Presence.

Recently, while searching the internet for unique and creative marketing ideas, I stumbled across an article on DesignShack, which showcased a number of interesting direct mail pieces. Of the 12 pieces listed, there was one that stood out to me more than the others.

The piece was for LavOnline, an Italian company that identifies itself as an online laundry. From what I can tell from running their website through Google Translate (alas, I have a very limited understanding of Italian), the company appears to offer remote laundry, tailoring, leather work and shoemaking (or possibly repair), with pickups administered and scheduled through their website or over the phone.

The purpose of their direct mailer was to increase overall awareness of their service within a targeted demographic of young professionals who work long hours and have trouble finding an actual shop that is open after they leave the office. A total of 1,000 of the following packages were sent to this targeted group.

An image depicting the LavOnline mailer in various stages of being opened. Note: the layout of this image has been slightly modified from the original for better viewing.

I am not certain if the piece was mailed as shown, or whether it arrived in a more substantial cardboard box. Either way, its very dimensions will give it more presence than traditional mail. That presence will give it more impact, which in turn will help to capture attention.

Of course, what you do with that attention is just as important as capturing it, and this mailer takes care of that too. Notice how the blue box folds out into the shape of a t-shirt and contains a bright red tomato! The recipeint is actually encouraged to throw this tomato at the shirt, and then watch what happens. You can see this in action in this video:

I have no idea how the tomato is able bounce back into its original shape, but the fact that it does is extremely cool. It provides a fun an engaging ways for recipients to engage with the brand, while stressing the message of a simple, easy and fast service from LavOnline.

Of course, the true effectiveness of any campaign is measured by its results, and they speak for themselves. Reported results are that within 4 weeks:

• 32% of recipients registered on the site (320 new registrations)
• 8% of recipients actually tried the service (80 new customers)
• site traffic increased by 15%

Those are pretty good numbers, and hopefully the overall ROI has been amplified by many (if not all) of those 80 new customers coming back to use the service again and again, or by some of the 240 other registered users having tried the service for the first time.

So what does this campaign illustrate? Most obviously, it underscores the power of physical presence and interaction in direct mail. Presence gets attention. Interaction helps maintain attention and drive action.

Lastly, a campaign like this also demonstrates the importance of targeting. LavOnline took the time to identify their absolute best prospective customers, crafted a piece tailored specifically to the needs of those customers and invested the funds required to deliver an effective message.

We have prepped and mailed millions of products samples over the years and we have had the opportunity to work with many talented marketers and brand managers. Of course, we continue to meet new people all the time and we do our best to ensure that they are made aware of the things than can cost them money – and sometimes, a lot of money.

As many product samples (weighing 500 grams or less) exceed the maximum 2 cm thickness for Oversize Addressed Admail, a large percentage of our sampling mailings are prepared as Dimensional Addressed Admail. Postage is, indeed, higher than Oversize Addressed Admail in the same weight category, but Dimensional Addressed Admail does offer a great alternative, with significant savings when compared to parcel rates.

Price Volatility

There is no doubt that Dimensional Addressed Admail is a marvellous product and can be perfect for sampling. Interestingly, however, many of the people we meet are often very surprised when they take a closer look at its price volatility.

One of our more popular blog posts, How Does an LCP Sort Work, explains step by step, how postage rates are determined at various levels. I encourage you to read it, but the crux of the post is that mailings with higher geographic concentrations do tend to enjoy better postage rates than those with sparser distributions.

I invite you to take a look at the table below, which shows general rates for Dimensional Addressed Admail – Small, based on national distribution, using 2013 postage rates. These numbers were generated using our large, national database of addresses.

Sample Pricing for Dimensional Addressed Admail – Small (Up to 50 grams)

As you can see, the average postage at 1,000 pieces is $1.33, as compared to $0.84 at 100,000 pieces. That is a staggering difference of 49 cents apiece! So, when planning a lower volume Dimensional Addressed Admail mailing, one must understand that postage will be significantly higher. Conversely, we can enjoy much lower postage rates with mailings that have higher volumes

Obviously, the foregoing is an extreme situation, but even the difference of $0.20 between 2,500 and 50,000 can have an impact. Why? Simply because many sample fulfillments stem from web requests, which are typically downloaded on a periodic basis. For example if we fulfill 50,000 requests via 20 downloads of 2,500 records, postage will cost us $15,000 more to fulfill the requests this way than by fulfilling 50,000 at once. Therefore, if you are planning a sampling program of 50,000 units over multiple downloads, you cannot base your postage estimate on the cost of a single mailing of 50,000 pieces.

Saving Money & Optimizing Deliveries

There are a couple of things that we have learned over the years that can help you to keep your costs down as well as even out delivery times on larger programs.

Maximize Your Volumes, Wherever Possible

If you have an ongoing program where you are gathering sample requests via the web, you might consider accumulating requests over a relatively short period. For example, if you are experiencing about 2,500 records per download, you could save almost $1,000 by grouping two downloads together and sending out one mailing of 5,000 records rather than two mailings of 2,500 records. Of course, you must also ensure that you are satisfying delivery timelines.

Use Geographic Splits to Meet Stated Delivery Times

In our experience, many web-driven programs experience the heaviest volumes of requests in the early stage and then dwindle down over time. If you’re not careful, the first download might overwhelm you. But here is an interesting approach that can usually help you to even your load and meet stated delivery goals.

Almost all sampling programs that we have handled have had national delivery and this lends itself to the varying delivery times we experience when using Addressed Admail products. For example, Addressed Admail will usually be delivered within a few days in the province in which it is inducted, but could take up to 3 weeks to reach destinations further across the country. Therefore, if you have stated delivery times of 4 – 6 weeks, you can often segment the mailing into multiple streams, preparing records with the longest deliveries first.

Because these splits are along geographic lines, you would not dilute your geographic concentrations and, as such, you would not experience any increases in postage costs, provided the geographic splits are applied correctly. This approach allows you to blend your deliveries, ensuring that all or most of your pieces will be delivered within the stated timeframes.

No Lettermail Alternative

Many of our clients use our 9-Day program to help balance out deliveries time where quicker deliveries are required for more distant destinations. This program uses a combination of both Addressed Admail and the corresponding class of Lettermail. However, it is very important to note that there is not corresponding Lettermail class for Dimensional Addressed Admail and that the only alternative would be parcel, which would be very expensive.

Conclusion

Looking back over the years, I think I can safely say that, had it not been for Dimensional Addressed Admail, many of the sampling projects that we have managed would have been cost prohibitive. The only alternative would have been to mail some of the larger samples at parcel rates of about $10 each. Most budgets could not withstand that. So, Dimensional Addressed Admail has certainly proven itself to be a very worthwhile product – for our clients as well as ourselves.

However, despite its position with the direct marketing arsenal, we cannot forget that fluctuating volumes can really impact postage costs and could serious impact budgets. However as long as we have a handle on the approximate volumes per mailing and we simply don’t base our postage estimates on the accumulated volumes of individual mailings, it is fairly easy to get a handle on Dimensional Addressed Admail postage costs.

In some ways, I suppose, it’s an understandable conflict.

Over the years, we’ve seen very significant portions of the direct mail industry dwindle away, as more and more marketers turned to email as their medium of choice. From this perspective, it only makes sense that those in the direct mail camp would have dug in their heels and sought to defend their traditional turf against this upstart medium called email.

By the same token, I can also understand how email sought to establish itself. As the newer kid on the block (relatively speaking of course), proponents of email could easily have attempted to increase its foothold by positioning it as the natural heir to traditional direct mail. After all, it is faster, more economical and a fully digital experience.

With these opposing points of view, it only stands to reason that direct mail and email would continue to butt heads. But it doesn’t have to be this way.

By now, email is firmly entrenched as a communication medium. Personally, I’ve been using email for the last 17 years now, and email Marketing Companies like Constant Contact (1995), MailChimp (2001) and iContact (2003) are all past or quickly approaching ten years in business.

The simple fact is that email is not the new kid on the block anymore (that title might best be given to social media—for now). And, for all the conflict and antagonism between direct mail and email over the past decade and a half, experience paints a much different picture, one which suggests that perhaps direct mail and email would do better to support each other—rather than tearing at each other’s throats.

So, instead of pitting them against each other in an attempt to crown a clear victor, let’s instead consider how the strengths of one medium help to offset the weaknesses of the other.

Speed

One of the most attractive aspects of email marketing has to be its speed. Email is fast—so fast that your message will start landing in inboxes moments after you hit the send button (or after a scheduled campaign is deployed). And fast delivery can equal fast results.

Mail, on the other hand is much slower. Many economy categories with low price points can take several days (if not weeks) for delivery. Even premium forms of mail can take a day or two arrive in mailboxes. There are programs—like our 9-day program—which work to minimize the impact of extended delivery times, but the simple fact of the matter is that direct mail takes time.

So, if you need to get your message out with lightning like-speed, email is clearly the more ideal solution.

Visibility

On the other hand, if you’re looking to achieve the highest possible level of readership—meaning people who actually take the time to read your message—email may not be the best option. Our inboxes are crowded, and they seem to be getting more crowded every day. We have personal correspondence, business correspondence, newsletters we’ve subscribed to and, unfortunately, a deluge of spammy emails that we did not ask for at all. In one week, I’ll easily receive over 300 different emails across multiple addresses. And I know that there are people out there who get a whole lot more than that.

Personally, I simply do not have the time to dedicate to reading all of those emails in detail unless they are not from people or relate to day to day business.

And somehow I don’t think that I’m not all that unique in this regard.

Mail, however, is not nearly so overwhelming. Yes, our mailboxes can sometimes be filled with flyers and other forms of direct mail, but I doubt that most of us receive anywhere close to 300 direct mail messages in a given week. Because the medium is less crowded, a direct mail message simply has more opportunity to stand out and be seen.

This is especially true if the piece employs one of a variety of techniques that can be used to help increase its visibility (check out our gallery for some awesome examples).

Acquisition vs Retention

In our experience, we have also found that the effectiveness of both media can be impacted by the nature and goal of your message.

If you are trying to attract new prospects or acquire news business from people you don’t know, email is usually not the best option. Emails from unknown businesses tend to put people off, and are more likely to be viewed and/or treated as spam.

It’s not the sort of thing that leads to a good first impression.

Direct mail, however, tends to be more widely accepted. In a research study conducted by Canada Post in late 2009—titled “The Value of an Integrated Multi-channel Marketing Strategy”—results showed that there is still an overwhelming preference for direct mail in Canada, as can be seen in the following numbers:

Clearly, direct mail has a wider level of acceptance as a marketing medium, making it the preferred choice for reaching out to prospects who don’t know you or who are unfamiliar with your business.

Of course, email has its place too. It’s extremely effective for distributing industry-related news. It can also be effective if you are looking to communicate with an existing customer base or a list of opt-in subscribers. Because you already have an established relationship with these groups, your email should not appear to be coming from a stranger or an unknown company, thereby reducing the likelihood of it being viewed as spam and increasing the chances of it being read.

Of course, this does not mean that all of your emails will be read. In reality, they probably won’t. Still, we’ve found that a well exectured email program that is targeted at a list of qualified, opted-in subscribers can be a simple and efficient means of building customer retention and even drumming up new business from this group.

Demographics

For all of the strengths and weaknesses of direct mail and email, sometimes there are still external factors to be considered. One of these factors is demographics.

As all seasoned marketers know, it’s critical to understand your customers. The more you know about them, the better you can become at communicating with them, and at choosing how to communicate with them.

If you have an audience that you know does not like (or perhaps even use) email, then don’t use it. The reverse is also true. If your primary customer base dislikes the use of direct mail for some reason (perhaps they see it as wasteful), then stay away from it—at least when communicated with that customer group.

Conclusion

In the end, I think it’s clear that the relationship between email and direct mail should not need to be dominated by questions of choosing one over the other. Both have their own strengths and weaknesses, and a carefully considered, strategic use of both media might very well yield better overall results that choosing one at the expense of the other.

Together, they can pack a powerful marketing punch.

Let’s look at some of the most common. I’ve broken these out into four different categories, based on the primary motivating factors—benefits, security, financial and urgency. Of course, some of the examples we’ll touch on below will tend to fit into multiple categories, so I’ve tried to break them out by their primary motivator.

Benefits

Benefit-based calls to action focus specifically on the benefits (not the features) that a particular product or service will offer to the customer.

<ACT> and <BENEFIT>

Using this model, you are asking the customer to perform a desired action in order to recieve a particular benefit. For example:

• Call today and start earning more money
• Visit us at the Home Show and ask us for your FREE planning kit

Learn how to <BENEFIT>

This is a great one for education-based organizations or websites. The idea is to motivate the customer by helping them learn how to achieve a particular benefit for themselves. Examples would include:

• Learn how to speak French in just 30 days
• Learn to build an eye-catching resume

<BENEFIT> for only <PRICE>

This CTA formula reaches into the area of finance, which we’ll cover below, but I include it here because it starts with the benefit. The idea is to present the customer with the benefit, and then motivate them into action with an awesome price point. Something like:

• Lose 20lbs for only $40
• Help us feed a hungry child for only $1 a day

Join <COUNT> who have <BENEFIT>

People like to be a part of the crowd. They also like products or services with a track record of success. This type of CTA plays on both of these desires, by encouraging the reader to become one of a (preferably large) number of satisfied customers. You could write things like:

• Join more than 500,000 happy couples who have found love on our site
• Join the 10,000+ students who are paying off their loans faster

Security

Security can be a strong motivating factor. People will be more inclined to try something new if they feel that there is no (or at least minimal) risk involved.

Try <PRODUCT> risk-free

Be explicit about removing the risk. With this type of CTA, you cut straight to the heart of the security issue, by assuring the customer that there is no risk involved.

• Try our AccountMax Suite, risk-free
• Try the Ab Crusher yourself, risk-free

Of course, you may need to qualify exactly what you mean by risk free. Are you offering a trial period during which the customer does not have to pay? Does your product come with an extended warranty? These types of details can be important.

<BENEFIT>, Guaranteed

Another way to help eliminate the issue of risk is through the use of a guarantee. With this type of CTA, you take a bold stance and openly guarantee that the customer will achieve a particular benefit. Consider these bold statements:

• The best sleep you’ve ever had, guaranteed
• Cut your mobile computing costs in HALF, guaranteed

Financial

Not every business transaction is entirely about money, but it’s certainly a big part of the equation. If you can help customers feel like they are saving money or getting a deal, that can help motivate them to action.

Save <X> on <PRODUCT>

This is a classic. Just come right out with your offer and tell the customer exactly how much they will save on their purchase. You can position this as either a percentage or a hard dollar value:

• Save 20% on SiqDeck skateboards
• Save $100 on the FlipPad 9000s

FREE <PRODUCT>

Everyone likes free stuff, right? Some people will even go out of their way to get their hands on freebies. Why not consider a CTA that builds on this impulse, by offering some sort of free product (or service)? For example:

• Get a FREE Report on the future of Web development
• We want to give you a FREE appetizer

If you are looking to motivate a particular action, sometimes you may need to add a further qualifier to explain the context of the offer. For example, our second example might read:

• Get a FREE appetizer with the purchase of any 2 entrées

Buy <X> and Get <X>

In a way, this is very similar to the <ACTION> for <BENEFIT> CTA, but with a very specific action and financial benefit. When the customer purchases a given amount of product (or service), they then receive another amount of product for free or for a discounted rate. There are all kinds of variations on this kind of CTA, the most classic likely being the basic BOGO (Buy One, Get One) configuration. Of course, there are many other variations that you could use:

• Buy 3 books, Get 1 half-price
• Buy 2 suits, Get 1 FREE

The Rewards Program

This CTA is built on the same basic principal as the Buy <X> and Get <X> CTA, except that it tends to be extended over a period of multiple purchases, rewarding customers for their continued patronage. You could establish your own rewards program, or partner with an established program:

• After 5 visits, the 6th is FREE
• Earn 1000 FREE Airmiles

Urgency

People are busy, and while they may be interested in your offer, they may also set it aside, with every intention of getting back to it later. Despite all the best intentions in the world, however, this can lead to your piece and/or message being forgotten. Adding a sense of urgency to your CTA can be an effective way of breaking through the procrastination barrier.

The interesting thing about-urgency based calls to action is that they usually work best when used to amplify the effectiveness of one of the other types of CTAs. We’ll look at how this works in a number of the examples below.

Limited Time Offer

One simple way of creating urgency is to present a limited time offer, implying that there is only a very narrow window in which the customer can take advantage of your offer. For example:

• For a limited time, purchase 1 website theme and get the second FREE!
• Until March 1st, save up to 50% on all winter apparel

As you can see in both of these examples, the sense of urgency is used primarily as a means of amplifying an existing CTA.

While Supplies Last

Another way of building urgencty into your CTA is through the use of a limited supply. Sometimes, this limit might be built right in to your offer due to actual supply limits. You may only have 500 copies of a limited run book, for example. Other times, you may simply designate a portion of your inventory as the “promotional supply” and count down from this.

Either way, the idea is to encourage customers to take action quickly, so as to not miss out on your amazing offering. Two different ways of phrasing this concept might be:

• While supplies last, you can get the amazing RetroWidget for just $20.
• Visit us today and receive our FREE guide to better eating. While supplies last.

First Number People

Though very similar to the While Supplies Last CTA, this one shifts the focus back onto the customer, by stating that only a certain number of people will be able to take advantage of the offer. While this can certainly help to add urgency to your offer, it can also help instill a sense of exclusivity, through which the customer can feel part of a select group. This is especially true if the number is small. Some uses of this CTA might be:

• Be one of the first 25 registrants and receive a FREE iPad
• The first 10,000 fans receive a FREE bobblehead

Conclusion

As you can see, there are all kinds of different ways of constructing your call to action—and this list is far from exhaustive. Nor are any of the examples set in stone. You can play with the wording and phrasing to suit your needs, or use these examples as inspiration for an entirely different sort of CTA.

Either way, we hope that some of these ideas will prove useful to you as you work to develop a call to action that motivates your customers and helps drive your overall sales.

Wonder what RPN stands for? How about:

• Reverse, Park, Neutral
• Regional, Provincial, National
• Really Powerful Notion

RPN would work as an acronym for all of these, but in this instance, RPN stands for Repositionable Notes. I suppose it could have simply been RN, but RPN does have a nicer ring to it.

So, what is an RPN exactly? Basically, it’s a Post-It Note with extra glue that is machine-applied to certain mailing pieces. Very cool—a Post-It note on the outside of a mailing piece. But does it work? Well, according to an article in Direct Marketing News a few years back, Rogers experienced open rate increases upwards of 100% when using RPNs. Impressive!

“But,” you may ask, “if they’re that good, why doesn’t everybody use them?”

Well, one of the challenges has been that the minimum order quantity for RPNs used to be 10,000, which was a bit too steep for those mailing in smaller volumes. That being said, as with “all things neat” (be they die cuts or a snazzy carrier for product sampling), RPNs do add to the overall expense, BUT (and it’s a big BUT) additional investments like these usually do pay larger dividends.

All of our organizations are different, and each of us will have different ways that we might want to use RPNs. Here are a few examples:

• highlight an ad or article on a given page of a catalogue, newsletter, magazine etc.
• reminder of a trade show or event
• reminder to order or send something in by a given date
• simply provide your particulars on a sticky note that people will stick on their fridge or computer or whatever

So, what is driving our renewed interest in RPNs at this time? Well, we did promote RPNs heavily a few years ago and we have bandied the idea around with different clients. More to the point, a client just ordered 30,000 RPNs for an upcoming mailing. It’s a great application too, as it will be reminding people of an important industry event. Additionally, another client, who mails in smaller quantities of 1,500 to 5,000, is looking for something that he can use to apply corporate particulars to the outside of his catalogues. He is considering RPNs and 10,000 of these could easily be used up over a couple of different mailings.

As mentioned above, we did wave the RPN flag pretty hard a few years back. I guess some ideas just take a bit of time to mature or find a use. The bottom line is that we have always liked the idea of RPNs and we have just the machine to apply them.

We’d sure like to chat more about RPNs with you, so why not give us a call? We would love to toss a few ideas around. RPNs are a great little marketing tool. Maybe we ought to call them ”Really Powerful Notes”!

Of course, as Lettermail travels by air and arrives within a few days, it can usually solve your delivery problems, but often at quite a cost—a cost that you may not be willing to bear.

At Highland Marketing, we have developed an effective program for establishing and maintaining a balance between cost and delivery times. We call it the 9-Day program and it certainly works well for mailing Addressed Admail destined outside of Ontario.

Through an analysis of delivery times for postal codes right across the country, we have determined that there are relatively few instances where delivery will take more than 9 business days for Addressed Admail mailed from Southern Ontario. Based on this, we wrote a computer program that analyzes your mailing list, flagging any records that will require 9 or more days for delivery. Generally speaking, the flagged records usually account for less than 7% of mailing lists with relatively even national distribution.

As an example (using 2012 rates), if we were mailing 10,000 pieces right across the country, 7% of the file would account for only 700 records. If we mail these 700 pieces as Oversize Lettermail at $1.29 each and the other 9,300 records as Oversize Addressed Admail, at an average cost of $0.60 each, our total postage cost will be $6,483. This comes out to an average cost of $0.6483 per address for the 10,000 records.

Mailing all the pieces as Addressed Admail would cost somewhere in the range of $6,000, and delivery for all pieces would take up to 3 weeks. Using our 9-Day program, we are able to improve the overall experience by bringing delivery times for all of the samples into the 9 day range, all for just an extra $483.

Cautionary Notes:

1. Although Addressed Admail and Lettermail may often look the same, there are subtle differences in specifications. Therefore, if you plan to use a combination of Addressed Admail and Lettermail for items within the same campaign, be sure to check the specs for each to ensure that you are compliant with both. Otherwise, your efforts to optimize delivery might end up costing considerably more that you had planned.

2. There is no Lettermail counterpart for Dimensional Addressed Admail, other than parcel, which is almost always cost prohibitive. That said, we cannot use our 9-Day program for Dimensional Addressed Admail mailings.

If you would like to add our 9-Day service to your next national mailing campaign, just give us a call. As the title says, the 9-Day program really delivers.

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.

Let’s face it, every time we mail promotional items or interact with customers or prospects we should be trying to a) foster existing relationships or b) create new meaningful relationships. So, what people really think of what we send them and what we do are very important.

Not all things suit all people, but sometimes things do fit nicely. We have often said that it is not our intention to tell people what to do, but what they might consider. That said, here are some ideas on adding value.

Newsletters That Entertain

While some newsletters are very business like, others are lighter in nature. In addition to information on products, services and special offers, they often include entertaining anecdotes as well as recipes and household tips. When these types of pieces arrive in our plant for mail prep, our plant workers are often compelled to read them. That in itself is a strong testament to their appeal.

Adding Some “How To”

Whether included in a newsletter or catalogue, posted on a web site or delivered in person, a little bit of “How To” is a great way to add value.

By their very nature, catalogues provide information on products and services and sometimes we see display ads for featured products. But some catalogues also provide brief articles on how to do certain things or overcome specific challenges. I recall a column in a technical catalogue that was a good example of this. The catalogue featured networking hardware and software and the column covered day to day network issues, how to maximize performance on different topologies, intra-networking gateways etc. The company did not have to include this column, but as the networking field was still fairly young, the content provided considerable value to the customer base and also helped to further reinforce the company’s expertise in this field. Although it took a bit of time to prepare the articles for each issue, I believe that it was a wonderful way to add value.

Of course these things are not restricted to what we mail. Interestingly, just yesterday I received an article on “10 Tips for Winter Workouts”, electronically, from a group that I subscribe to. Along this same line, many businesses within our industry, including ourselves, post web content to show clients options for different types of mailers as well as tips for staying within the most cost-effective mailing classifications.

Lastly, I want to note that sometimes you can personally deliver “How To”. I have a friend that enjoyed a very successful career selling aluminum extrusions. I recall him explaining to me one day that when a client was looking at a new concept he would often sketch out the fundamentals for the type of die that would be required. With his education and experience, he was well qualified to do this. There were two major benefits. First, he could be assured that the client was getting something that would work. Secondly, there was the value that he provided to his clients with the “added touch” of his design services. This was great way for him to personally deliver some “How To” and it served him very well.

Samples, Gifts and Novelty Items

Sampling has been a critical component of direct marketing for some of our clients for many years. Where products and services do not lend themselves to sending product samples, many other clients opt to mail small, useful gifts or novelty items that are usually linked to a specific campaign.

Sampling campaigns can be driven in many different ways. Consumers or businesses can request samples via websites, magazine ads, 1-800 numbers etc. Optionally, highly qualified lists can be purchased for segmented targeting, based on a variety of conditions.

It’s always nice to get things for free. It’s even better when it really suits someone’s specific needs and it adds value to the relationship.

Of course, if you have great product that lends itself to sampling this is one of the best ways to get your product into the hands of potential customers. If they try it and like it, there is a very good chance that they will buy it!

Summary

These are some of the ways that our customers and associates currently add value. I am sure that you can think of many more. When it comes to adding value, I think the famous quote by Carl W. Buehner sums it up very well – “They may forget what you said, but they will never forget how you made them feel.” This message carries a lot of value in itself and I like it so much that I often use it in the signature block of my emails.

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.

If you have never used this product, please do not discount it too quickly. Featuring state of the art technology, it allows you to target by a number of demographics including age, income, children etc. and it is a powerful but affordable tool that can help you expand your customer base.

As 2011 begins to wind down, there is a bit of confusion as to how much a given Unaddressed Admail mailing might cost in 2012. This stems from the facts that a) as of April 23, 2012 there will be a 1.5 cent surcharge¹ for pieces delivered on High Demand Routes and b) during 6 months of the year there will be a 10% discount applied to the base rate.

Of course, we must also take into account that we have both Basic rates and Premium rates for Delivery to Businesses, Oversize Pieces and “Specified Delivery Dates”. Lastly, don’t forget that the criteria for Standard size varies depending on whether you are mailing through letter carrier offices or non-letter carrier offices.

The table below illustrates different postage rates for both Basic and Premium Addressed Admail for 2012. Note that these increases are effective on January 16, 2012 and that the surcharge for High Demand Routes begins on April 23, 2012.

Table of Non-Contract Unaddressed Admail Postage Rates for 2012

Notes:

• all prices shown to 4 decimals, as we are uncertain how rounding will be applied
• all prices below are for items weighing up to 50 grams
• Canada Post transportation fee (optional) of $0.008 not included
• HDR denotes High Demand Route
• seasonal discount has not been applied to HDR Surcharge

* As of January 16, 2012
**As of April 23, 2012

Although the pricing may appear confusing on the surface, this table allows you to see at a glance what you would pay for postage in any given month and is a handy tool in Unaddressed Admail campaign planning (so feel free to bookmark this post for future reference).

I also want to note that, if these rates seem a bit expensive when compared to delivery through your local newspaper, there are some real benefits with Unaddressed Admail that you just don’t get elsewhere. Volume contracts are also available, starting at 100,000 pieces per year.

Canada Post is the Keeper of the Keys

Canada Post is the only keeper of the keys for apartment and condo mailboxes. These delivery addresses represent a broad range of income earners and interest groups and can make up a large percentage of a target market.

Powerful Targeting Tools

We also can’t forget the value of Canada Post’s GeoPost system, which will soon be known as “Data and Targeting Solutions”. This system allows us to target pretty much whomever we want to reach by demographics, distances and clusters of similar consumers. I have written before about how direct mail allows you to decide whom you want to mail to. While this may not be as target-specific as Addressed Admail, it does allow you to reach a fairly high percentage of addresses within a target group.

So, shortly into the New Year, we will be looking at quite different pricing for the Unaddressed Admail product. You likely know the best times to promote your business. However, using the table above, you can decide if you might be able to enjoy both a “best time” and “best price” mailing date, or where you might compromise to come up with your optimum time(s) to mail.

If you have any questions regarding the new pricing for Unaddressed Admail or the new targeting tools, call Highland Marketing today. One of our seasoned mailing professionals would be pleased to help you.

¹ Canada Post refers to this as a “premium”. However, given that there are both Basic and Premium services levels and that the 1.5 cent premium can be applicable to both, we have opted to use the term surcharge to avoid using the word premium in two different contexts.