strategy

As we’ve noted in other blogs, and tell our customers day in and day out – asset management is key to business success and reputation management. Not only is it key, but poor asset management can truly be the downfall of your marketing, and even of other aspects of your company. Asset management isn’t just the use of the right logo or letterhead. It’s fully utilizing all of your available, valuable content and resources across the board to get the most out of your messaging and produce the highest possible ROI. Failing to use materials isn’t just a waste – it’s a loss! In this blog, we’re outlining the real cost of poor asset management, and what leads to it.

What is Asset Management

When it comes to business marketing and communications, asset management is the organization, distribution, and utilization of all marketing and communications resources, from logos to sales sheets. It’s the process a company uses to execute, keep track of, and share resources that are pertinent to a company’s proceedings. If you’re interested in further understanding the importance of asset management, feel free to check out our blog “Managing Your Marketing Assets to Protect & Reinforce Your Brand”.

How Does Poor Asset Management Happen?

Bad asset management can happen, and continue to happen, for a variety of reasons. Here are the most common ones:

Too Many Communication Channels

When too many channels are used to communicate, distribute, use, and edit materials, it can be really confusing for your team! This confusion can cause a loss in productivity. Plus, when there are several versions on numerous channels – it’s easier to make mistakes and share or use the wrong materials.

Lack of Processes/Organization

As you may know, when it comes to many business practices, SOPs are vital, and asset management is no exception. If your company doesn’t have a system of processes for managing marketing and communication assets, how can employees be expected to know about materials, and to use the right materials? With SOPs, employees know what to use, when to use it, how to use it, and so on (and don’t have to play any guessing games). When employees have to guess and search, a lot of valuable time gets wasted (and, as you know, time = money).

Additionally, SOPs for the actual naming and organization of assets is just as important – as files can be labeled and sorted in a way that makes them easier to find.

No Versioning Control

If how you create, edit, update, and delete asset versions is not communicated and well-established, the wrong versions of marketing assets end up getting distributed and used.

Additionally, if there’s no standard for when assets get thrown out, things can get trashed too soon – causing a huge time waste of having to recreate already-created materials.

Using a Bad Platform (or No Platform at All)

It’s important that employees are able to find what they need, and that it’s easy for them to create, manage, and adhere to processes, communication, and organization. Sometimes, it’s not within budget to have a specific employee managing and creating these processes, and even if your company does have the money for this – one person likely doesn’t have the bandwidth to manage it all. We’d recommend an asset management platform, like the ones Strata creates and customizes, to store and distribute your company’s assets.

No matter what platform you choose, make sure it makes sense for your company’s individual needs, as they likely don’t call for a one-size-fits-all approach!

Costs of Poor Asset Management

As noted above, bad asset management can cause a variety of unwanted, unnecessary costs for your company. Let’s discuss some of the big ones.

Money

Of course, we’d be remiss to talk about how poor asset management can cost you, in general, lots of money – impacting your bottom line. “51% of marketers waste money producing or recreating assets that go unused because people don’t know they exist or can’t find them. In addition, 46% waste time downloading and uploading assets into different tools.” – Demand Metric.

Additionally, turnover is more likely to increase if employees feel confused, out of control, and lost, and it becomes more difficult to keep good talent (which you can’t truly put a price on). This difficulty hiring and keeping employees also impacts all the expenses used to hire – from recruitment and onboarding to training and corporate culture.

Lastly, when assets are unorganized, it’s much harder for teams to accurately measure the ROI of marketing materials. In turn, teams waste time making materials that don’t produce ROI, or miss out on creating materials that would be highly impactful.

Time

As mentioned above, poor asset management causes confusion and reduces employee productivity. Tons of time gets wasted when employees can’t find materials, or when employees are forced to frequently fix mistakes and re-create. Poor asset management often causes a lot of additional, unnecessary effort from the marketing team, who are more likely to create duplicate content due to a lack of organization.

Credibility

This one is fairly self-explanatory, but can be highly detrimental. If assets are unorganized and poorly managed, and wrong or old materials are distributed, customers are more likely to lose trust in your company. Inconsistency in messaging and branding can even cause and otherwise happy customer to begin to lose faith in your business.

Inability to Scale

If assets and materials are well-communicated throughout an organization, scaling to support new verticals and brands is much easier and more seamless. But, if your assets and materials are poorly stored and not up-to-date, new pieces often require starting from scratch – or at least close to it. Poor asset management makes it almost impossible for marketing teams to quickly adapt to meet changing business needs.

Opportunity Costs

Last but definitely not least, if an organization’s teams don’t have the right assets for sales, customer service, recruitment and other initiatives, opportunities get missed.

Speed is especially important when it comes to sales and conversions. If your team doesn’t have the right materials and assets right away, your competitors will win customers over.

And, when it comes to other departments, such as marketing, if your team doesn’t have the right assets to create, for example, an on-the-fly email or a quick social media post, they may miss opportunities to join the conversation, send news of a last-minute promotion, effectively manage your company’s reputation, and so on.

Interested in better managing your assets and avoiding the above costs? Contact our team or visit our Integrated Marcom Tech page for more information.

A Look Into How Physical Assets Can Support this Digital Space

In an era dominated by the digital age, it’s tempting to cast aside marketing strategies that predate this revolution. However, as we notice a constant influx of digital marketing tactics bombarding consumers, it raises the question: do tangible assets still capture the most attention? Our belief is a resounding yes, especially when considering the distinct advantages, they now offer in this digital age.

Personalization in Direct Mail:

In today’s digital landscape, personalization is key for email and SMS strategies, but it’s often overlooked in direct mail. However, we have the technology to mass-produce personalized direct mail, including names, addresses, and tailored content. Why does this matter? In a digital age, personalized direct mail stands out, especially since there’s been a decline in traditional mail volume, resulting in less mailbox clutter. This presents a unique opportunity to make a significant impact in an uncrowded market. Personalized direct mail enhances customer satisfaction, encouraging recipients to engage with the content and respond to the call to action.

Personalization for Abandoned Carts:

Personalization is a powerful tool when it comes to re-engaging consumers with their abandoned shopping carts. It demonstrates your thoughtful consideration of their needs and fosters a stronger connection between your company and the customer, motivating them to take action.

Moreover, pinpointing the specific reasons behind cart abandonment empowers you to address these concerns directly and strategize for the future. Common issues include pricing, lack of information, and confusing UX/UI. Once you’ve identified these concerns, you can tailor your approach accordingly.

In our experience, the majority of abandoned carts are due to price concerns. One effective method for cart recovery is strategic incentivization, such as offering discounts or free shipping to ease the purchase burden. To reignite overall customer interest, emphasizing the benefits of your products is key. Remind customers why they were initially drawn to your offerings and how they can enhance their lives, providing the motivation to complete their purchase.

However, it’s important to tread carefully with personalization. Some recipients may find overly detailed personalization intrusive. Avoid including information that may seem too personal, especially in the context of showing up at their doorstep, as not everyone is well-versed in data and tracking practices. 

Effective Direct Mail Strategies for Abandoned Carts:

When it comes to effective direct mail strategies for addressing abandoned carts, retargeting technology stands out as a top contender. Research suggests that it often takes approximately eight touchpoints with a consumer before securing a sale. Custom retargeting technology, such as dynamic QR codes, plays a pivotal role in streamlining this process. These codes bring customers back into the digital realm, allowing you to track their interactions through direct mail and make informed decisions on your next steps.

Timeliness is a crucial factor in implementing direct mail strategies for abandoned carts. It’s essential not to let too much time elapse; the most opportune moment to re-engage is in close proximity to when the cart was initially abandoned.

In crafting your direct mail content, focus on creating engaging copy and compelling calls to action (CTAs). Using concise yet enticing language helps convey your message effectively and seamlessly tie it into your ask. After all, the primary goal of sending this mail is to reconnect the individual with the product at hand.

Lastly, remember the importance of adaptability and customization in these strategies, as their effectiveness may vary depending on the industry and product characteristics.

Combining personalized direct mail with digital marketing can be tricky, but surely it is a winning strategy. If you’re ready to enhance your marketing strategy, contact us today for expert consulting in direct mail marketing and optimization. Let’s drive results together!

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How to Put Big Data to Work Without it Feeling “Creepy”

Big data has gotten a pretty bad rep at this point – and it’s not for nothing. Over the past few years, the fear of data “creeping” further and further into our lives, and machines “listening in” on us, has some feeling a little nervous, to say the least. But, from a somewhat bias perspective of a marketing company, we don’t think it’s all bad and don’t think you should either. When used correctly, big data can help companies target the right customers, at the right time with the stuff they want, and more importantly, the stuff they need.

Then and Now

In the past, a lot of marketing departments probably were a little overzealous about the concept of data, and went a bit too far with personalization, taking an “anything goes” mentality. This approach can and has felt like it crosses the line, often making customers feel transparent, and even “spied” on. No one wants to feel like someone is watching their every move, I mean…that’s what scary movies are made of. In the past, customers didn’t know who, when, or where data was being collected about them, and in turn, felt mistrust for anyone or anything trying to get their information.

More recently, tech companies have realized that customers feel over-encroached upon, and are making steady improvements to be less sneaky and creepy, and more transparent. They’re more overt about the data they’re collecting, and allowing for customers to be more aware and have an increased say (which seems a whole lot more ethical, if you ask us).

The Fine Line Between Cool and Creepy

With this said, similar to an unwanted encounter at a bar, there’s still a fine line between cool and creepy when it comes to big data, but, if used correctly, it can have major benefits for both marketer and customer. After all, sometimes a (non-creepy) pickup line can lead to a happy marriage. It’s all about saying the right thing at the right time, which is what big data makes happen.

Good Data

The more “good” data that you put into your digital advertising campaigns, the more likely they are to reach the right person at the right time. Thankfully, the days of marketers defining rough, segmented target audiences in hopes that randomly placed ads would lead to a purchase are now GONE. Instead, today we’re using social media feeds, purchasing habits, browsing trends, content consumption, and other tactics to reach the right audience, at a welcomed tune. With good data, we have the ability to know exactly who we’re talking to and how we should be targeting them. It ensures we’re following leads and people, not just metrics and trends, and, at the end of the day, it helps cut down on waste and improve ROI.

Cool Stats

Not All Data Vendors Are Created Equal

Wishing You Good (Data) Luck

An Introduction to High-Intent Consumer Marketing

High-Intent Marketing Explained

What Are Some High-Intent Markets?

“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.

How We Plan to Exceed Sustainable Business Standards

I spend a lot of time in the outdoors. I always have.

Whether it’s hiking, fishing, diving or something else, the outdoors has always been a defining presence in my life — a presence that has allowed me to see some of the best of what our natural world has to offer.

Unfortunately, I’ve also seen many ways in which we’re failing our environment. Regardless of one’s political and institutional beliefs, I think we all can agree that we only have one planet, and caring for it makes the same “sense” as caring for our homes or our children. In fact, for me, this is mostly about caring for our children.

I believe we’ve reached a tipping point, a crossroads — whatever you want to call it — where the choice is simple: take action to protect our planet now or accept a future of grave uncertainty and limited possibility.

Those of us in business are on the front lines of environmental impact, and now more than ever, we must act as leaders.

For too long, businesses have simply chalked up environmental activism to donations or the purchase of energy credits.

These are both fine things, but cutting a check and carrying on, “business as usual,” has become nothing short of insufficient.

Looking inward, sustainable business practices have always been somewhere on Strata’s agenda. We offer eco-friendly options, we’re careful with our byproduct disposal and make efforts to reduce waste wherever it’s created.

This too is not enough.

Going forward, effective immediately, Strata is implementing an aggressive eco-first strategy to not only meet widely recognized standards for sustainable business but exceed those criteria to the point of setting new industry benchmarks. We’re going to look carefully at the science and our environmental impact, and address each part of our operation to reach a goal of being carbon neutral by 2025 and environmentally neutral by 2030.

To start, we will develop, articulate and implement more responsible internal and external practices. We will allocate ten percent of company profits towards eliminating our footprint. We will participate through company-sponsored volunteerism in environmentally impactful ways, and together, see just how far these actions take us in attaining our goals. As these things come into being, we will re-evaluate and adjust.

We’re creating this blog series to lead by example, taking our readers along with us as we move towards new levels of sustainability. Throughout, we’ll be exploring what environmental responsibility means to our business and what kind of changes we’re making to see a real, measurable impact.

We are not certain where this journey will take us. Some of the concepts and technologies we will need to reach our ultimate goal are not even fully developed or available, yet. However, we have a chance to take adversity and channel it into opportunity. It is a challenge that we meet with optimism.

We’re excited to share our journey with you, and hope you’ll follow along, both as readers and business people committed to sustainability. We look forward to seeing what one small, for-profit business can accomplish.

How PURLs Can Help You Track Your Customer’s Journey

The use of personalized URLs (PURLs) took root about a decade ago. Despite evidence that they can increase campaign effectiveness, PURLs remain an underutilized tactic in direct marketing.

On the other hand, marketers who use PURLs successfully know they can be an important component of a comprehensive multichannel strategy. PURLs offer both front-end (recipient experience) and back-end (tracking and evaluation) benefits.

So What Exactly Are PURLs, and Why Use Them?

PURLs involve creating unique web addresses – most typically, incorporating a direct marketing target’s name into the URL. They are ideal for any sort of direct mailer, particularly new mover and box mailer campaigns, as well as email campaigns.

From a recipient experience standpoint, personalized URLs can capture attention and serve to build a better personal connection. Because they include the recipient’s name, they instantly stand out and are more memorable, which can lead to increased page visits.

But their value in terms of back-end tracking and as a lead-nurturing tool are what really make PURLs a valuable touch in outbound marketing campaigns.

The Power of PURLs, from Tracking to Lead Nurturing

Industry experts agree that you can’t depend on the use of PURLs alone to significantly lift response – that is, marketers should not expect that they can simply include a PURL on a direct mailer and then sit back and wait for sales to stream in.

See Who’s Responding … And Who Isn’t

Rather, using personal URLs can supercharge your ability to conduct highly personalized, one-to-one lead nurturing. Using PURLs gives marketers the power to precisely track responses to each unique URL. The added value is the ability to track hits at an individual level – thus, you gain abandonment metrics at the user level in cases where prospects do not complete the online form.

Achieve Conversion with Tailored Follow-Up

Previously, when PURL technology was in its infancy, lead tracking involved little more than generating an Excel document. Now, online capabilities (e.g., dashboards) give marketers instant views of who is visiting their landing page, and who is not, allowing for execution of strategic follow-up.

For example, prospects who have visited their personalized landing page but have not yet completed the call to action (CTA) can be nurtured with specific outreach (e.g., an email drip campaign; a phone call; even a follow-up direct mail piece) to bring them closer to conversion. Marketing automation can help at this stage – for example, by triggering an email alert when a prospect visits a PURL or completes a CTA.

The Advantages of Working with a Data and Technology-driven Marketing Firm

While incorporating personalized URLs into a campaign isn’t difficult, the process does involve some technical steps that may cause many marketers to hesitate. Working with a specialized direct marketing agency with the in-house technology and expertise to create a PURL campaign not only saves time, but also helps ensure correct execution of these steps so that PURLs will render correctly.

Going this route allows marketers to simply hand over a list, and rely on the agency to build landing pages, generate PURLs using specialized software, and handle tracking and analytics.

Next Steps

Strata Company, a Greater Philadelphia area marketing and technology firm, specializes in creative multichannel approaches, including PURLs, that drive lead generation and conversion. With a focus on relevance and personalization, our data-driven programs consistently return higher-than-average results.

470,000: the approximate number of words in the Merriam-Webster Dictionary.

Your direct mail copy challenge: Find the magic combination that will command the reader’s attention (i.e., dodge the recycle bin) and compel action.

Yes, direct mail writing can be intimidating. But the following steps can help you write direct mail copy that will get noticed – and get your prospects motivated.

1. Grab Attention with Your Headline
   Many leading copywriters believe in the rule of 80/20 – that writing the headline should take 80% of your effort, and the copy below should take 20%. Why? The headline has to work really, really hard to hook readers. If it falls flat, no one will read past it.
   • Focus the headline around a leading benefit.
   • Build intrigue – tease with just enough information so that it’s impossible to ignore what follows.
2. Expand (a little) on the Most Important Benefits
   Your body content needs to strike a balance between being informative and being concise. Again, stay benefits-focused, and give readers information that will convince them they need to act on your offer.
   • Tell readers how the product or service will improve their lives.
   • Present information in a logical order.
3. Be Brief and Readable
   Your words are not the star of the piece. Rather, the recipient should be kept front and center. Copy should focus on their needs, and never compromise readability.
   • Limit the amount of copy in your mailer.
   • Save longer, more detailed explanations for product/service websites, landing pages or brochures.
   • Break up blocks of copy with subheads.
4. Write for a Persona
   Writing for a persona can help you key in on the needs and motivations of your target audience.
   • Address their specific concerns.
   • Craft copy that connects on an emotional level.
5. Craft an Irresistible Call to Action
   Finally, you need to ask for the reader’s business with your call to action (CTA).
   • Give the reader direct, specific instruction on how to take the next step.
   • Use active verbs.
   • Imply urgency – the offer will expire; they can’t afford to delay; time is running out; be one of the first, etc.
6. Test to Find Out What Works Best
   A simple A/B test – where a control group receives a version with one varying element – can help you uncover the most effective copywriting approaches for your audience.
   • A/B test elements such as headlines, CTAs and envelope teasers.
   • Track results, and refine future mailings accordingly.

Going Multichannel?

Ensure you align your direct mail copy with other pieces of the campaign – emails, landing pages, digital ads, broadcast media. The message needs to be cohesive, or you’ll confuse your audience.

Strata Company, a Plymouth Meeting, PA-based marketing services and technology solutions company, has been a leader in direct mail marketing for 25 years. Our multichannel marketing programs combine award-winning creative with superior data practices to attract the right prospects and keep them engaged. Contact us to speak with one of our direct marketing experts.

How to Give Your Direct Mail Lists a Good Spring Cleaning

Your mailing lists are the linchpin in your direct mail campaign. But just like closets packed too tightly with unused clothes or a basement overflowing with outdated equipment, a direct mail list rife with incorrect data, duplicate addresses or outdated information clutters your marketing efforts. Now is the ideal time to commit to “spring clean” your direct mail lists.

Data Becomes Outdated More Quickly Than Last Season’s Fashions

Mailing lists are the foundation for effective, targeted marketing outreach. Yet they’re incredibly difficult to manage. The clutter and disorganization happens subtly: recipients move, names change and lists aggregate from varying sources leading to misaligned data. Compounding the problem is the lack of centralized ownership dedicated to maintaining and cleaning up these fundamental resources.

The costs can sneak up on you as well. The obvious ones include wasted campaign dollars spent on purchasing duplicate or similar data as well as excess production, postage and execution. Less discernible are the costs to workflow and operations; time wasted by busy marketing managers looking for the correct, most current lists… and then correcting them.

The price is ultimately paid in the underperformance of your direct mailer; in unopened or returned mail, ineffective targeting, inability to properly segment and a lack of personalization. The solution, like cleaning out that cluttered closet, may not feel glamorous, but can be highly rewarding in terms of increasing in the efficiency and success of your direct mail campaigns and your data-driven marketing efforts overall.

If You Haven’t Worn It In The Last 6 Months…

Well, if you haven’t taken a hard look at your data in the last six months, chances are you’re due for a thorough list cleansing. Take these steps and you’ll be on the way to cleaner, more accurate mailing lists that save you time and money, and ensure optimum performance of your campaigns:

1. Give The Job To One Person
   By assigning ownership and management to one person, not only are the lists easier to update and control, the workflow is streamlined under one “roof” and everyone knows where to go to submit updates, and who to ask for what they need when they need it. Think of this person as your Data Ambassador and assign them the role of a dedicated Mr. (or Ms.) Fix-it to keep your (mail) house in order.
2. Define Or Update List Management Standards
   If you haven’t already, set standards for managing mailing lists and how they will be maintained. If those standards already exist, now is the perfect time to revisit those standards and processes, to evaluate how they’re working and if they’ve evolved with your latest data optimization strategies. Ensure there are strict enough data entry and modification standards to inform and enforce compliance. Update standards as needed to lay the ground for more fertile direct mail efforts. And ensure that each time you purchase a new list, these standards continue to be adhered to.
3. Refresh Outdated Contacts
   Tap into the post office’s National Change of Address (NCOA) service to ensure your list stays current, even when your addressees move. If you manage direct mailing in-house check to see if the software being used includes this service. Or, if you’re using a third-party list vendor, ask if they offer this as part of their standard services. Additionally, cross-check with Customer Service and Sales teams, as well as CRM software also used by your team, as there are times these sources have information that is more current than external data providers.
4. Eliminate Duplicates
   With a proper merge/purge you can eliminate duplicates, but more difficult to detect are the tiny changes or errors that hide duplicate entries. For instance, you may have two records for the same person, but one of the records has a misspelled email address. Thus if you only de-dupe by email, then that duplicate record will remain. If you don’t have the expertise in your team to help rectify this, it is a great time to reach out to data specialists in your organization, find software that will automatically resolve it or ask your agency or list provider for help with this.
5. Organize And Align Your Lists
   You have multiple lists, utilized across multiple campaigns, updated by different people all the time. And they each have slightly different organizational and formatting methods. As the number of people touching those lists increases, the potential for human error creeps up rapidly. Like lining up your shoes, employing naming standards, storage instructions and access and versioning rules are a handful of ways you can facilitate accuracy, consistency and hygiene across multiple lists and versioning. But at some point, there’s a limit to what even the best human practices can achieve. This is where technology and software solutions can come into play.
6. Utilize Software For Mailing List Management
   When multiple users across different departments, locations and job functions need access to the same lists, keeping them in a central location reduces the burden on the list managers and expedites the campaign process. It also helps ensure that only the appropriate and/or most current lists are made available. Cloud-based solutions where you can store and manage your lists via one tool are well-suited for this purpose and allow you to maintain greater control of the data.

Often, third-party vendors offer hygiene and optimization as a part of mailing list services. If you aren’t currently working with a list vendor, or are unsatisfied with the hygiene and “current-ness” of their data, now may be the time to consider another source.

Additionally you could look into Marketing Resource Management software that includes list management as a feature, or a system designed specifically for web-based direct mail execution. The technology equivalent of the Ultimate Closet Organizer, these cloud-based applications can include all the benefits noted above as well as others you may not be aware of. Some applications allow you to house your direct mailers within the platform, and sync your lists directly to specific mailers, allowing you to execute the entire direct mail campaign within the application.

At Strata we have decades of experience in data-driven marketing, list and data services and technology solutions that support and optimize direct mail campaigns. Clients also choose to utilize our full-service production services, including variable data printing and mailing, so they have end-to-end support instead of having to coordinate efforts through multiple vendors. To learn more about how we can help you optimize your data-driven marketing efforts, contact us here or call 610-941-6100.

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