Trends don’t just happen in fashion or in interior design. Trends happen in car design, in food, in education, in housing and in Direct Mail. With a little research, I wanted to see what was hot hot hot in the world of direct mail marketing and pass my findings on! The following are a few of the interesting things that are the newest and the best for today!
People seem to be yearning for the “good ole’ days” when they got mail in their mailbox every single day. Kids rush home and jump off of the school bus and immediately head to the mailbox. Or, the folks come home and check the mailbox as they pull in the driveway. And all too often, all they find is an empty mailbox. Not everyone has gone just to the cell phone for getting their information or listening to just the TV for their research. People don’t want to read advertising Emails. They delete them without even opening them. A recent survey said that 80% of people who find an information piece in their mailbox, will open it up and read it right away. It is very important that you send out a well developed and effective direct mail piece because people are actually clamoring for something interesting to be sent to them and hold a real paper letter or postcard in their hand! Direct Mail is Back!!
One of the trends that is moving through the printing arena is simplicity. Simple design, one impact picture, symmetric layout and one message. Large block letters with lots of white space and one color with punch surround a pithy message. With so much content and stimulating color and stuff surrounding us, marketers are moving towards designs that strip away unnecessary elements and grab your attention with large features instead. Another element that companies are delving into are mailing pieces that have texture and shine. You will see more of this on brochures, leaflets and business cards. Since a mailing piece requires someone to touch it, open it or turn it over, the print medium is a physical medium. The weight and feel of paper is being considered as part of the mailer as an object and as an experience in opening a unique piece of art. Keep in mind that a piece of mail and all the elements of its design and physical self is the difference from an email.
Personalizing your direct mail is nothing new, but it is being done more often on more types of mailers than ever before. Using, what they call hyper personalisation, you can now use data to store information on customers purchasing habits, their location, and demographics, which can help you tailor a mailing with personalisation that caters to specific groups. And with new technologies with inkjet printers, it is easier and more cost effective than ever to personalise large parts of a mailing to an individual, or to a specific group
Postcards and letters will always be the standard by which most direct mail will be defined. But designing outside of the envelope is a new trend that is taking hold. Businesses that are looking to make an unconventional impact are creating and sending dimensional pieces. Boxes, tubes, plastic bags, balls, 3D glasses and pop up cards all attract a great deal of attention and produce a higher response rate. A promotional package with samples, materials, and coupons can be added to a tube or a foldable box. A calendar delivered flat then folds up into a pencil holder for the desk is a unique reminder of your business on a daily basis. And finally, you can also deliver your message in a piece that appears like a model of your main product.
According to Google Augmented Reality is a technology that superimposes a computer generated image on a user's view of the real world providing a composite view. And this is the latest trend in direct marketing. Augmented reality has steadily been increasing in its uses over the last few years and the AR apps have been seen more as technical demos than as fully functioning apps. But, the success of Pokémon Go and Ikeas IKEA Place AR app which helps customers visualize what their furniture might look like in their own living rooms, and with the supported AR on both iPhone and Android, Augmented Reality usage could start to take off in a big way. Putting this technology into a direct mail campaign could boost user interest, as well as creating social media buzz around the experience.
Direct Mail Marketing is one of the best advertising strategies you or your business could utilize to reach customers and prospective clients. It is cost-effective, versatile, highly customizable, quick and easy to set up, reliable and helps you stand out from the typical marketing routines of your competitors. The advantages of direct mail marketing are limitless! Also, the results of your marketing efforts can be measured and tracked easily when using direct mail – no more complicated analytics or time wasted wondering what works and what doesn’t. Using highly-target mailing lists, coupled with unique letters and envelopes, Everest Direct Mail and Marketing can design your direct mail campaigns to ensure your potential customers heed your message by putting your advertisements directly into their hands.In the spam-riddled world of today’s online marketing, using direct mail to publicize yourself makes every cent of your marketing budget count with a high chance for a strong return on your investment.
