Direct mail, Direct marketing

Many companies, particularly some in the financial services sector, appear to have forgotten the targeting benefits of Direct Mail. They seem to blanket mail the entire population over and over again. They use Direct Marketing like TV or national press advertising. Well our thinking is different. We've all heard unfortunate stories of ghastly mistakes that have been made in mailing 'gone-away' in every sense of the phrase.

It's all a question of planning, verification and understanding your audience. We believe that Direct Marketing works best when it is targeted to carefully defined audiences with messages relevant to them.

That means uncovering the right audience and the creative insights that will trigger the highest response levels. This is how we apply to every Direct Marketing campaign.

Costs.

Low if done in large quantities.

Persuasive or manipulative?

Glossy brochures and lots of printed content can be persuasive, but manipulative for only some people.

Time/space and other restrictions.

Can be sent any time if the home/office address is known.

How many people respond positively?

Depends on quality of offer and presentation. They are relatively cheap, so a low response rate is fine.

Comment....

Direct mail, or for mass markets, letter box drops can be respectful, informative and inviting introductions to new products. People know that door-to-door and outbound telemarketing is expensive and wasteful, so they expect the product to be over-priced to pay for this style of marketing.

How objectionable is it for those who don't like it?

Some people hate junk mail, but others find it an excellent source of product information. One advantage is that you can often tell from the envelope what it is about and so prioritise the opening of mail to minimise wasted time.

Comment....

Direct mail, or for mass markets, letter box drops can be respectful, informative and inviting introductions to new products. People know that door-to-door and outbound telemarketing is expensive and wasteful, so they expect the product to be over-priced to pay for this style of marketing.

How informative can it be?

Can be extremely informative. Text, graphics, pictures, forms etc. A huge amount of info can be sent for a dollar or so

Comment....

Direct mail is informative and cheap and personally directed.

Can the consumer keep material for future reference?

Yes, and give it to others, or photocopy it.

Comment....

If a direct mailing is potentially interesting, the potential customer may keep it until they are ready to take the matter further.

Can it include a Service Transfer Form?

Yes, with an envelope and all relevant explanations.

Is this the least intrusive way of being exposed to similar or greater information about services?

No - any form of advertising followed by the consumer requesting mailed info.

Comment....

An advert with a large amount of detail is very expensive, so direct mail is particularly suited to informing niche market consumers about complex products.

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