Those words have been kicking around in my head for the last few weeks, but the reality is, this is what direct marketing is for some people today. It also gave me pause and confirmed my conviction that those of us in the direct marketing business should embrace the full gamut of direct communication, long before the last inserter is finally unplugged.

So, does this mean a long and painful death for conventional direct mail? I don’t think so, but I believe that it is going to evolve differently. As a matter of fact, it already has. Consider the following.

1. Millions of people now pay their bills online and this has seen a dramatic reduction in conventional mail.
2. Some businesses with online catalogues have identified customer preferences and mail only to those that prefer traditional hardcopy catalogues.
3. Qualified (opt-in) consumer email lists are a powerful way to communicate with specific target groups and have supplanted direct mail in different areas.
4. Lastly, intelligent uses of social media platforms now allow businesses to communicate succinct messages with links to the broader picture, be it a website, blog post etc. And good marketers can dangle the bait that will entice readers to enter their lairs to read more. Of course, this is yet another form of direct marketing that serves to displace conventional direct mail, at one level or another.

Considering that direct marketing is really the practice of delivering promotional messages, we can see how it has expanded into different media and platforms. However, I still believe that the most important aspect of any type of direct marketing is getting noticed. Interestingly, this presents a new set of enticing challenges, where a myriad of social media messages compete across multiple platforms and applications for a user’s attention on several different devices (computers, tablets, smartphones).

Like the world wide web of the early 90’s, social media is here to stay and it will likely evolve in much the same way. I am sure that it will remain social for most, as that is its strength and charm. Unfortunately, we are already seeing crass use at some levels and we can only hope that this stays at a minimum.

As we welcome social media to the overall direct marketing mix and integrate it with other direct marketing channels we must ensure that we maintain our identity. Like other forms of direct marketing we will want to get attention, be interesting, engage the reader and – yes, be social.

Many of you know that direct mail has been a large part of my life for nearly 20 years and I am certainly not about to abandon it. I love creative mail and die cuts and getting people’s attention. I am also firm believer in product sampling and, until someone invents molecular transportation, direct mail will be a vital component of getting samples into the hands of consumers. But today, like many of you, social media has simply become a part of who I am and what I do, both personally and in my business activities – and I can’t see that changing.

BTW, my Twitter handle is Highland_DM and, although I remain a strong supporter of direct mail, if you want my attention, you can also send me 140 characters with a URL.

At least that’s the concept. It’s a nice theory, though perhaps somewhat simplistic in the broader context of economics.

Still, there is a fundamental truth to be gleaned here, perhaps most especially for those who provide service in the B2B arena. If one of our clients achieves success as a direct result of the service we have rendered them, there is a much higher chance that the client will return to use this service again than if their results were less successful or even flat or disastrous.

Of course, the more return business we have, the more successful we are as a company, so we we have a vested interest in the continued success of our customers. As such, we are always looking for ways to help customers achieve the highest possible returns on their direct marketing investments.

With that in mind, here are a few examples of things that we’ve done to help clients over the years. Hopefully you can use similar techniques to breed your own success.

The No Brainer

Recently, we have been working with one large client to help plan for an innovative sampling program that they are looking to run later this year. Without getting into specific project details, we were asked to assist on the physical design of a box that would be used to mail multiple samples.

We went through several permutations and combinations, working to determine the most viable option for keeping the box under the 3.5cm maximum thickness for Dimensional Addressed Admail. Based on the size and number of samples, it had already been assumed that the box would need to be mailed in the large category, but with some careful arrangement of the samples, we were actually able to produce a box that fit within the dimensions of the small category.

Given the projected volumes, we estimated that the bit of extra work it took to design the smaller box would actually end up saving the client upwards of $12,000, just in postage.

Needless to say, the client jumped on the opportunity and the box is currently being prototyped for further testing.

Thinking Outside the Envelope

In another instance, we had a long term client who had been sending out an 11×17 flyer, folded down and stuffed into an envelope. The mailer was obviously working since they were committed to sending it out on a regular basis, but we had the chance to sit down with the client and talk about their direct marketing and some of the innovative things that we had been doing.

As a direct result of these conversations, we were able to assist the client in transforming the general direction of the piece in order to create something that was far more interesting and visually appealing. The result was a stunning diecut, foldover self-mailer which, by eliminating the envelope and reducing the prep costs, actually came out at a price somewhere around the same as the piece the client had previously been using.

Personalized Magazine Advertising

We have a number of clients who mail out magazines, many of which are supported by advertising. With a strong background in data and extensive experience in matching personalized pieces, it occurred to us that it would be entirely possible to produce a personalized piece that could be tipped into a corresponding book.

We pitched the idea over the course of several months and were delighted when one of our largest magazine clients embraced the idea along with one of their advertisers. There was a lot of very careful planning leading up to the project, and the entire thing went off without a hitch! Even better, the advertiser enjoyed an excellent response from the ad and has undertaken similar projects in subsequent issues!

It’s another great example of success breeding success.

A True Value Add

We like to think that, in doing these types of things we are adding extra value to our client relationships. We’ll be the first to admit that not every idea we present is embraced with enthusiasm, and that’s okay. At least the client knows that we’re on their side, that we’re invested in their ongoing success and that we’re always keeping our eye open for new and interesting ideas or concepts that could help their marketing efforts and improve their bottom line.

That’s where we feel companies can cultivate the highest levels of success. When you can establish a meaningful relationship that is based at least as much on the customer’s success as it is on just making money, you will often find yourself becoming more than just another vendor or service provider. You can become a trusted business partner whose value extends beyond the product or service that you provide.

And that’s a true value add.

I found it interesting that the reader questioned the value of direct marketing and then quite aptly suggested reasons why some pieces might have more appeal. Direct marketing is a multi-billion dollar industry and it does work, although it works much better for some than others.

Like many things, direct marketing is what you make of it. It’s like a blank canvas. You decide the shape, the message and everything else that goes along with it. So, let start with some reasons why direct marketing and direct mail in particular works.

• You can select our own prospect lists and target markets
• You can apply interesting physical shapes
• You can differentiate messages for those that are brand loyal, prospects and by product interests
• You can create truly memorable experiences for both customers and prospects
• You are working with a medium that is tangible and fosters retention

You pick your own audience

Now, how good a deal is that? Radio, TV or newspapers don’t allow you to pick the specific people you want to target, but you can with direct marketing.

You can use your current customer list, you can rent lists or, with the plethora of information available on the Internet, you can build your own selected lists. Our own direct marketing target groups consist of several thousand or smaller groups that we hand pick for selected target mailings.

It is a great sense of marketing freedom to say this is what I want to market and these are the people that I choose to market to.

Letting it take shape

First, let me say that some marketing pieces are successful in spite of design. For example, that special invitation that you receive each year from a specific vendor to their 2-day blockbuster sale. But, on the other hand, many direct mail pieces could be a lot more interesting.

I believe that the direct marketing industry is going through a metamorphosis, where innovative pieces will continue to garner attention at the expense of those that are less interesting. That’s why we have been promoting die cuts for the last few years. Pioneering is not always easy, but now that we have helped a few clients enjoy success with innovative die cuts, it has certainly been worthwhile.

Direct Marketing is an investment. Like all other investments, you look for a return. If you can generate a much greater return by spending a bit more on mailing die cut pieces, that’s a good investment.

Creating a memorable experience

Our reader cited that “receiving gifts” can make a difference and of course receiving samples of actual products falls into this category.

Sampling offers a multitude of benefits. Everyone enjoys getting something for free and when it comes in the mail, addressed to him or her, it just seems to have more value. Sampling also lets you put your great product, associated literature and coupons into the hands of the consumer. From there, they can try your product to see how they like it, read more about your products and your company and enjoy the value of the $X off coupon that you provided. It’s a great experience for both you and the consumer. Further, it is an excellent way to build a relationship that can last a lifetime.

You can also gather names for sampling different ways. Having been involved in this market since the mid-nineties, we still favour website offers. This affords you the opportunity to gather key marketing information from consumers as well, which they are usually prepared to offer in exchange for product samples – provided you have a stated privacy policy in place.

For companies that can’t mail out product samples (e.g. those manufacturing larger items or those in a service industry), a novelty item that is tied to a campaign also works very well. Again, the small gift or token captures attention and helps you to build and/or further the relationship.

I often ask the question, “Would you spend $18 per piece on a direct marketing campaign?” And, as people reply with a quick, ”No”, I like to show them a full-size wine bottle, complete with a message from a “desert island” stuffed inside. We shipped almost 10,000 of these, broken down into smaller quantities at regular intervals. The campaign actually recouped all funds budgeted to it before completion. This may not be everybody’s “cup of tea” or “bottle of wine”, but in this case it was a worthwhile investment.

When you capture interest via samples, novelty items, die cuts and other forms of innovation, you not only stand out against the other hum-drum pieces, you also create truly memorable experiences that help to foster those ever-important relationships.

Differentiating messages

You might want to introduce a new product or service to both current customers as well as prospects. Wouldn’t it be nice to tailor your message differently for each group?

You can do this with specific personalization where you mention the persons name (e.g. Dave, we appreciate your loyalty to our brand) or by using other personal information – without going overboard (some forms of personalization do get too drippy). Optionally, you might insert a coupon that simply reads, “As a loyal customer here’s a $X coupon toward your next purchase of…”. Of course, you could tailor the message for prospects, accordingly.

Well-crafted messages that are targeted toward particular consumer/customer groups are always more meaningful. If you are fortunate enough to have information through which you can differentiate consumers/customers within your overall target group, you have a great opportunity to shine by speaking to them directly, at the appropriate levels.

Tangible aspect fosters retention

I think that the tangible aspect of printed material is often overlooked. This not only applies to direct mail, but magazines, brochures and other types of literature that we can pick up and peruse.

The blog post that we wrote last year titled “The Brain Prefers Physical Stuff” explains how the tactile sensation of holding a marketing piece makes a stronger impression than seeing the exact same information in the same form in a digital environment. And of course this is logical, as in the former case both the senses of touch and sight are engaged, whereas in the latter case, it is solely a visual experience.

Most mail that we receive is also both portable and convenient. You can receive a piece at the office that you might want to look at later. To this end, you can toss it in your brief case and read it later in the evening as you sit back in your recliner. Optionally, you can pass it around the office.

Unlike TV, radio and many other forms of non-tangible marketing, the physical presence of mail does prevail until it is read or tossed. Again, the overall appeal of the piece will always be a prime factor in its success.

As I wrap things up, I must mention one other key ingredient and that is repetition. You would never run a single TV ad or radio spot, and unless your offer is incredible, a single mail drop to new prospects may not make your phones ring off the hook either. I often suggest that it’s better to target the same 3,000 people 3 times, at one-month intervals, rather than targeting 9,000 people once only. It costs pretty much the same, but the results are almost always better.

In closing, I do extend my thanks to the reader who posed the question, “Is Direct Marketing still valuable?” It caused me to reflect on many things that we take for granted, as we work with this medium all of the time. So, is direct marketing still valuable? You know our thoughts, but I leave you to draw your own conclusions.

“Bigger is better”. We hear this hackneyed phrase all the time. But some bigger things are better. Some like bigger apples. Most like catching bigger fish. And, others like bigger mailing pieces – when they make sense – and sometimes they do.

At Highland Marketing, we have long used the phrase “Sensible Solutions for Mailings”. One might be tempted to read “the cheapest solution” into this, but that would not be entirely correct, because “sensible” does not inherently imply “cheapest”.

This is not a “go big or stay home” story. It merely suggests that some larger packages demand and get a lot of attention. Probably the most extreme example that I have seen is a message in a bottle program that we ran for just over a year for the same client. Over that time we shipped out roughly 8,500 full-size wine bottles in break-proof packaging. The cost? All in, about $18 each (including pre-approach postcards and follow-up letters). The results, a 100% return on investment, before even completing the project, driven by a 1% close rate (not response rate). Quite remarkable and very effective – for the right type of business.

We have mailed some very odd packages as well. A few years ago we mailed receptacles for bull semen (no bull – sorry!). Someone had told our shipper/receiver that they were actually hummingbird feeders, so that became the more socially acceptable term for them. Although they were mailed into an agricultural market, who could ever forget receiving this type of hummingbird feeder?

If you are familiar with the history of Highland Marketing you likely know that we regularly mail product samples and novelty items as well. Although we don’t have any exact count, I expect that we have mailed several million over the last few years. Mailing samples allows you to put your company products on the line, the concept being, “Try it, you’ll like it, and if you like it you’ll buy it.” Of course depending on corporate products and services, product sampling may not work for everyone. However, we have also mailed many novelty items that fit a particular promotional theme, often in cases where mailing a product or sample many not be feasible. Packages containing product samples and novelty items are also normally larger than a plain envelope and there are many interesting shapes and designs, including pillow boxes, which can be used.

So, in some cases, bigger can better and the physical presence of a mailing piece can garner attention. It’s also important to emphasize that, in some instances, extraordinary returns can be leveraged by extraordinary investments in direct marketing, although, as we have said, this may not be fit for everyone.

Inasmuch as there are often several different elements at work in successful mailing programs, unless your piece is noticed, it can all be for nought! Therefore, we want to continue looking at different ways that you can heighten the visibility of your mailing pieces.

We have already looked at special die cuts and how some customers identify the company by “their shape”. It’s a powerful technique and it works, typically within 3 repetitions to the same target audience.

In this post I want to look at the use of polybags or clear envelopes. Before continuing, I also want to ensure readers that there are environmentally friendly, biodegradable polybags available at a modest cost, if that is a preference.

If we mail a postcard, die cut or otherwise, or some other form of self-mailer, we know that at least it will be seen*. But what about items that we insert into opaque envelopes? Do we know that they will be seen? Well, we can design attractive envelopes with teaser copy on the outside and that will often do the trick, but sometimes, poly or clear envelopes can be an interesting alternative.

Just like envelopes, there are different sizes of polybags and you can also source polybags with printed text and graphics, as well as coloured poly. Of course, if you go too dark on the colour, you may defeat the purpose of being able to see your materials through the poly.

You can also have different addressing options when using poly. In many cases you may be inserting a piece that has a spot reserved for addressing. If there is no place to address directly onto one of the inserts, I often recommend using a lead sheet, where we can laser or inkjet the address information and postal indicia. Or, optionally, using a 2” X 4” label, containing both the address and postal indicia and affixing the label directly onto the poly. Both work very well.

As we said, getting noticed is paramount, and with poly, your marketing piece can actually be a travelling billboard and the poly protects the contents too.

So, if you are having doubts as to whether your direct mail pieces are being seen, or if you just want to do something a little different with high visibility, poly or clear envelopes might be an interesting option to consider.

Stay tuned for our next post where we look at where bigger can be better and show that it’s not always the cost, but the return on DM dollars invested than can dictate what you might consider mailing.

* Special Note When Targeting Businesses Using Unaddressed Admail:

If you send Unaddressed Admail to businesses and do not specify the department or title to which it should be directed, it is likely going to be discarded upon receipt. Sometimes we may think that the recipient is obvious, but a receptionist does not always share our insights and may need some guidance. For example, in our case, would either inkjet or have the piece pre-printed with:

Attention: Marketing Manager

In our experience, this has certainly helped to get the piece into the right hands – and that’s what its all about.

I think that we can safely say that if no one reads your piece, it doesn’t matter how good the data is or how great your offer might be. Therefore, one of the primary objectives is to be noticed and there are different ways that you can do that. Your mail might be noticed simply because you mail on a consistent and periodic basis. You might mail a larger package that demands attention, use interesting packaging or delve into the world of interesting shapes.

In this day and age, unless you have an existing rapport with your audience, a me-too mailer in a me-too world is usually headed directly for one place. And, unfortunately, that place is the recycle bin. Results prove that most successful mailing pieces usually stand out – because there is something about them that is different.

We have already mentioned a few reasons why people might notice your direct mail piece, and one of these is to create your own shape – a shape that reflects your business. It works. We have one client that, very shortly, will have mailed out 9 variations of the same shape over the last couple of years, to largely the same target audience. They own their shape, and everyone in their community now recognizes it. If you would like to give this a try, be innovative and get creative. Take some paper and scissors and maybe even some glue into your boardroom and have some fun. What can you make that’s different and suits your brand and image?

A cool mailing piece with a different shape will stand out and be noticed, but that’s not the only ingredient to success. You also have to target the right audience at the right time, focus on benefits not just features and have a solid offer, all of which we will cover in upcoming posts under our Direct Mail – Making It Work series.

News, Updates & Information

When it comes to keeping people up to date on new postal products, new direct marketing ideas and what’s happening at Highland Marketing, I think we do a pretty good job. We do our own mailings, we deploy informative e-news emails, we post enlightening articles to our blog and we share information via Twitter. And, we run frequent seminars on direct marketing. I often meet new folks at different events that comment on the quality of information that we make available. So when it comes to news, updates and direct marketing information, “we keep you posted“.

Gathering Strategic Customer Information

Good business decisions are based on good information. Our survey services are an ideal way to find out what customers think of your organization and it’s products and services. From here you can modify and/or tweak your offerings to reflect what your customers are looking for. Using state of the art survey software, “we keep you posted” by delivering the strategic information that will help you to better understand your customer needs and desires.

Delivering Your Materials Into the Right Hands

Be it Admail, Publications Mail, Lettermail, Parcels or perhaps our premium Message In A Bottle Service, we turn your direct marketing projects around quickly. Our professional staff also keeps you informed of different mailing options to help you to minimize cost as well as maximize your ROI. Of course, we have been involved with direct targeting and effective personalization for many years and our data specialists can help to put your valuable materials into the right hands. Regardless, of the type of mailing product being used, “we keep you posted“.

Keeping you posted – at all levels – that’s just the nature of our business!


I appreciate that this topic is an integral part of branding, however, this post zooms in on how some things can easily create an image that is inappropriate for the purpose at hand.

As part of a marketing test, our new client wanted to insert a “special piece” into 20% of the pieces being mailed out. The original plan had been to use # 10 envelopes, but given the size of the special piece, we had to go to a 5 7/8” X 9 1/2″ envelope. Nonetheless, the client still wanted to use the #10 envelopes for the other 80% of the mailing that contained a folded letter, a brochure and a return envelope. What’s important here is that this had far less to do with cost and much more to do with image.

Simply, the rationale was that, as our client is a charitable organization, they did not want to give the impression of being wasteful by using a more expensive envelope than required for the other 80%. It only makes sense that if a charitable organization appears to be wasting money, at any level, potential donors may question just how their contributions might be used, and this could result in lower donations, right across the board.

On a similar note and where appropriate, many other organizations that we work with prefer to mail their newsletters as self-mailers, rather than inserting them into envelopes. I should note that, in Canada, provided that a mailing piece is securely bound and cannot come apart, the item can be mailed as a self-mailer for both presorted Addressed Admail and Publications Mail. In these cases, organizations can save on the cost of the envelopes, associated printing and insertion charges. We have mailed millions of these types of self-mailers over the years and have yet to hear one report on damage! For some organizations, this can also be a great way to save money and appear frugal.

Interestingly, inasmuch as we want to demonstrate thrift in some instances, the opposite can be said for other types of organizations. We just completed a direct marketing project for a large financial institution, where we mailed a high-end magazine along with a cover letter. Asked to coordinate the print on the letters, we selected a premium stock. The final package was as our client and their clients would expect – a high-end piece that fit the brand, image, and nature of the client’s business.

Regardless of the size or type of organization though, I think that everyone must also try to avoid the “silly factor”, which occurs when we do something that causes people to shake their heads – and it does happen. For example, a few years ago we were asked to mail single, one-page business letters in 9” X 12” envelopes. This was basic, non-promotional business correspondence, so there would be no reason to build intrigue or anything of that nature by using a 9” X 12” envelope. When we inquired, we learned that there wasn’t any reason that the letters couldn’t be folded and mailed in #10 envelopes. The difference in price, using today’s postage rates, is $0.66 per piece. On a thousand pieces, that’s $660 and on 100,000 pieces that’s $66,000 – and that’s silly – and worse yet, most people would recognize this. Fortunately, the pieces were mailed using #10 envelopes.

Isolating the “silly factor” and setting it aside (which we hopefully all can do), at the end of the day, only you can decide what type(s) of marketing makes sense for who you are. I do find it interesting though, that in some cases we want to tone things down to generate revenue, whereas in other cases, we want to maintain a constant, prestige image to obtain the same objective. I guess it’s just like the old saying “different strokes for different folks”.

It’s usually hard to pick favourites, but in 2010 three projects really stood out. Of these, one has already been written up in a marketing magazine, another will be written up in a different marketing magazine in about two weeks, and the other was a special personalized piece placed within a magazine.

I am going to share each of these projects with you, but hold back a little on the one to be featured in the upcoming magazine issue.

Die Cuts Proved That Unaddressed Admail Can Bring Outstanding Results

Investing in clients is always worthwhile. Last year we hosted a few free seminars, focusing on innovative DM techniques. One of these was attended by a couple of friends from the agency Bev Rock, Media Buyer.

If you know me, you’ll know that I squawk a lot about custom die cuts – they’re cool, they show innovation and they get attention. Bev Rock and her team picked up on this and had two fabulous dies made for Noble Insurance (with offices in Alliston, Barrie, Collingwood and Elmvale ON) – one an elegant and appealing house and the other a 50’s style automobile. Using 3 variations of these dies, they dropped Unaddressed Admail pieces at roughly one-month intervals, to the same target groups. They achieved excellent results and having repeated one variation of the same campaign already, we will be doing another one this spring. Yowsers, that’s great! This campaign is featured in an article that I wrote for the January 2011 issue of Direct Marketing News. Check out page 18. You can download it here, but please note that the entire issue is about 10 megs.

Personalized Postcards Inside Magazine Made Readers Feel Special

Both Matt and I have written extensively on the effective use of personalization and this next project went above and beyond marrying this with:

- a very cool custom die cut
- placed on top of the advertisers display ad inside a magazine
- where the die cut card matched the display ad

Wow!

Should you have missed it, I wrote a blog post on this project back in October, 2010.

This was everything that a project should be with excellent data (kudos again to those maintaining it), subtle personalization (using only a greeting name and community name) and a great die cut card that got attention. One of the readers actually contacted the advertiser to let him know that it made him feel special and that’s what personalization is all about! A final note on personalization. If you use it, don’t go overboard, because that can have the opposite effect.

Message In A Bottle Campaign Yields Extraordinary ROI

You can learn a lot more about this extraordinary campaign when it is featured in a marketing magazine in about two weeks.

Until then, we can tell you that YES, these were full-size wine bottles. We did not have a report of a single broken bottle. We helped to develop a very effective four-step program to maximize results. It was very expensive, the ROI was extraordinary and we shipped a lot of bottles.

Promise to say more in a couple of weeks!

Lots of Other Great Stuff

Glad to say that there were many other exciting projects at Highland Marketing in 2010.

We can’t forget our friends at Grand River Raceway in Elora. They used a couple of our oval postcard shapes together with some great design work and a special offer that had their dining room hopping. I can attest to this, because my wife and I were there!

Pillow boxes became more popular too. We were one of the first to ship product samples in pillow boxes and we saw more new uses of pillow boxes in 2010 and helped to design a few for new projects. Apart from the graphics and copy, which must look good, we did a lot of “behind” the scenes work coming up with cool spacers to avoid crushing during shipping. After all, the physical packages must also look good when they arrive in the consumers’ hands. Oh yes, Allen our resident mathematician came up with a super program that allows us to calculate the flat width of a pillow box, given the desired popped-up height and popped-up width. Very cool!

We were also delighted with the evolution of our overall fulfillment services in 2010. And, through some analysis of Addressed Admail delivery times in late 2010, we have come up with a computer program that allows us to minimize costs, while using a combination of Addressed Admail and Lettermail to ensure that delivery times are being met. Timing for this is perfect, as we are experiencing a significant increase in our 2011 sample fulfillment projects.

Okay, time to give thanks to our clients as well as the very cool and gifted agency folks that we work with – first for putting their faith in us and secondly for listening to some of our ideas and allowing us to be more than just a mailing house.

Although young, 2011 is already rockin’ and we look forward to more innovative and exciting projects. We have also brought back our survey services and look forward to working with clients and agencies to help them find out what people really want, enabling them to fine tune their products and services and deliver the messages that people want to hear.

One day boarding an airplane, a steward came to his seat, addressed Jim by name and asked him to complete a paper survey. Jim said he would be happy to, but then he looked at the survey. It asked his name, frequent flier number, what flight he was on, his destination, whether he had to change planes, and so forth –information that the airline knew, but the survey firm didn’t. This made the survey seem as tedious as filling out a form.

The Royal United Hospital in Bath, England, sent a household a survey asking the patient to rate his recent operation. Tragically, the patient had died in surgery. His widow was not amused to receive the survey. In fact, she talked to a newspaper about the callous way she was treated, creating a public-relations problem for the hospital.

Sources for both stories Vovici eBook, Survey Software Success

I still think it is important to know what our customers think, however, in an effort to attain this information it’s best not to give them reason to think any less of us than they did before they were presented with our survey!