Generate repeat business by selling in the direct mail arena.
With knowledge of the processes involved, distributors can successfully sell direct mail pieces to generate profits and repeat business.
Bob Nesbit, vice president of sales and marketing for CDCI in Dayton, Ohio, believes that one factor that contributes to the popularity of direct mail is that it can always be measured and tested.
"After establishing a control group that doesn't receive mail at all, different creative approaches and offers can be tested," noted Nesbit. "The idea is to try to continually beat the control group so that distributors may provide a package that creates the greatest return on investment."
He reminded that the package that beats the control group doesn't have to be the most expensive, as price doesn't necessarily determine effectiveness.
What really drives the direct mail process is the information contained in the database. While the basic information consists of the name and address, more in-depth data is usually involved.
"Many times, the database will include phone numbers for follow-up telemarketing," said Nesbit. "It also may include psychographics, purchase history and demographics."
This information, he explained, helps create a predictive model of the target audience from the responses that have been gathered in the past.
Bob Blohm, technical production manager for GBF Graphics in Skokie, Ill., noted that the benefit of having the information stored in the database is that customers won't have a lot of preprinted forms lying around for different versions of the direct mail piece.
"We print a basic shell, like a logo or some general rules," he said. "Then the pieces get customized by the information coming from the database."
GBF has done many pieces for the auto and insurance industries which have involved additional information from the database, Blohm noted.
"For the auto industry, pieces often include the names and addresses of local dealers, printed maps, the names of the service manager and the hours of operation for a place of business," he said.
"Since the insurance industry is pretty state-specific," he continued, "we have to image all the rules and regulations for a particular state. Everything comes off of the data file and we manipulate it to a particular position on the page."
The databases involved will either come from the customer or can be bought from a list company. In some cases, a combination of both are used.
Database Dos
Nesbit said that some distributors initially may fear getting involved in direct mail because of the database factor. "We find that they sometimes get hung up on the fact that it's all electronic," he noted. "They really just need to know some basic aspects of databases."
For example, he said that the format will be in a database file or an ASCII text file. Also, it should be in a fixed field layout, in which there are separate fields for the first name, last name, street address, city, state, zip code, etc.
Blohm noted that it's helpful for distributors to furnish manufacturers with a tape record layout, which is like a blueprint or road map to the database and indicates where on the database each field resides.
"When distributors tell us where to get the specific information, it helps the process go more smoothly and enables us to do our jobs properly," he said.
Along with having some basic knowledge about databases, distributors must also know how to design the piece correctly. Several factors must come into consideration when distributors are in the designing phase.
"An important thing for distributors to consider when designing the piece is keeping within postal regulations," said Nesbit. He explained that if these regulations are ignored, charges for mailing will increase.
"The specific regulations are laid out in the domestic mail manual," noted Nesbit. "The United States Postal Service also has people who specialize in mail piece design that would gladly review the piece.
"Furthermore," he continued, "distributors should work with a competent service bureau that can guide them to make sure that they not only meet postal regulations, but also run efficiently through the personalization and bindery phases."
He added that it is important for the piece to look nice, but it should also be cost effective to generate the greatest return on investment.
Aside from the U.S. Postal Service and service bureaus, Blohm advised distributors to consult with their printer or imager.
"All too often creative people go charging down the road, incurring a lot of expense to come up with designs that don't fit the equipment of their printer or imager," he said. "If distributors work with them from the beginning, the printers or imagers can help them design a piece that best fits their equipment. This makes it more economical for the distributor."
But the real key to success for distributors in the direct mail arena is to act as a project manager, an extension of the client's marketing department, said Nesbit.
"Distributors shouldn't position themselves as subcontracters to their clients, they should manage the whole project," he noted.
Some elements manageable by distributors are those involved with printing, he added, which include the four-color process, envelope production, digital personalization, lettershop and the data-processing
Nesbit also advised distributors to prospect their current clients to generate business for direct mail. "Many times, asking a few more questions can yield an order four or five times what they're yielding today," he said. "With a few basic questions, distributors can be off to the races and getting repeat business they never had before."
By Danielle Litka
- People:
- Blohm
- Dos Nesbit
- Places:
- Dayton, Ohio