Making Direct Mail Work

Direct mail is still is very valuable lead generation tool for companies looking to reach specific target markets. It's a cost-effective way to reach multiple decision-makers within organizations with personalized, specific messages - especially effective when you're trying to generate leads and build brand awareness for your products and services. And because it's relatively easy to analyze, direct mail continues to provide a high level of both accountability and measurability.

Many companies rely on direct mail as a foundation upon which they build the majority of their lead generation activities. To provide even greater return rates, direct mail can easily and effectively be integrated with almost every other marketing medium.

Yet despite all the positive aspects of direct mail - many companies still complain that direct mail "doesn't work". Like many marketing efforts, direct mail is both an art and a science. While you could have great copywriting and the most creative packaging, if you're not mailing to the right list - then you're direct mail campaign is not going to "work". It only takes one piece of the direct mail puzzle being out of place to negatively impact your campaign.

Direct mail can still be an effective way to generate leads. However, in today's economy it requires almost perfect development and execution.

Here are a few proven direct mail ideas and techniques that will help make your direct mail work:

• Integrate your web marketing with your direct mail. Put your direct mail offer on your web site or at least, give the reader the opportunity to go to the web site to get the offer in addition to using a BRC, BRE or fax. The web is also a great place to put multiple offers - allowing you to further qualify the lead based on their response.
• Don't assume. When writing your copy, don't assume the reader knows anything about you, your company or your products and services
• Start with the list. The single most important part of your direct mail campaign is your list. What's the best list you can use? Your in-house database list. If you don't already have one - start building it, today.
• Make it easy to respond. Allow companies multiple options to respond to your offer. Offer them the ability to visit your web site, as well as traditional response vehicles such as BRE's, BRC's, fax-back forms, etc.
• Make sure your offer has value. Always use an offer or premium in your direct mail. And when doing so - make sure that offer has value to the reader. The same offer or premium for a President or CEO might not work as well for a Plant Manager or CFO. Always keep in mind the personal aspect of your solution and related offer - not just the business solution.
• Build your own benchmarks. How successful was your last direct mail campaign? Forget trying to compare your results to any industry standard benchmark. Only you can determine if your campaign was successful. And the only way to do that is by testing and measuring ROI all the way from cost per piece through cost per close. Make sure you have your testing and measurement metrics in place before your next mailing. It's the only way to know how successful you've been.
• Integrate your direct mail. Direct mail is a great compliment to almost every other lead generating medium. Maintain the same look and feel throughout all of your activities and you'll not only generate more leads, you'll continue to develop brand awareness in your target markets as well.
• Mail to multiple decision makers. Not only are decisions almost always made by a committee, but multiple people within an organization may be involved in the initial product or vendor selection. Mail your lead generation offer to the same group of people that will be making the decisions - not just one person in the organization.
• Vary your packaging. It's impossible to know how your reader will react to your package. For every person that opens your direct mail piece because it's appealing and "eye-catching" another will toss it out as junk mail. By varying your packaging you have the greatest chance of getting your mailing opened by a specific target.
• Blind title mailings. Blind title mailings are a great way to expand your current mailing lists. After mailing to the contact name on the list, simply take out the contact name and substitute a generic business title (eg: Plant Manager, Controller, etc). When doing a blind title mailing it's extremely important to make sure your copy and offer are relevant to the title to which you are mailing.
• Stay with what works. When you've found a direct mail campaign that works - keep using it until you can statistically prove it has stopped working. You will almost always get tired of your campaigns before your prospects will.