Online and Offline Marketing Synergy

Direct mail can help you score new customers; email marketing can help you hang on to them. Combine these channels, and you have a dynamic direct marketing campaign that’s apt to improve response rates and boost business. “We’re finding that it’s really important to go back to basics,” says Jamie Klemcke, director of marketing at QuantumDigital, Inc., an integrated marketing and direct mail firm in Austin, Texas.

Research backs this up. According to a recent Target Marketing survey, email and direct mail are top methods for delivering the strongest return on investment for consumer acquisition and retention. And consider a survey of the Ipsos U.S. online consumer panel with more than 1 million participants. It found that 67 percent of prospects who received direct mail and print catalogs were driven to visit company websites and search for products and services. Even better, 39 percent of those consumers made an online purchase.

Ready to launch a successful integrated direct marketing campaign? Here are some ideas on how to leverage the best of print and online marketing:

Seek help. “To be cost-effective, find an all-inclusive vendor with direct mail and email lists to eliminate unnecessary back and forth,” Klemcke says. Such a firm has the most up-to-date, targeted customer lists at its fingertips and can create eye-catching marketing material with a can’t-miss call to action.

Incorporate social networking. Improve your chances of connecting with customers—without blowing your marketing budget—by integrating social networking into your direct marketing campaign. The key is to find a platform that’s niche-specific. If you’re in real estate, for instance, create a Twitter account and establish a presence on a real estate network site such as Active Rain.

Ask permission. Obtain consumers’ consent before adding them to your email list. And provide a working opt-out link or clear instructions on how to be removed from your email list. If you receive an opt-out request, you must remove that consumer from your email list within 10 business days. For more information, read about the Federal Trade Commission’s CAN-SPAM law.

Keep it personal. Personalization is easier and less expensive than ever before, thanks to improvements in technology. And including prospects’ names within direct mail pieces is a move that works. According to a 2007 InfoTrends/CAP Ventures study, highly personalized color direct mail generated a 6.5 percent response rate. Non-personalized direct mail generated only 2 percent.

Also consider the power of a personalized URL (PURL), which contains the name of the prospect and allows you to tailor your marketing message. Although approximately 33 percent of consumers go online to respond to direct mail, this response rate jumps 20 to 30 percent when PURL addresses and landing pages are used, according to the Direct Marketing Association.

Have multiple touch points. Typically it can take at least three to seven connections to get a prospect interested in responding. That’s why direct mail and email work hand-in-hand. To implement your campaign, send an email announcing the direct mail piece is on its way. Then, a week later, follow up with a personalized direct mail piece that has the same look and feel as the email and contains a meaningful call to action and a coupon. Approximately three days after the direct mail piece arrives in your prospect’s mailbox, send a follow-up email; include a link to your website for another way to receive the coupon.

Ramp up your website. Make sure your website contains forms for collecting prospects’ contact information. This will help you keep a better database of people who respond to your efforts. In addition, channel energy into improving your website’s search engine optimization so that it’s more likely to pop up during organic searches.

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