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I'm one of those anal marketers who loves receiving direct mail each day. I review the contents as if I were giving them a marketing grade. (Must be the former teacher in me.)
So far this week, I received a personalized letter from a local couple advertising their real estate services. Let me share what they did right.
1. The paper stock is textured and printed in full color. The back is in one color, full bleed, with screened-back large words such as, "knowledgeable," "exceptional," "attentive," - all adjectives describing their level of service.
2. The letter is dated and addressed to my husband and me by first name.
3. The lead sentence is a rhetorical question: "Remember the days when it cost less than a nickel to mail a letter?" That's an attention-grabber and timely with the post office raising rates this month.
4. I would have tossed the letter at this point, except that I noticed it had something stuffed in it. Twenty, two-cent stamps! Now, who's going to throw away this piece? What a smart premium. The body copy is all about the stamp price and the availability of forever stamps. This part of their letter is positioned as "good news."
5. The back of the envelope has a sticker over the flap encouraging recipients to refer people to these agents. That's clever.
The positives outweigh the negatives in this piece, but I'll mention a few boo-boo's to balance it out.
1. There's a grammatical error in the copy and sticker. "If you know someone who would appreciate my services.....call me with their name..." The subject doesn't match the possessive in the object. One is singular and one is plural.
2. The tie-in from postage stamps going up to selling real estate is a stretch. They used the "good news" theme to announce that listings are selling and they need more.
3. They misspelled my surname on the envelope.
4. The sticker on the back of the envelope covered their URL.
In another piece that arrived the same day, I received an invitation from an upscale jewlery store to purchase a (specific) diamond ring for only $99. I would also get a free crystal vase. This piece was costlier to produce, but it turned me off immediately. The cover letter indicated that I was receiving it as a preferred customer. But, I've never even walked in the door! All that money and they didn't even segment the list.
Are you as anal as I am about direct mail? Do you scrutinize yours, too?
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Comments
I wish even 10% of the direct marketing I received was personalized. It's more like <1%, but I do admit to opening everything--you never know when there's a rebate check hiding in your circulars!
Posted by: Paul Barsch | 05.01.07
Elaine,
You are not alone in enjoying your direct mail. There is something more enjoyable about getting a tangible item addressed to you out of your post box than opening your email box and reading it there. I'm a writer at Deliver Magazine and we find that direct mail is not only effective, but enjoyed by the majority of recipients. In fact, a recent survey showed that 67% feel Mail is more personal than the Internet. The complete study can be found at http://delivermagazine.com/whitepaper-archive/.
Posted by: Nancy | 05.01.07
Paul, don't you think it's strange that with all our technology, direct marketers are still mailing so generically?
Nancy, thanks for the article at Deliver Magazine. Interesting stats. As much as electronic mail is measurable and flexible, many people still love having communications in hard copy. Good news for the printing industry and USPS!
Posted by: Elaine Fogel | 05.01.07
Phew! I'm not the only one who gets a kick out of reading my "promotional mail" items. I love walking to the mailbox and peering in to see what will surpise and delight me today. Somedays are good (great direct mail pieces that are thoughtful and well done) and many days are bad (Hello! I opted OUT of the credit card mailings with all of the major reporting agencies!).
Thanks for the great post -- I'm glad to know that I'm not alone in my quest to find great direct mail!
Posted by: KermitFan | 05.02.07
I'm the same way -- I love reviewing the direct mail I get at home and at work. Sometimes I get great ideas for my clients, other times I get a good laugh at what people spend money on. However, I don't mind the generic mailings, since I look upon the targeted and personalized mailings as condescending. Big deal, my name is on it, "Yes RALPH, you are a winner". I'd be less skeptical if Ed McMahon came to my door and had coffee with me -- then he'd really know me.
Posted by: Ralph Sullivan | 05.03.07
Good point, Ralph. I save the good ones in a file for later reference and ideas. I also save the bad ones and the ones with errors.
I agree with you that the personalilzed mail for contests and such are annoying. But what about the letters or postcards from your financial institution? Your charities of choice? Your congregation? These should be personalized, in my opinion. I have an aversion to "Dear friend," or "Dear member." That's impersonal and cold to me.
Posted by: Elaine Fogel | 05.03.07
With the correspondence from my bank, church or others I know, I'd rather have a true personal letter or mailer written just to me and not a form letter that is sent to all -- even if it is "personalized". I know it takes a little longer, but I appreciate those I know who take the time to know me. Wow, there are a lot of "knows" in this reply. Just goes to show you how important it is! Nice blog, by the way.
Posted by: Ralph Sullivan | 05.03.07
Ralph, your idea would have a very powerful affect on recipients. But, in reality, who has the peoplepower to write individual personalized letters to what could amount to hundreds or millions of people?
Think of the limited staff resources your congregation has, as an example. It's a nonprofit, likely struggling to provide expected programs and services as infrastructure costs keep rising while budgets do not.
Posted by: Elaine Fogel | 05.03.07