Join | Member Login
Arlington (VA) Chamber of Commerce | Arlington, VA 22201
  • Membership
    • Membership Benefits
    • Join Now!
    • Chamber Assisted Grand Openings
    • Chamber Member Retirement Program
    • ShopChamber
    • Advertising >
      • Website Ads
      • E-Newsletter Ads
      • Print Ads
    • Committees
    • LeadShare
    • Annual Corporate Sponsors
    • Member Login
  • Business Directory
  • Events
    • Chamber Calendar
    • Community Calendar >
      • Submit a Community Event
    • Networking Events >
      • Chamber 101
      • Breakfast Connection
      • Business After Business
    • Signature Events >
      • Arlington Business Gala
      • Hospitality Awards
      • Legislative Breakfast
      • Arlington Chamber Volunteer Day
      • AWE Women in Business Summit
      • Best Business Awards
      • State of the County & Public Safety Awards
      • Annual Meeting
    • Educational Events
    • Women in Business
    • Travel
    • Online Learning Center
    • COVID-19 Event Policy
  • Community
    • Arlington Restaurant Week
    • Small Business Accelerator
    • Early Childhood Financial Resiliency Accelerator
    • Coronavirus Resources
    • Coupons
    • Job Board
    • Scholarship Fund
    • About Arlington >
      • Business Resources
      • Map of the Area
      • Visiting Arlington
  • Business Advocacy
    • Public Policy Positions
    • Arlington Advocacy >
      • Budget & Taxes
      • Planning
      • Project Support
      • Economic Development
      • Processes
      • Retail & Signage
      • Transportation
    • Virginia Advocacy >
      • Budget & Taxes
      • Transportation
      • Economic Development
      • Other Topics
    • Recent Advocacy
  • About the Chamber
    • Board of Directors
    • Staff Directory
    • Chamber in the News
    • Strategic Plan
    • FAQs
    • Blog
    • Publications >
      • Arlingtonian Archives
      • Arlingtonian Archives
    • Press Releases
    • Contact Us
  • Membership
    • Membership Benefits
    • Join Now!
    • Chamber Assisted Grand Openings
    • Chamber Member Retirement Program
    • ShopChamber
    • Advertising >
      • Website Ads
      • E-Newsletter Ads
      • Print Ads
    • Committees
    • LeadShare
    • Annual Corporate Sponsors
    • Member Login
  • Business Directory
  • Events
    • Chamber Calendar
    • Community Calendar >
      • Submit a Community Event
    • Networking Events >
      • Chamber 101
      • Breakfast Connection
      • Business After Business
    • Signature Events >
      • Arlington Business Gala
      • Hospitality Awards
      • Legislative Breakfast
      • Arlington Chamber Volunteer Day
      • AWE Women in Business Summit
      • Best Business Awards
      • State of the County & Public Safety Awards
      • Annual Meeting
    • Educational Events
    • Women in Business
    • Travel
    • Online Learning Center
    • COVID-19 Event Policy
  • Community
    • Arlington Restaurant Week
    • Small Business Accelerator
    • Early Childhood Financial Resiliency Accelerator
    • Coronavirus Resources
    • Coupons
    • Job Board
    • Scholarship Fund
    • About Arlington >
      • Business Resources
      • Map of the Area
      • Visiting Arlington
  • Business Advocacy
    • Public Policy Positions
    • Arlington Advocacy >
      • Budget & Taxes
      • Planning
      • Project Support
      • Economic Development
      • Processes
      • Retail & Signage
      • Transportation
    • Virginia Advocacy >
      • Budget & Taxes
      • Transportation
      • Economic Development
      • Other Topics
    • Recent Advocacy
  • About the Chamber
    • Board of Directors
    • Staff Directory
    • Chamber in the News
    • Strategic Plan
    • FAQs
    • Blog
    • Publications >
      • Arlingtonian Archives
      • Arlingtonian Archives
    • Press Releases
    • Contact Us

ChAmber Blog

How to Create an Effective Direct Mail Campaign

8/14/2019

0 Comments

 
By Tony Hill, Alphagraphics 
Picture
​Prior to the advent of the internet and online advertising as we know it, businesses and organizations relied heavily upon direct mail as their main marketing channel. It was a time-tested and reliable way of driving new leads and foot traffic through the front door.
 
Over the past few years, the costs of paid online advertising have gotten so competitive and cost-prohibitive that many companies are now once again turning to direct mail.
 
Unlike paid ads, of which someone can instantly delete with the click of a mouse button, direct mail is a physical, tangible connection to your business. Designed and executed properly, it can create an emotional connection and generate new leads and business. 

We’re going to look at five ways you can create more effective direct mail campaigns:

Segment Your Lists
 
Long gone are the days of sending out mass mailers to a general audience and expecting a flood of new business to walk through your front door. People and consumers nowadays want personalization, and the best way to achieve that is through list segmentation.
 
By segmenting your lists and crafting a message that solves a particular pain point or issue, you’ll capture the attention of more people.
 
For example, if you’re a dentist and can segment your customer list into individual buckets, you can tailor your direct mailers to individuals who are due for their annual teeth cleaning.
The response rate will be much greater than if you were to send out that same mailer to a general audience, as only a fraction of those people would respond.

Include a Call-to-Action
 
Your call-to-action (CTA) can either make or break your direct mail campaign. If your CTA is too weak, or not appropriate, people won’t know what to do after they’ve read your mailer. CTA’s are vital because they ask people to take a specific action:
 
•    Call us!
•    Visit our website!
•    Stop by within 5 days to use this coupon!
 
Keep in mind that if your CTA’s are too complicated people will most likely ignore rather than take the time to figure it out. Your call-to-action should be simple, clear, and straight-forward.
 
The Design
 
The design of a mailer is another critical aspect that can dramatically affect response rates. This is why many businesses leave direct mail design up to the experts. The proper way to design a direct mailer can take up a series of blog posts, so in the interest of time and space we’ll look at the elements you should take into consideration:
 
•    Headlines
•    Sub-headlines
•    Color
•    Graphics
•    High-quality materials (texture, shape, feel of the mailer)
 
All of the above elements combine to make a direct mail piece stand out and irresistible to open. Glossy coupon books and postcard size mailers are just two of many examples of how you can make your mailer look and feel different than the standard catalog or flyers that people are so used to receiving.
 
Encourage a Website Visit
 
Many companies and organizations are engaging in hybrid direct mail campaigns with great success. Just because direct mail is old school, doesn’t mean you can’t take advantage of new technology.
 
You should also encourage people to visit your website or Facebook page in the body of your message or the CTA. A great way to entice them to visit your site or page is to create an online-only offer.
 
If you’d like a more complete demographic picture of your clients or customers, you can add a form to your site that will offer a coupon if they provide personal information such as age, marital status, or anything else you can think of that will give your business a leg up when it comes time to re-market.
 
Track and Measure
 
If you view direct mail as putting a message in a bottle and throwing it into the proverbial ocean, you’re doing it all wrong. Direct mail can and should be tracked. You can buy custom phone numbers or sign up for specialized call tracking services that will give you an indication which mailer/demographic/message is driving the most traffic.
 
You can also have multiple websites set up that have analytics tracking software running in the background. This way, you can see exactly which landing pages people visited, and that will give you a clue as to which mailers are performing the best.
 
As time goes by, keep testing and refining until you have a winner!
0 Comments

Your comment will be posted after it is approved.


Leave a Reply.

    The mission of the Arlington Chamber of Commerce is to strengthen businesses and the economic environment for those who work, live and do business in Arlington.
    Picture
    Contribute to the blog!
    Educate the Chamber membership and Arlington business community by writing a post for our blog! To get started download the blog guidelines and blog template. For questions and more information, contact the Communications Manager.

    Archives

    March 2023
    February 2023
    January 2023
    December 2022
    November 2022
    October 2022
    September 2022
    August 2022
    July 2022
    June 2022
    May 2022
    April 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    December 2021
    November 2021
    October 2021
    September 2021
    August 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013
    October 2013
    September 2013
    August 2013
    July 2013
    June 2013
    May 2013
    April 2013

    RSS Feed

© Copyright 2023 Arlington Chamber of Commerce. All rights reserved.
2009 14th Street, North  | Suite 100 | Arlington, VA 22201 | Directions
Tel (703) 525-2400 | chamber@arlingtonchamber.org
MemberClicks
Subscribe to This Week At Your Chamber
For Email Marketing you can trust.
Home | ​Join Now | Site Map