Direct Mail or Email? Which to choose . . .

Direct Mail or Email? Which to choose . . .

Amid the ongoing debate about whether direct mail or e-mail is the best method to market to customers and prospects, very little is being said about the one thing that is crucial to the success of both – the message. Unless the message is relevant to the audience and persuasively presented, it doesn’t matter how it is delivered.

Why market with mail?

The objective of both direct and e-mail marketing is to persuade a customer or prospect to take action, either now or later. When a seller consistently and regularly sends a communication such as a post card or a newsletter (either mailed or web-based), a buyer is more likely at a future time to take the action desired by the seller. In other words, direct or e-mail marketing is less about an immediate sale than about positioning the business or organization to be top-of-mind when the potential buyer is ready to make a purchase.

This is important in business-to-business selling where the sales cycle is often long (especially when compared to business-to-consumer), and it is hard to stimulate demand. Direct mail is also important during an economic downturn when either budgetary constraints or the unwillingness of the purchaser to spend money creates a long sell cycle for both businesses and consumers.

Good content gives potential buyers what they want

Direct mail marketers and advertisers work hard to determine what type of content motivates buyers. Research consistently uncovers four characteristics of content that score highest in buyer interest. The best content is:

• useful or entertaining;
• relevant to the buyer’s interests;
• timely; and
• unique to the seller, either in content or presentation.

These four characteristics apply not only to traditional direct mail, but also to opt-in e-mail subscriptions. If a reader signs up for your e-newsletter, the motivation wasn’t to do you a favor – it was because the content of the newsletter had perceived value.

What’s in it for me?

The benefit you are promoting to the buyer must be apparent in whatever you are presenting, so be explicit. Use introductory phrases like what this means for you is or this translates to or the results were, then provide objective evidence to support your benefit statement.

Is your content worth reading?

If you are in the early stages of implementing a newsletter or other periodic communication with your customers or prospects, you may find yourself focusing on developing the mail list, gathering information about your company and deciding on a layout. We agree that these are important; we also suggest that you also focus on developing content.

To do this, put yourself in the mind of your target audience. Develop a list of general topics to include on a regular basis, and think about where you can go to get good content. Are there credible sources within your company or organization who could be regular contributors? Can you subscribe to industry magazines as a source of research and statistics?

Emphasize good writing

Interesting, relevant and timely content will have even more impact if well written. Good writing begins with the most important message, is organized logically, and is written in language that is easy to understand. In general, this means avoiding complicated sentence structure and keeping jargon to a minimum.

You’ll also need to be a perfectionist when it comes to spelling, and to follow generally-accepted rules for grammar and punctuation. If there are several contributing writers in your company, consider developing a style guide that provides everyone with the same set of rules for grammar and punctuation. You also might want to appoint an editor who is responsible for proofreading and editing articles to be sure they have consistent style.

Use design to stand apart

Once you have developed sources of good content and a communication style sheet, you are ready to make your direct mail or e-mail marketing piece stand apart from the competition by using innovative design. By consistently using standard design elements like a color palette, an underlying grid structure and eye-catching graphics, you can create a unique look that will be easily recognized by your customers and prospects. In addition, good design will guide the reader through the content and increase comprehension.

Tap into our expertise

As you can tell from the fact that we send you this online newsletter along with monthly direct mail, we believe in the effectiveness of email AND direct mail as a part of any marketing plan. We see e-mail marketing as a logical extension of direct mail marketing, and offer you our expertise to design, print, publish and distribute your marketing communication pieces. Call PaperGraphics at 254-773-7391 or 254-526-4303  for an appointment and we’ll show you how easy direct mail and e-mail marketing can be.