With the postal service making news again due to a request in rate hikes some feel that this news is putting the final nails in the coffin for direct mail marketing. It is already being seen as an expensive form of advertising that has little if any return on investment. To this statement I will respond with an expression my grandfather used to use: BALDERDASH!
The only thing that will kill off direct mail marketing as part of an overall cross media marketing campaign is not using direct mail as it should be used.
It galls me to hear and see marketers and advertisers waving their hands in the air saying the sky is falling on direct mail marketing like Henny Penny. When they do that kind of thing the masses follow along like Goosey Lucy, reiterating what they hear as being truth.
Direct mail marketing can be and is an effective means of advertising capable of bringing in a high return on investment. The failure to do so lies in the hands of marketers who do not use the proper tools along with direct mail to begin with. Why? I have been asking myself that question for a very long time.
As with any kind of marketing, if you are not directing your advertising to the people who can and will use your services, you are only throwing something against the wall to see if it will stick. It matters not if your idea will save millions of people billions of dollars if you are not getting the message out to the public that matters the most: the ones that need it. Direct mail marketing is no different in that regard. A company has to find the right niche of clientele.
And that is not only possible but it is smart marketing.
There are any number of companies that now offer data segmentation lists specifically tailored to a business's needs. It used to be that list providers were limited to carrier route lists. A business could only hope that by flooding the market in one particular area that someone would notice and come by to see what you had to offer. That time is long gone. Now there is not only the ability to send a direct mail piece to a select area but also to send them to consumers whose lifestyle or preferences indicate that your message is an answer to their needs, wants or desires. And it is not only B2C companies that can benefit from using a data segmentation list. B2B companies have the same ability with specified business data lists. The possibilities of how specifically targeted a direct mail piece can be is almost endless in this day and age.
As with any one to one marketing strategy, if you market wisely your return on investment makes the cost worth it. Simply put would you rather spend $1,000 to advertise to 750 people hoping a handful will even bother to take you up on an offer or call to action or would you rather spend that same dollar amount and market to 200 people which will have a 10-15% response rate. Hmmm it seems simple enough to me which way to invest my marketing dollar.
For those in the marketing world who want to be Henny Penny when it comes to direct mail marketing, go ahead. I will be the one sitting in the corner counting the money made from my last direct mail marketing campaign while you struggle to figure out why your last campaign came crashing down on your head.
My marketing sky is still sunny and blue. How does yours look?
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