You’re probably familiar with the numbers. Direct mail offers response rates over 5% and it has an almost 30% return on investment. Plus, people of all ages love to receive it. The statistics prove it works, but creating outstanding mail marketing can be challenging and time-consuming. That’s why you’re always looking for new ways to streamline production and make direct marketing, well, easier. Here’s your answer. If you want to simplify your mail campaigns, there are five key areas where you need to fix your focus. Put these steps into action and you’ll not only experience direct mail made easy, but you’ll also savor some highly successful campaigns.

 

1. Data List Management

 

direct mail pieceThe success of your direct mail campaign depends on clean data. When you avoid dupes and eliminate incomplete or outdated data, you’re in a position to succeed. From a smart marketer’s perspective, data list management and data hygiene aren’t the most exciting things to focus on. But they’re vital to the success of your direct marketing efforts. So when you want simplified campaigns that are successful, make sure your data is clean so you can get the most out of each mailing.

 

How to Clean Your Data

 

We prepared The Essential Guide to Data Hygiene and List Management so you can learn how to clean up your information quickly and easily. MSP provides National Change of Address (NCOA) list processing, plus we check for duplicate records and we use data suppression to remove, add, or amend your data to be sure it’s correct. This will optimize both your response rates and ROI. We’ll analyze your data, offer a detailed analysis, and discuss your direct mail goals with you.

 

2. Direct Mail Automation

 

marketing automationMarketing automation. It’s one of the keys to making direct mail work so well. In fact, studies show that a direct mail campaign receives 5x as much engagement when it’s generated by your recipient’s own actions. Automation also creates simplified campaigns. Plus, you can combine your direct mail with digital marketing strategies for the ultimate multichannel marketing mix. Then, when you want to find out how a campaign performed, you turn to automation to show the results that can make or break future marketing endeavors.

 

How to Use Marketing Automation Technology

 

We wrote Direct Mail Marketing Tools: 6 Automation Features to demonstrate the different ways automation can make your mail campaigns easier and more successful. MSP uses the latest marketing automation technology to provide you with the tools you need for successful mail campaigns, regardless of how many pieces of mail you’re sending. Automation saves time and it improves your speed to market while meshing with your digital marketing strategy. An MSP representative can help you learn about our direct mail automation tools and how they can help your business.

 

3. Variable Data Printing

 

variable data printingOne of the most effective forms of automation is variable data printing (aka VDP). Along with personalization, VDP can work to fuel your direct mail campaigns, carefully targeting each recipient and speaking directly to their needs and preferences. VDP is the type of digital print production that takes advantage of mass customization. So you can personalize with different names, images, locations, and more, yet you’ll never slow down the printing process. This means production moves ahead without interruption. As a result, you’ll not only save time with simplified campaigns, you’ll also make them extremely targeted.

 

How to Use VDP to Personalize Your Campaigns

 

We answered the question “What is variable data printing?” with our blog post entitled: 11 Ways to Personalize Your Direct Mail Marketing Campaign. When you personalize your mail marketing campaigns with VDP, it can make all the difference between a successful campaign and one that falls flat. MSP can help you make the most of your next direct mail campaign with enhanced variable data personalization techniques. Let’s talk about the ways you can personalize your campaigns and maximize your direct mail efforts. Contact an MSP representative today to learn more.

 

4. Postal Optimization

 

postal optimizationYour campaign is ready to go. But wait, there’s more work to do. You still have to get it out the door and into mailboxes. That’s a strategy all its own because mailing expenses can account for as much as 65% of a direct mail campaign’s budget. That’s why postal optimization works for you to get the most bang for your advertising buck. Be aware that how you mail your campaign makes a big difference. It could be the data cleaning techniques we mentioned earlier or other postal optimization methods like strategically sizing your mail piece and presorting it.

 

How to Save Time and Money with a Shipping Strategy

 

We created How Postal Optimization Saves Money and Meets Direct Mail Deadlines to help you stay on a budget with your direct mail campaigns. In this post, we tell you about commingling, consolidating, and co-palletization. But first, let’s approach this key point with a basic statement. Postal optimization saves money and meets direct mail deadlines. The truth is, you don’t have to reduce the amount of mail you send to stay on budget. Nor do you have to reduce the quality of the piece to save a buck. MSP uses postal optimization methods to get the deepest discounts possible. So you can create the simplified campaigns of your dreams while sticking to your budget.

 

5. Direct Mail Panorama

 

direct mail panoramaIf you don’t know how well (or how poorly) your direct marketing campaign performed, how will you know what to do next? The data you receive from each campaign is telling you a story, but only if you’re paying attention to it. The best way to analyze your campaigns is to look at the results. Direct Mail Panorama is an innovative new mail management software program designed to help you streamline and manage your high-volume direct mail campaigns. You’ll get a panoramic view, if you will, of all your direct mail metrics. This allows you to improve upon each campaign with shorter cycle times and higher engagement rates.

 

How to Use a Software Program to Streamline Your Print Marketing

 

MSP’s Direct Mail Panorama does far more than analyzing how each campaign performed. We built a Direct Mail Panorama page specifically to show you everything this revolutionary new software can do. It enables you to streamline your mail production. It gets your campaigns into the hands of your customers faster. Plus, it shows you all the important information you need to stay ahead of your competitors. Now that’s direct marketing made easy.

 

Direct Mail Made Easy: Let MSP Show You How

 

Direct mail is part of your marketing strategy for good reason. It works. But it performs even better when you select a partner from all the direct mail companies who can give you the tools you need for simplified campaigns that succeed. Contact us and let’s get started working on your next direct mail campaign.

Simplify Your Direct Mail Campaigns

Learn how MSP takes the complexity out of direct mail programs.

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