You Too Can Sell Direct Mail

"Forms distributors are very accustomed to working with print orders for that amount," Reid said.

Pushing the Envelope

When it comes to making it in direct mail, Reid believes the key is for distributors to form strong partnerships with the right suppliers and to ask customers the right questions.

Some of those questions might be the total number of mailers, the number of inserts (typically two or three), if anything is going to be lasered—such as a letter or membership card—and if window envelopes or business reply envelopes are needed. Chances are the customer has experience with direct mail and knows what's involved. It's also likely that the distributor and customer worked together before.