and mixed messages online, an increasing number of consumers are trusting the information they can hold in their hands, such as letters, postcards, and other forms of physical marketing materials.
I have verified testimonials from businesses that have achieved a significant return on investment (ROI) on their advertising dollars through offline marketing.
Do I believe in Online Marketing?
The simple answer to that question is a resounding YES!
I offer online services myself. I am a Certified SEO Copywriter, which means I help businesses with websites and online marketing build their organic traffic. Organic traffic means you don’t have to buy online advertising, but you optimize for the words people search for.
I believe that some of the most effective marketing strategies combine online and offline approaches. If your offline marketing is well-written with a strong Call to Action, you can encourage people to go online, where you can expand on your thoughts.
Have You Received a Catalog in the Mail?
Consider the catalogs you receive in the mail, especially during holiday times. That cost those companies a pretty penny, but they continue to do it because it works. You may ask, Why don’t they send a link to their website? Because when something is in your hand, you are more likely to look at it than go to a website and browse.
The bottom line is that it is generating revenue.
It doesn’t just work for big business, either. Smaller local companies are succeeding with direct mail, whether through a simple ad on a postcard co-op mailer, a stand-alone postcard, or a letter enclosed in an envelope.
Flyers, Rack Cards, Door Hangers, and More
I am sure you have found a real estate flyer, a restaurant menu, a roofer’s offer, or a door hanger from another business on your front door. Someone had to put a lot of effort into delivering them, or pay someone to do it for them. In addition, there is the cost of printing.
Why do they keep showing up? They work!
They work best when delivered multiple times. Some business people try something once and say it doesn’t work. Repetition in advertising is critical to your success. It is a proven fact that people need to see an ad mentioned between five and fifteen times before they take action. It depends on the wants or needs of each one, or the level of intent at that moment in time.
To Sum It Up
In closing, do some research to see how you can use direct mail to enhance your business’s marketing. You may be surprised.
We offer a Free Discovery call to help you figure it out. We can partner with you, guiding you to make informed decisions before investing time and money in creating a direct mail campaign.
To connect with Jimmy and see if a direct mail campaign would help, click one of the buttons below:
PS. Direct Response Advertising is a part of Direct Mail. The right direct response message can cause you to hit a marketing home run with all bases loaded. Look for an article on this coming soon.
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