Direct Mail Delivers resUlts!

Inside: Astonishing Statistics. Case Studies. DM Did You Knows.

BiG

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Why Direct Mail (DM) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

The advantages of DM . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

Why DM belongs IN THE MIX . . . . . . . 8

Integrating DM into everything . . . . . .10

DM by the numbers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12

DM myths . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .14

Case studies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .16

Table of Contents

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Why Direct Mail?That’s easy . . . it works!

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Digital, digital, digital. That seems to be the mantra every company and ad agency is emailing, blogging and tweeting about. So what about Direct Mail? Has its time really come and gone? Is DM dead? We say a resounding NO! Here’s why...

According to the Direct Marketing Association (DMA) Factbook for 2013, 65% of consumers… of ALL ages… made a purchase as a result of Direct Mail. Also, according to Direct Mail News, in 2012, the average response rate for Direct Mail was approx. 4.4% for both business-to-business and business-to-consumer. This is considerably higher than initially thought and considerably higher than the average email response rate of just 0.12%.

This tells us that not only is Direct Mail alive and well… it’s thriving! One could even say that DM is going through a renaissance.

But, what about costs? Direct Mail is considerably more expensive than anything in the digital realm (well, most), but costs should always be looked at in terms of return on investment (ROI). Below is a table showing cost per lead/order:

Medium Cost per lead/order

Direct Mail $51 .40Pay per click $52 .40Print advertising $60 .50Telemarketing $190 .50Email: $55 .24Source: DMA, 2012 Response Rate Report.

And, DM has a higher conversion rate than any other medium. The Print on Demand Institute (PODI) found that Direct Mail out-pulled all other channels tested in terms of conversion rates, both for lead-generating “free” offers and one-step “buy now” offers. Direct Mail’s edge becomes even more dramatic when it’s optimized with personalization, gender, demographics, etc.

Direct Mail also enjoys longer “shelf life” than email/digital/social, so it might be profitable to evaluate your existing campaigns and offers to see what can be repurposed for Direct Mail.

Business-to-consumer or business-to-business — DM can give you the big-gest bang for your buck!

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The advantages of Direct Mail

How Direct Mail can build your business

Involved in delivering integrated marketing campaigns that are as innovative as they are effective? Direct Mail can help you capture, and keep your customers’ attention for a surprisingly small investment.

Direct Mail is Flexible. It can be used in every step of your customers’ journey. Whether you’re focused on lead generation, introducing a new product, customer relationship management or database development, Direct Mail has a role to play. Use it to send a card, letter, brochure or catalogue – whatever will engage your customers or prospects the most.

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Direct Mail is Targeted. You can reach a specific group of people who are more likely to buy or consider buying your product or service. You can select them by postal code and/or region. You can also use other criteria like age, gender, income or interests. Once you have a profile of your customer, we can help you create a database.

Direct Mail is Personal. Direct Mail puts your message straight into the hands of customers and prospects the instant they walk into their homes or arrive at work. You can customize your campaign by using your customers’ names, gender, likes, dislikes, affiliations, etc. and by discussing their needs. By utilizing personal marketing intelligence you’re not only making the package relevant, you are also building a strong and long-lasting relationship with your customer.

Direct Mail is Tangible. Emails are easy to ignore. Press one button and they’re gone. Radios can be switched off… as can televisions. And newspapers and magazines offer eye-catching advertising that consumers may simply scan and forget. Emails and pop-ups can always be filtered, whereas Direct Mail MUST be delivered. Mail is immediate and durable – per fect for building long-term customer relationships. Need a hand creating an effective mailer? We can design, print and mail your materials, just ask us!

Direct Mail is Integrated. Direct Mail wil l complement television, radio, newspaper, magazine, email or social campaigns. For example, a television commercial can raise awareness about a new product BUT coupons sent to prospects and customers can lead directly to sales. The same is true of newspaper advertising. A mailing can help take your customers from brand awareness to the point of purchase. And, if you’re selling online or building your social media presence, your mail can easily supply a discount code for online use, or offer rewards to customers who agree to join a Facebook group or like a product.

Direct Mail is Measurable. Enclose an order form, a business reply envelope or a link to a web site and you’ll know exactly how many people respond to your DM campaign. You can also use online discount codes, customized email addresses or phone numbers so your customers can choose the way they get in touch with you.

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7 reasons you should add Direct Mail to your marketing mix

* Consumer Attitudes Towards Direct Marketing and Traditional Media. CP 09-210, March 2010. ** CP Consumer Survey, November 2010, CP10-300.

94% of Canadians are likely to open an item that comes in the mail if they already

do business with that company.**64% of Canadians prefer to receive general business correspondence by mail compared to 32% by email and 4% by other means.**

95% of Canadians usually read their mail the same day it arrives.68% read their mail as soon as it’s received, while another 27% review it later on that same day.*

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1 It can be used to experiment with new markets, test new products and collect information for future campaigns.

2 It can allow you to mail and talk about your offers directly with the customers that are interested.

3 Direct Marketing is more cost-effective than other types of marketing.

4 It can help build personal connections with your customers and achieve fast sales.

5 It can allow you to focus on specific groups of targeted customers for better results.

6 It can allow direct feedback (surveys, comments sections, etc.), which in turn can help you monitor and improve your current

marketing strategy.

7 The results are conclusive thus helping you plan your future campaigns more effectively.

Direct Mail is a marketing channel like no other… it’s flexible, affordable, personal and targeted.

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How DM fits with an integrated campaign

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Direct Mail is powerful in its own right, but now research has shown it also operates as an ‘amplifier’ for other advertising channels. More than 90% of Direct Mail is opened, and last year 48%* of adults took action after receiving their Direct Mail.

Direct Mail WITH television TV advertising gets your idea to a broad number of households, but Direct Mail continues that conversation and takes customers on the final step of the journey… the sale!

Direct Mail WITH social mediaSocial media is a marketing force to be reckoned with, but it can rarely succeed in isolation. To be successful it needs to work alongside other advertising and promotional tools. Insights from the market research company BMRB show that social network users are more likely to be frequent responders to Direct Mail than the average adult.* This seems to suggest that social media advertising has primed them to be more responsive when the message reaches them through their mailbox.

Direct Mail WITH email and the webDirect Mail and email should go hand-in-hand. According to recent research, Direct Mail is the most effective channel to drive purchases online. Over a 6-month period, 39% of Canadians made an online purchase after receiving a piece of DM.**

Sources: * Royal Mail. ** Canada Post.

The benefits of adding DM to your marketing mix!

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5 Direct Mail stats that can’t be ignored!

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Direct Mail marketers have spent the past few years defending the channel. While skeptics and media alike proclaim the medium is dead, Direct Mail continues to be widely used and is still producing outstanding ROI.

If you’re still not convinced of the power of DM, below are 5 stats that can’t be ignored.

1 In over 80% of homes, the person in the household responsible for collecting and sorting mail will collect the mail at their first opportunity. And, once the mail is brought into the home, 80% will sort the mail immediately while 18% will sort it later that day. – USPS 2012 Mail Moment Study.

2 59% of U.S. respondents and 65% of Canadian respondents agreed with the following statement, “I enjoy getting postal mail from brands about new products.” – Epsilon’s 2012 Channel Preference Study.

3 48% of the UK population responded to a Direct Mail piece they received in the past year. – Central Mailing Services 2013 Direct Mail Statistics.

4 80% of marketers surveyed plan to invest in Direct Mail in 2013. 28% reported increases in their Direct Mail budgets. – Target Marketing Magazine’s Media Usage Forecast 2013.

5 U.S. advertisers spend $167 per person on Direct Mail to earn $2,095 worth of goods sold; a 1,300% return. – Print Drives Commerce 2013.  

Numbers don’t lie .

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Direct Mail myths . True or false?

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#1 People are migrating from traditional media to online channels.

Answer: False

The top 5 most effective advertising channels are all so-called traditional media! When it comes to channel effectiveness, the first digital channel in the ranking is email marketing at #6.

#2 The younger demographic is online, right? Answer: False

The younger demographics do rank social, online display and email marketing as more effective than the older demographics do, BUT, still nowhere near as effective as TV, press, radio and Direct Mail.

#3 Direct Mail only works to an older demographic. Answer: False

Direct Mail transcends the age demographic with younger consumers (the 18 to 34-year-old demographic) preferring to learn about marketing offers via the mail rather than online sources, according to a national survey from ICOM.* – * Source: Forbes Online.

#4 Direct Mail is too expensive. Answer: False

Like all marketing, costs associated with Direct Mail should be considered investments made in anticipation of a return. If you’re worried that investing in Direct Mail means you’re throwing money out the window, chances are you either haven’t done your research or hired someone to do it for you. There are tried and true methods of Direct Mail you can employ to boost your response.

#5 Major companies no longer add Direct Mail into their mix. Answer: False

I’m sure you’ve heard of Google, but did you know that they are the eighth largest Direct Mailer in the U.S. — sending over a million pieces each year.

Case Studies

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In today’s digital world of texting, tweeting and posting, Direct Mail gives us something we can actually touch and interact with! It’s tactile. It’s engaging. It can trigger our senses with sounds and smells. It can tell a story better than almost any other medium. To prove our point, on the pages that follow we’ve teamed up with Canada Post to show you some truly remarkable Direct Mail pieces from around the world.

Case Study #1: Kontor Germany

Case Study #2: Pfaff Auto Toronto

Case Study #3: AMP Australia

Some truly inspirational ideas.

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COUNTRY: GermanyCLIENT: KontorPRODUCT: Boris Dlugosch releaseAGENCY: OgilvyAction Dusseldorf/

OgilvyOneTITLE: Back to Vinyl

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Chief Creative OfficerStephan Vogel

executive Creative DirectorsMartin SeeleUwe Jakob

art DirectorsTobias von AeschKlaus-Martin Michaelis

CopywritersMartin SeelMike Bayfield

Creative assistantsDaniel SiegelEsra Bueyuekdoganay

Production Technical DirectorJens Steffen

account ManagerAnnika Hake

Head of Project ManagementHanna von Schultz

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BaCKGrOUND:Kontor, the world’s biggest dance-music label wanted to promote the new Boris Dlugosch release to the advertising industry. But they were targeting the world’s most cynical audience: agency creative directors. These guys either pass promo CDs onto their staff or, more often, just throw them out.

They had to find a way to get through to every single one of them, so that they would actually listen to the new Kontor release.

IDea:As every good DJ knows, the best music comes on vinyl. But, only a few creative directors own a turntable anymore. So a spin was put on things, literally.

A “turntable” made from the envelope was mailed along with a vinyl disc of the music, with a unique smartphone app to play it. The recipient just had to flip the envelope and then put the disc on the “turntable”. They could then activate the QR code with their phone, place if over the record and listen to the new track. Plus, they could also play other tracks or contact Kontor via the connect icon.

It was analog fun with a digital device.

reSULTS:640 of the 900 turntable QR codes were activated. That was a 71% response rate, 64% higher than the average response rate to a mailing. There was also much positive feedback – from some of the industry’s most important people.

42% followed the link to the Kontor Online Store.

INSIGHTS:Creative directors are one of the hardest target audiences to reach. Not only do they hide behind their gate-keepers but when you do finally get in front of them, they exercise judgement. Only if you are interesting or if you are cool will they look at what you have to offer. Even as consumers, they bring a profes-sional eye to everything. So by all those criteria, this mailing was a success, appealing to most creative directors’ sense of retro style while embracing modern technology.

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COUNTRY: CanadaCLIENT: Pfaff Auto, TorontoPRODUCT: PorscheAGENCY: Lowe Roche, TorontoTITLE: Instant Direct Mail

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Creative DirectorsDave DouglassPete Breton

art DirectorJP Gravina

CopywriterSimon Craig

PrODUCTION

ProducerBeth Mackinnon

Production HouseMotion Pantry

Director/Cameraman/editorDean Vargas

OTHer

account ServicesDave Carey

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BaCKGrOUND:Pfaff Auto Toronto is the largest Porsche dealership in Canada. They wanted to approach their target audience personally, bringing them a level of service and attention that they’d both appreciate and expect. Instead of asking them to come to the dealership to experience their extraordinary cars, they decided to bring the experience directly to them.

IDea:Instead of a generic flyer dropped in random mailboxes, a Direct Mail piece was created which was both personal and unique. With a camera, laptop, printer and a Porsche Carrera 911S, the agency targeted the driveways of houses in upscale neighbourhoods. They parked the car in each driveway and took a photo to create a one-of-a-kind postcard, right on the spot. The postcard drove traffic to MakeThatPorscheMine.com, where their prospective client could then arrange their personal test drive. How personal? In keeping with their message, Pfaff would bring a Porsche model of the client’s choice right to their home.

reSULTS:Of the targeted homes, 32% responded by visiting the Porsche website where they could book a test drive.

INSIGHTS:Personalization is more than just showing you know your target’s name. It’s about showing you know how they live and where they live. That’s what makes this piece so beguiling. Every mail item was not just unique, it was relevant. The explicit message is, doesn’t a new Porsche look good in your driveway? And the implicit message is, make your neighbours sick with envy.

It is not known how much the campaign cost, nor how many cars were sold but even if one $100,000 Porsche was purchased as a result, the ROI would be handsome.

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COUNTRY: AustraliaCLIENT: AMPPRODUCT: Financial Planning ServicesAGENCY: CUBED CommunicationsTITLE: Helping Hand

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Creative DirectorDave Scott

associate Creative DirectorKate Lightfoot

art DirectorDave Scott

CopywriterKate LightfootPrODUCTION

Production ManagerBrendan Hanrahan

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BaCKGrOUND:AMP was having difficulty getting tradespeople to think about their pensions. Most of them were preoccupied with the day-to-day running of their businesses and didn’t have the time to worry about something as far off as retirement.

The bank wanted to overcome the apathy and give recipients a real reason to get in touch with a financial advisor.

IDea:Tradespeople and financial advisors have something in common; they both offer professional advice. Constructing your own retirement plan is like undertaking a DIY job; you’ll never do it as well as a professional, and there is a good chance you could mess it up.

Sending a traditional letter in an envelope seemed rather delicate and conven-tional for the target audience. So, tradespeople were mailed the left hand of a pair of work gloves.

If the recipient did drop in to see their AMP financial planner, not only did they receive good advice – they also get the matching right-hand glove.

reSULTS:AMP wanted 5% of the recipients to respond to the piece and set up an appointment with their financial advisor. With only 600 mailers being sent, this would generate 30 appointments and 30 opportunities for the bank to sell the Flexible Lifetime Super Easy Fund.

The Helping Hand campaign generated a 7.16% response rate, delivering 43 new prospects to AMP financial planners.

INSIGHTS:Who says an envelope has to be white and oblong? The great thing about mail is it has so many so-called rules, all of which can be broken.

In a side-by-side comparison between a white standard envelope and a single glove, which do you think looks more interesting? Which would make the recipient feel more valued?

Mail can be any shape and size you want it to be. People have stuck stamps on pumpkins, coconuts and all sor ts of objects, and the letter carrier has delivered them all.

Cover-all would like to thank Canada Post, TCP Integrated Marketing and NeMo for contributing their hard work, dedication

and expertise to make this DM campaign a success .