Did you know that many farmers today are buying 40-year-old tractors because they work, they are easy to maintain and cost less overall than their modern counterparts? The tractors manufactured in the late 1970s and 1980s look and run like modern tractors, yield the same results, but lack the computer components that drive up costs and make repair a nightmare.
I don’t know how an article speaking about 40 year-old tractors and their modern popularity and usage ended up in my social feed this week, but it made me think about direct mail and its place in today’s marketing mix.
I concede that overall volume has declined since the emergence of email and online marketing, but the effectiveness of direct mail is as strong as ever. The fact is, people still read or at minimum, review their mail every day (98% of all mail is brought into the home the day it is delivered). Sure, any irrelevant or non-timely pieces gets sorted and filed in the circular bucket, but they have to touch it and look at it first.
Digital communications and inter-channel campaigns have their place today and are here to stay. But they cannot compare with the impact of a physical mailer that gets put into the hands of a waiting prospect. Direct mail gives you the eyeballs and the fingertips that digital marketing simply cannot. The multi-sensory state of mail allows you to unconsciously impact trust and influence in your recipient, increasing resonance and propensity to act.
One of Wingman’s core strengths is the strategy and execution of direct mail. This channel has many options, specifications and many moving parts. The challenge for any business isn’t surrounding the “hitting mailboxes” part (although that’s important), it is the “getting the right people to respond” part. This is where WMDM excels. We use proven direct response strategies and methodologies to help clients get the most out of their direct mail campaigns – whether they’re trying to generate leads, subscribers, direct orders, donations, traffic or just greater brand awareness.
Like the old tractor that hasn’t been completely displaced by the newer shiny ones, direct mail has not been put out to pasture by newer channels for targeting your customers. Often written off as a “dinosaur” approach to client acquisition, direct mail can be hugely effective.
Thinking of adding direct mail to your marketing mix? Or looking for ways to improve an existing program? Book a Wingman today.
Our expertise includes:
Full strategic/Creative/Execution/Analysis Services
WMDM’s full-service program includes complete strategic planning, list research and/or brokering, offer development, format selection, testing strategy, creative services, production supervision and of course post-campaign analysis.
Print & Mail Execution Services
For clients who prefer to handle their own strategic planning (and possibly creative as well), print/mail execution has its own nuances that we know inside out. We will get your direct mail out the door efficiently and with as much cost savings as possible campaign to campaign.
Direct Mail Auditing/Coaching services
Let WMDM take a peek at your direct mail flight path and see if we can add fire power to your existing campaigns. Maybe your response rates or conversion rates are softer than you’d like. We offer our clients the opportunity to have their existing campaigns reviewed and analyzed for efficiencies in content, creative, package optimization, list analysis, and postage efficiencies. We can work with you as a one-time review or on a cyclical monthly/quarterly basis as needed.