Make Your Direct Mail Thrive with Tracking, Enhancing, and Attributing Results
We’ve said it time and again – direct mail really works. In fact, direct mail open rates can reach up to 42%, which is a lot higher than most e-mail open rates. Recipients of direct mail also “purchase 28% more items and spend 28% more money than people who don’t get that same piece of direct mail.” While these are excellent stats, we know it’s not always that easy to track and measure ROI from physical mail in the same way you track ROI from your digital strategies. Don’t worry, we’re here to help you out. We believe in not only the importance of direct mail, but in its results – with the right tools and resources.
Be Consistent
First and foremost, consistency is key when it comes to direct mail ROI. To get the most out of your direct mail, make sure it isn’t just direct mail. What do we mean? Weave digital touches into your direct mail – like your social media, digital ads, and website – and make sure everything is connected. With the right direct mail partner or resource, you can take mailing addresses and match them with social accounts, IP addresses, and more to really understand who your audience is and what actions they’re taking. Weaving in digital information can help you share your message before, during, and after your direct mail is sent out – making the chosen brand message consistent and more impactful to your audience.
Not convinced this is all necessary? We are, because combining offline and online tactics is proven to really work. In a recent study, a whapping 68% of marketing respondents saw that combining digital and direct mail increased visits to their websites. Considering the multichannel experience and the customer journey while creating your direct mail will not just increase website visits, but many areas of ROI.
Track
When it comes to getting the most from your direct mail, it’s important to ABT – Always Be Tracking. Not only tracking information and results from your direct mail campaign like you would your digital ones, but tracking the delivery of your mailers – just like you would a package. This will help you know when to prepare the recipient with other messaging before delivery, and when to follow up with them to make the greatest impact. Take it a step further by working with your direct mail partner or resource to send the recipient an “informed delivery” message by USPS to make them aware of their mailer’s arrival, and send them direct links to ROI-rich landing pages. If you haven’t noticed already, every step we’re highlighting truly combines the traditional and digital worlds of marketing.
Attribute Results
If you’re still with us, you’ll see that we’ve created an experience for the recipient along many steps of their customer journey, tracked their direct mail’s physical journey, and have notified them that there’s a special something waiting in their mailbox. So, what’s next? Reporting, recording, and attributing. Without these, you won’t know how to improve upon your direct mail and increase your ROI for next time. Your recipients may respond or perform an action by phone, BRC, personalized landing page (PURL), or in another way, so it’s important that the information is correctly recorded in real-time. The best way to record and store this information is on a platform’s dashboard specifically made for tracking. There are many out there – so find whatever works for you and make sure you use it to your advantage. The chosen platform can help you store names, addresses, ages, and other helpful demographics to assist you in understanding and targeting your true target audience.
You may have some recipients who will visit your website but will not directly respond to your mail. That’s why it’s important to use identifiable URLs that you can easily track, like UTMs, PURLS, or specified QR codes. If these recipients aren’t quite ready to reach back out to you or make a move, you’ll still have a gauge on their interest, and will be able to send them digital ads or e-mails reminding them of your product or service until their ready to take the next step.
Stop Wondering
Instead of continuing to throw mail like paper planes to your audience, track and know if your mailers make an impact. Make sure you’re always examining your data and attributing it. You’ll quickly realize it’s easier than you expected to see what’s working, what’s not, and where you can improve on your direct mail campaigns.
As one of our specialties at Strata, we know that direct mail can be uber effective when using the right processes and tools. The key is always combining traditional and digital to catch your audience’s attention before, during, and after direct mail is in their hands. And, like we said before, never stop tracking and modifying.
To learn more about how to create successful direct mail, check out our direct-mail-focused blogs, “Dimensional Mail: Four Criteria for the Perfect Promotional Item” and “7 Ways to Make Your Postcard Stand Out”, or simply contact Strata. We’ve been doing this for years and would be happy to help you get an ROI rich direct mail campaign started.
How to Get the Attention of New Movers
Before the Competition
The Market
To put it simply, the new mover market is huge, and it’s growing. 13.8% of Americans, which calculates to over 25.6 million people move every year. All of these new residents are looking for the same things – doctors, grocers, handymen, pizza shops, dentists, groomers, dry cleaners…we could go on and on. They’re looking for brands they can trust, but they’re also hoping that, during this busy time, brands will make their way to them. Between unpacking, organizing, and settling in, they have enough on their plates already, so they’re relying on word of mouth, marketing, and advertising to speak to them and tell them where to go and who to trust.
The industry itself is growing at a pace of 3% each year – despite rises and falls in the economy. Basically, no matter what, people are moving, and they’re moving more and more as the years roll on.
Not only are new movers looking for new stores and companies, but they’re also looking to spend. In fact, “new mover annual expenditures exceed $150 billion and they’re five times more likely to become long-term customers if you reach them first,” (V12). Statistically, they spend more in the first six months than the average customer spends in three whole years.
The Potential
Most new movers are within the younger demographic – couples between the ages of 18 and 34 who have one or two children. These small families have various needs, from childcare, to physicians, to dinner. They’ll be looking for several new businesses to rely on and buy from, and if you treat them well, they’ll return to your business again and again. But…to even get this chance, you’ll need to be the first business to catch their eye.
First impressions are everything when it comes to new movers. Not only are they meeting their new neighbors for the first time and deciding who they’d most likely ask over for dinner or get drinks with, but they’re seeing and judging businesses in their area and deciding which ones they’ll give a chance. With one glance at your website, mailer, or advertisement, they’ll decide whether they want to look further into your company, or not. That’s why it’s so vitally important that you have a solid brand that’s accompanied by excellent marketing, such as mailers, emails, and display ads.
The Loyalty
The best part about establishing your brand with new movers is that, if you reach out to them correctly, they’re likely to develop brand loyalty. These new residents are looking to establish a routine wherever possible. After all, humans are creatures of habit.
Once they find that hair salon, Italian restaurant, or grocery store they love, they’re liable to adamantly stick with it. “They don’t need to be convinced or heavily marketed to because they already enjoy your products and prefer them even to competitors with similar offerings,” (SproutSocial). But, in order to acquire brand-loyal customers, your messaging needs to be relevant to them, inspire trust, include special offers, and be delivered where customers will notice it (whether that be in the inbox, mailbox, or social feed).
The Buy Out
Now that you understand the new mover potential, here are some of the best techniques to acquire them:
- Use Omnichannel Campaigns like those that Strata offers – using a combination of direct mail, digital ads, emails, and more, can catch and keep the attention of potential customers.
- Think about what will set you apart from the rest of the competition. Use free gifts, rewards programs, personalized landing pages (PURLS), and free samples/analyses to entice.
- Ensure your messaging is on-point and relevant to the customer. Use personalization wherever possible (ex: Amy, come by and try our delicious pizza!) to catch their attention.
And, while omnichannel marketing may be the best way to reach new movers, it doesn’t have to break the bank. Omnichannel campaigns like our SmartMove and SmartMove Lite products can be completely customized based on your budget. And, even though it takes multiple touches to create a lifelong customer with brand loyalty, a few touches to that potential customer are better than none.
So, are you ready to capitalize on the 40 million people moving each year? We can help you reach your new neighbors first, before the competition, and make a lasting impression. Contact us to see how we can help you get started.
An Introduction to High-Intent Consumer Marketing
You’ve researched up-and-coming marketing trends, and within budget, your marketing seems to be hitting all the right points. You’re sending emails and direct mail, conducting your daily social media activities, attending tradeshows, writing quality content, advertising in the several places, and even noticing some ROI (phew, you’re really doing a lot!). It can feel like the marketing industry gets more and more convoluted every day, with increasingly more avenues and strategies to reach the specific audience(s) you hope to target. With all of these different tactics and shiny new programs, how do you know you’re actually getting to your key audience, one that wants what you have to offer, at the right time? Are you “giving the right people what they want”?
High-intent marketing does just this, in a focused, particular way. One where you’re not just shooting at a broad target, but aiming at the bullseye. You’re probably thinking, “that’s nice, but what exactly is intent marketing?” Don’t worry, we’ll explain.
High-Intent Marketing Explained
High-intent marketing targets a specified end user’s intent – not only what they need (or want), but when they’re ready for it. The most recognizable type of high-intent marketing is search marketing. Users and prospects are targeted based on what they’re searching for right now, and are hit with ads, messages, and other forms of marketing communication to meet their current needs. Again, high-intent marketing differs from simply targeting an audience in that it puts emphasis on the timing of needs. For example, maybe I (the customer) am searching for a bridesmaid dress to wear to a wedding. I’m looking for it now, but I wasn’t last month, and I probably won’t be next month (unless of course I’m “always the bridesmaid, never the bride”).
Prospects have an overload of media and advertising to sort through, so the timing and reactionary nature of your marketing is how you stop them in their tracks. If you’re not combining their demographic with their current desires, you’re losing them. Using high-intent data to strengthen your marketing strategy results in more pointed themes, more precise detail in consumer personas and journeys, and highly effective marketing content, call to actions, and keywords.
What Are Some High-Intent Markets?
If you’re still unsure of what markets would be labeled high-intent, here are a few to think through:
- Recent college graduates
Ready (or not) to take on the world, college graduates are highly focused on improving their resumes, networking with friends and professionals, and ultimately, finding a job.
- Expectant & new moms
Nervous and constantly searching for the newest and best newborn knowledge, expectant and new moms can’t stop googling pediatricians and childcare facilities.
- Newlyweds
Young, middle-aged, or older, many newlyweds are looking for another way to intertwine their lives – buying a home.
- New movers
This audience base is nothing but uneasy in a new territory. According to recent studies, 40 million people move every year and they’re all looking for a new salon, doctor, favorite restaurant, grocery store, drycleaner, and more. If this is where your marketing needs to focus, take a look at SmartMove, Strata’s robust, multi-channel, multi-touch, new mover marketing program that helps you find the perfect time and place to reach your target audience.
“This Seems Exhausting”
It doesn’t need to be as tough as it sounds to use high-intent marketing. Don’t think of it as an out-of-reach, expensive project. Instead look at it as a continuous system, and an ongoing learning process to get the best return on your investment. Yes, you may spend more time and a bit of money strategizing and acquiring data in the beginning, but you’ll spend less time and money targeting the wrong people, or just as bad, the right people at the wrong times.
What to Do Now?
Start with analyzing keywords associated with your website, and compare these keywords to those that come up offsite. Additionally, get high-intent data from CRM analytics, customer service communication and online company reviews, and social media analytics. The goal is to compile data that establishes your desired buyer’s journey, and more specifically, when they approach, get to, and leave each stage.
Once you feel you have a sufficient amount of data, don’t stop there. It’s important to separate the data into different buyer stages, which can have labels like the “consideration” stage, the “informational” stage, and the “buying” stage. Keywords of these stages often look like the following:
Consideration Stage – “best”, “how to”, “where can I”
Informational Stage – “cost of”, “reviews of” “what people say about”
Buying Stage – “buy”, “shipping”, “coupons for”, “[your company name]”
Marketing to customers when they get to these stages is the bread and butter of high-intent marketing. Add in great content, imagery, and offerings, and you’ve got a proactive customer base. Do you have a high-intent market that you’re looking to target with an Omnichannel campaign similar to SmartMove? Strata can facilitate conversions for your company with high-intent direct mail, digital ads, and emails. Contact us today to learn more.