A recent USA TODAY/Gallup poll finds most americans are ok with 5-day mail. The results were based on telephone interviews with 999 adults ages 18 to over 55. The study found that younger americans use the Postal Service less than older Americans, but they also are less supportive of cutting a day of service. 73% of adults aged 55 and over were in favor of a 5-day mail service. To read the full article, click here.
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Commemorative E-Ink Esquire Cover Continues to be YouTube Fave!
I was recently on YouTube and was pleased to see that the 2008 commemorative E-Ink cover we produced for Esquire is still being viewed on YouTube, 384,566 views, to be exact. If you haven’t seen it already, take a look:
Study finds that Print Magazine Advertising will grow in 2010
A new study by research and advisory board Outsell predicts that print magazine advertising will grow despite the popularity of online advertising. It is forecasted to be up 1.9% to $9.4 billion. To generate this report, Outsell surveyed more than 1,000 US Advertisers.
Click here to read the article.
Project Feature: American Airlines Extendo
One of our projects this year was recently featured by DMNews in an article about creative campaigns. The blurb about the project was very brief so we wanted to tell you a little bit more about it!
American Airlines, through its agency TM Advertising, approached Structural Graphics about a highly targeted mailer for their Business Advantage members. The campaign was dubbed “Can I get miles with this?” and featured two versions; one with a parachute (seen in the picture) and the other with a running of the bulls.
Structural Graphics designed a special Extendo™ that featured a pull tab on one end and the parachute on the other end. When the tab is pulled, the parachute came flying out the other end.
The mailer was so creative and different that the client did not want it to be put in an envelope. Unfortunately, the piece itself was not a self-mailer, but SG solved the problem by creating a special custom envelope that featured an oversized window on one side so the recipient could see what was inside. Better yet, the envelope passed as a First Class letter size so postage was less than expected.
The entire project was completed in three weeks do to the client’s tight timeframe. We were really pleased with the outcome and the great results the client received.
New Study Finds that Insurance Companies Upheld Direct Mail Volumes Through 2009
Mintel Comperemedia, a service that provides direct marketing competitive intelligence, just issued a report that states that, despite budget cuts and the growing strengh of social media, insurance companies upheld direct mail volumes throughout 2009.
Daniel Hayes, VP of insurance services at Mintel Comperemedia, comments:
“Insurance companies continue to rely on direct mail to communicate with clients and prospective clients. In the face of social media, direct mail is still one of the best ways to put an insurance offer in front of an unfamiliar client. It can even drive people towards a company’s social media website. Direct mail’s strength lies in its ability to present ample information and to cement a company’s brand message with other media forms.”
Click here to read the full article.
Thoughts on a snowy Tuesday, losing Saturday delivery
It’s always relaxing to watch the snow pile up on my office windowsill on these chilly winter mornings. However, today the tranquility was interrupted by the loud hum of our local postal delivery Jeep clamoring up the road. Conditions outside were pretty slick so I was surprised to see her making her deliveries so early. It reminded me of the recent rumors that the US Postal Service is going to discontinue Saturday delivery service. I wondered what affect that would have, if any.
Rumors begin in mid 2009 that the US Postal 
Service will discontinue delivery service on Saturdays to help reduce the $7.8 billion loss projections for the 2010 fiscal year. Despite that, the President’s budget for fiscal year 2011 includes language that suggests the administration does not support that change.
In a recent article by DMNews Joseph Corbett, the Postal Service’s CFO and EVP said that the elimination of Saturday delivery is “the single most effective way to reduce costs,” especially as mail volumes decline and are not expected to return to their earlier levels of 200 billion pieces.
The article goes on to explain how Congress has reacted to the plan.
This month, the Postal Service plans to release its operational plan for transitioning to five-day-a-week delivery. However, there has been little enthusiasm in Congress for service reductions, even as lawmakers acknowledge the USPS’ dire financial situation. Many members of Congress have urged the agency to look at other ways to reduce costs rather than eliminating Saturday delivery.
By eliminating Saturday delivery and processing, the USPS could reduce costs by approximately $3.5 billion annually. Furthermore, this would help to avoid the need for a rate increase in 2010. However, many have argued for a 20% rate increase to avoid such a dramatic change in service. Corbett argues that a rate increase would only contribute to the falling volume of mail and make budget matters worse.
I think most direct mailers would prefer to lose their Saturday service in lieu of a 20% rate increase. What do you think? Sound off on our comments section below!
Read the original DMNews article.
Article in WSJ: Firms Hold Fast to Snail Mail Marketing
The Wall Street Journal recently wrote an article about how firms are using direct mail in their marketing campaigns to generate leads and increase ROI. We’d like to hear from you on this topic. How are you using direct mail?
Click here to read the article
Integrated campaigns are growing in popularity
More and more businesses are utilizing new online marketing opportunities, social networks and even mobile phone apps. However, Twitter, Facebook and iPhone apps aren’t silver bullets and they are more often being combined with traditional offline forms of marketing. Integrated campaigns represent a growing trend amongst marketers to take advantage of the best aspects that each channel has to offer.
The US Census Bureau is running a $133 million dollar campaign created by Draftfcb that includes a microsite, search ads and social networking. These all drive people to the direct mail component of the campaign, the actual census survey. This is the first year the Census Bureau has used an integrated campaign, however during the last census in 2000, they did try search ads which helped reverse the 30 year trend of declining response.
In January FedEx launched their first truly integrated campaign, “We Understand”. The entire campaign is centered around a microsite. All online and offline channels drive people to that site. The campaign which will last the entire year includes email, television, search marketing and direct mail.
According to a recent DMA study, more than 42% of interested direct mail recipients prefer to respond online to a direct mail campaign. Offering these multiple channels of response will simply help increase response. It’s a great example of the symbiotic relationship between online and offline channels.
An increasingly popular component to integrated campaigns is the use of a PURL (personalized URL). A PURL is a database-driven microsite that allows you to personalize the experience for the user. For example, you can setup a custom URL for each one of the prospects on your list: www.example.com/john-doe. It’s an extremely effective way to learn more about your customers and helps you as a marketer tailor your message to exactly what they are interested in.
So what’s the point of all this? Yes, that was rhetorical as the answer is obvious; starting a conversation with your customers. Through the use of an integrated campaign you can find your customers wherever they are hiding, whether it’s in the mailbox, on twitter or facebook, or directly on their mobile phone. Just don’t forget to make it impactful, relevant and engaging.
A Tale of Two Mailings and the Importance of a List
I don’t have to convince any marketers why a good list is important to a mailing. However, I doubt I am the only one that has received a completely irrelevant piece of mail from time to time.
Recently my family booked a cruise with a major cruise line. No sooner did the charge clear on my credit card that I began to receive brochures from several major cruise lines. That seems to be relevant since I am obviously a person who will go on cruises. But perhaps they should have started the mailings a few months or even a year after my cruise. I couldn’t understand why they were trying to sell me a cruise after I just booked one. What was even stranger was that some of mailers came directly from the same cruise line with whom I had just booked!
The motivation for this blog posting came last week when I received five copies of a letter from a major technology company. All of the letters said the exact same thing. This is a large company with a large budget and even they fall victim to a bad list (or bad mailing house.)
What’s ironic about all this is that I receive local mailings and postcards from small companies that are always completely relevant. For example, after we listed our house on the market I received a dozen or so mailers from local moving companies. When my wife first got pregnant and starting seeing a local doctor we started receiving mailings about parenting, insurance, and other adult stuff. Come to think of it, that’s a bit creepy. But it was relevant none the less.
In our business advertisers are making a significant investment in marketing materials that are designed to break through the clutter and get opened. These advertisers are relying on the mailer to perform better than expected because it’s usually something the receiver is not used to seeing; perhaps it’s our ExtendoTM or FlapperTM design; maybe it’s a mailer that makes a noise or has a scent; or maybe it’s a box that pops open and demands attention! Either way, its performance will always be dependant on the strength of the marketer’s list.
Here are some tips for insuring your list is as clean as possible before your mailing:
- Use address verification software, or insure that your mailing provider uses it. This will help update addresses and fix common address errors, such as using “road” instead of “drive.”
- Make sure to include a way for the recipient to update their information or opt out of your mailings; perhaps a special web-based form or a BRC.
- If you don’t already, start to classify your in-house list by interests and ability to buy; 80% of your sales will come from 20% of your customers, so be sure you know who those folks are.
- If renting a list, try using an industry publication or association list instead of a general broker. You’ll find those lists may be a bit more expensive, but at least you’ll know the names are relevant to your business.
- Always use the option “Address Service Requested” for your mailings. If you are using bulk mail you will be charged at the First Class rate for each piece of mail that is returned to you. Isn’t it worth $.44 to know that someone on your list is no longer there?
Your ability to reach and motivate your target audience will always depend on your offer and, of course, the mailer. However your list is the building block of your campaign and without it, the tower will fall. As for the recent direct mail mishaps that landed at my doorstep, I am sure there is a perfectly reasonable explanation for the mix up. Maybe the five letters was intentional. It not only broke through the clutter, it was the clutter.
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Our Healthy Choice Box is Famous!
We recently worked with GW Hoffman Advertising to design and produce this “little box” for their client ConAgra Foods’ as part of a new Healthy Choice online coupon campaign. Approximately 2,100,000 miniature boxes were produced with a call to action to visit the Healthy Choice website to redeem the $2 off coupon. These were mailed to corporate offices and handed to employees as part of the promotion. The little box is featured in Healthy Choice’s new TV commercial which stars Julia Louis Dreyfus. Click here to watch it on the Healthy Choice website and then click on the “See How It All Began” tab at the bottom. We hope you enjoy it!
