While targeting and technology can reduce costs, Direct Mail is always going to have a higher unit cost than its email equivalent. That's a simple fact that we can't change but what we can do is ensure that every penny counts, and one factor that we haven't discussed before is ensuring that your mailers reach their intended recipients.
Here at Isle of Man Post Office, we offer our clients direct access to a postal service that covers both the UK and international markets, with competitive postal rates. We also work in very close partnership with Royal Mail, which operates one of the best postal systems in the world. While that is all a given however, it's still worth building in a few simple steps to ensure the effectiveness of your campaign.
Step 1: Plant Some Seeds
It's always worth adding a few extra names into your list of trusted people who will let you know when they receive their mailer, and what condition it's in. It only needs to be four or five per thousand, but ensure they have a good geographical spread. This will give you an accurate picture of the reliability of the postal service you're using.
Step 2: Evaluate Ruthlessly
Your next campaign will only be as good as the evaluation of your last one. Take time, and invest in resources, to look at your last campaign. What worked and what didn't? What age groups and demographics responded? Did the design and incentive work? All these things can help you to ensure that your next campaign is more effective.
Step 3: Take Your Responses Online
By far the simplest way to monitor the response rates for your Direct Mail campaign is to build in an online response mechanism. This is not only simpler and more convenient for the customer, offering instant gratification, it also means you can automatically track response rates in real time. This will ultimately save you time and resources, as well as helping you to adjust your strategy in response.
None of this is rocket science. In fact, it's well within the limits of what current technology can offer. It doesn't need to cost you any more either, but it will save you money and maximise ROI. Find out how Secure Direct Mail can help you achieve maximum effectiveness from your DM campaigns. Contact the team on 01624 698488 or email securedirectmail@iompost.com.