Direct mail conjures up the ideas of an envelope filled with coupons, perhaps some real estate post cards, and a few credit card offers. You may think that most of those items you will put in the trash, however, there is still a reason why so many companies still use, and succeed with direct mail.
It is estimated that 70-80% of all mail is opened, regardless of whether it is ‘junk mail.’ Though it can seem more costly, the response rates are approximately 2.7 times higher with direct mail compared to email.
Infographic: UnitedMail
You are now starting to think to yourself, how can I get started with direct mail, what vendors can help me send a direct mail campaign on a budget? Here are a few great tools to help you design, print, and send your first direct mail pieces and keep an eye out for part two on direct mail campaign best practices next week:
Mailjoy:
Website: http://www.mailjoy.com/
This new direct mail solution is like Mailchimp meets snail mail. They provide you easy to use templates to design your postcard direct mail pieces, then you upload your address mailing list, you sign off on the final design, click send, then they even provide you deliverability reporting to see how successful your send is. Their pricing starts at just $0.70 per mailer, and no minimums. That’s barely more than the price of the stamp you would otherwise need to use and far less headaches with the design. A perfect mailing solution for small businesses and startups.
Bond:
Website: https://bond.co
It is fairly common that someone on the receiving end can decipher a generic direct mail piece from a personal letter. Bond is a fantastic solution to those wishing to provide a high touch note, but don’t necessarily have the time to hand write 100 or more letters. This is a fantastic solution for salespeople, realtors, or event organizers. They are a bit more expensive when you get started, as you’ll need a $500 investment to set up your custom handwriting, but after, you can start to send custom notes on personalized notecards to prospects.
MOO:
Website: https://www.moo.com
Photo courtesy of MOO
This UK-based printer has become my go-to for business cards, and with good reason. They always get a compliment. Do you need some help getting a design in place and putting things together, but have the office power to put them in envelopes, and send them out yourself? MOO is a great option for you. They have a variety of sizes and templates for you to base your design from, then the printing abilities to send you a beautiful finished product with a reasonably quick turnaround time.
Do-it-yourself bonus:
Canva:
Website: https://www.canva.com/
You are a scrappy startup, and you have a local printer you already work with, you have some sense of design, and want to find a way to put this out on your own. You likely need a hint of help as you’re not an Adobe Illustrator or InDesign creative genius. Canva is your answer and will help you with almost any other design project you may need, including presentations, posters, Facebook posts, and more. Use Canva to build the perfect creative design for your direct mail piece, and take it to your favorite printer. Get it from design to post office as quickly as you can find a printer to print it, then use your own stamp to send it with.
Feeling overwhelmed about creating your first direct mail campaign or want to ask a few more questions? Get in touch for the top marketing and business consulting in Austin and the 512 area code.