United States Postal Service Full Service Approved
Part 3 in a series on the benefits of different mail media.
Highlights
- Proven high ROI
- Room for longer text
- Protect sensitive info
Letter mailings are the venerable standard of the direct mail industry. There are very good reasons for this: letter mailings are the most versatile mail medium, and they traditionally produce a high ROI.
Though a letter mailing can be used effectively for a vast number of purposes, they're advantages are most complimentary to formal or confidential communications. There are some bits of information recipients do not want emblazoned on a postcard or selfmailer for the world to see, and the best way to exercise discression in such cases is to seal your message inside an envelope.
That envelope is also good for getting your message past gatekeepers, a concern of many business-to-business mailers. If for instance you're mailing to company CEOs, a postcard or a selfmailer will often end up in their secretary's trash can. A letter, on the other hand, is more likely to be opened by the addressee.
While selfmailers tend to be obvious advertisements, letters look more formal. This can be of benefit when one of your mailing priorities is to convey an image of high quality. For example, a dealership specializing in high-end luxury cars may prefer to use a letter mailing to entice prospective customers to come in for a visit, or to inform existing customers of special offers.
Another advantage of letters is their capacity for information. Postcards and selfmailers offer limited space for text, while a letter can easily contain 5 double-sided pages. This makes the letter a logical choice for messages that won't fit on a selfmailer.
Whatever your mailing goals are, chances are a letter mailing will meet them. Whether you're looking to impress residential addressees or get your business-to-business message into the right hands, the letter mailing is a direct-marketing tool proven successful several times over.
Related Posts:
Part 2 in a series on the benefits of different mail media.
Highlights
- Good info/cost ratio
- Room for large photos
- Effective newsletters
In the world of direct mail, the selfmailer is often maligned as being less effective than a letter and less cost-efficient than a postcard. That's a shame, because for certain types of mailings, the selfmailer is an excellent choice.
Selfmailers are well suited for company newsletters and for sales promotions targeted at residential mailboxes. Their advantage over postcards is the space they allow for more information and larger photos or graphics. Yet they also offer some of the postcard's advantages of less cost and complexity than a letter mailing.
They make a great format for newsletters because they are the most economical way to mail a medium-length message. Newsletters have a different purpose than advertising mail. The chief priority of a newsletter is not to be eye-catching or innovative, because they are going to recipients who already want the information contained within. Efficiency is the main motivator for those mailing newsletters.
However, that's not to say selfmailers aren't good for advertising mail. The selfmailer works well as an advertising tool in larger mailing campaigns when the goal is to get an image into the target market's hands. A store promoting an upcoming sale can make use of this by sending out selfmailers with colorful pictures of the products featured. Selfmailers can include a tear-off reply card making it easy for prospective customers to request more information, which increases your database and contact with consumers. They are also an effective way of sending out coupons.
According to USPS regulations, a selfmailer has to be made up of a single sheet of paper. Starting on Sept. 8, 2009, pieces that are comprised of multiple sheets of paper but are mailed without envelopes will be considered booklets by the postal service, and have more restrictions on sizing.
Unlike a letter mailing, which requires at least two pieces, the selfmailer requires less labor to prepare, saving you money at the mail shop. The savings offered by selfmailers make them attractive for larger mailings that may not be as finely targeted or personalized as a letter campaign. If size limitations make postcards impractical, and the cost of a letter mailing is more than you'd like to spend, consider a selfmailer. Depending on your goals, the can be an ideal compromise between the two formats.
Related Posts:
Part 1 in a series on the benefits of different mail media.
Highlights
- Fast delivery
- Versatile and cost-effective
- Announcements, promotions
- Reminders or invitations
At iPresort / Total Fulfillment, we work with all types of direct mail on a daily basis. We are familiar with the strengths of different mail media, and how they are best suited for reaching specific advertising goals for our clients.
One medium that stands out for its versatility and cost-effectiveness is the postcard. Postcards are a great medium for brief messages, such as announcements for newly opened businesses or promotions for new products and services. Used as reminders or invitations, they are a great way to gain new customers and to keep in touch with existing ones. They can also work well for special offers and coupons. The concise nature of the postcard's message makes it more likely that your audience will read the whole thing.
One of the challenges for mailers is getting the recipient to open your mail. With a postcard, that is not a matter for concern, as there is nothing to open. Your message is right there in the recipient's hand.
Postcards also have several attributes that make them an economical choice. Most obviously, they offer substantially lower postage rates, with single piece First-Class postage set at 28 cents for pieces that qualify as postcard size (up to 6″ X 4 ¼”), and presorted automation rates as low as 20.5 cents. Compare that with 44 cents for a 1-oz. First-Class letter.
But postage isn't the only way postcards save money. Since they use less paper, they keep material costs low, and having fewer pieces to handle saves on labor. At every step of the mailing, from printing to delivery, postcards are typically the most economical way to go.
Some of the money saved with postcards can be put toward making your mailing look nicer. Heavy, glossy stocks and eye-catching design are frequently used in postcard mailings, making them look more expensive than other mail media that actually cost more. Another way to take advantage of the savings is to mail more frequently, using postcards as a tool to increase the effectiveness of your branding strategy.
Postcards have a lot going for them. They are an economical and good-looking way to get your message to a targeted audience. Whether you want to keep in contact with your customers, or you're looking to drive traffic to a website, you can make your message pop when you use postcards.