This hybrid technique can increase response rate for a campaign and boost data collection. Ingage's founder/president tells how.
As iMedia Connection readers well know, the advent of the internet spawned an array of marketing platforms that capitalize on three of that medium's key benefits: speed, the ability to update content at very low cost and, perhaps most importantly, the potential to capture data about user behavior. From a direct marketing perspective, much has been written about email marketing, especially as it compares to traditional direct mail. Not many experts, however, have covered the hybrid alternative that is interactive direct mail.
Interactive direct mail is becoming increasingly more valuable to companies seeking to optimize their direct marketing strategies. In light of the steady decline in mass marketing ROI, more organizations have turned to targeted initiatives focused on lead generation and improving customer relationship. CAN-SPAM legislation and do-not-call registries have, in turn, contributed to make direct mail one of the most reliable and easy to deploy direct marketing tools.
Enter interactive direct mail. It often features the same benefits of web-based platforms such as data capture and post-production content updates that help marketing executives reduce production costs and justify expenditures.
Typically, interactive direct mail campaigns require companies to migrate from a traditional print format to a digital one. When doing so, however, many organizations fail to realize they must structure their messages in a different way. Interactive direct mail pieces should not be postcards in CD form. They must be created as ultra targeted "websites" that can be delivered straight to a prospect's door. Here are three other tips to keep in mind when designing an interactive direct mail campaign:
1) Maximize your messages' relevance
Relevance is key to a successful interactive direct mail campaign. This principle also applies to traditional direct mail campaigns of course, but interactivity gives it a whole new dimension for two basic reasons. First, because it enables marketers to use more than text to convey their messages. Audio and video can be extremely powerful differentiators when employed wisely. When overdone, however, they can distract from your message and, what's worse, make a negative impression on recipients. Every campaign must begin with a thorough audit of your target audience.
The second reason why achieving message relevance is a more complex effort with interactive direct mail campaigns is the fact that the prospect has greater control over his experience with your marketing piece than he would if it were a postcard. Much like websites, interactive direct mail pieces enable the recipient to navigate content sections according to their interests. Keep your campaign's objective in mind when creating your digital direct mail piece. And make sure both the content and the structure of your message are as relevant to the recipient as possible.
2) Invest in great packaging
One of the greatest challenges with any direct mail initiative is cutting through the clutter of envelopes, magazines and flyers delivered to the average American's mailbox on a daily basis. It is no secret to anyone that most of those pieces are much more likely to end up in the trash than on your prospect's desk. Now, imagine if your customer has to take it a step further and actually pop a CD into his/her computer. In order to increase the odds that your interactive direct mail piece will actually be played by prospects, campaign managers must ensure that its packaging is truly unique and features a very compelling call to action.
Earmarking a fraction of your budget to test different designs and verbiage can prove to be effective in determining the right strategy, particularly because interactive direct mail technology can feature advanced tracking capabilities-- which leads me to my third tip for a successful campaign.
3) Use campaign metrics strategically
Similarly to email marketing, interactive direct mail enables executives to closely monitor campaign performance. Today, CDs can be built to capture detailed data on the ways in which a recipient has interacted with its content. Needless to say, one of the most important pieces of information you can collect on your campaign is how many people have viewed your interactive direct mail piece. By matching this intelligence to a high quality list, you will be able to identify which calls to action and packaging drew the greatest response from your targets.
Advanced interactive direct mail tracking technologies also enable managers to upload the intelligence gathered during a campaign to their CRM system. Marketers can use these metrics to refine their organizations' marketing strategy and empower the sales team with information that will help them better qualify leads.
Peter Nyberg is founder and president of ingage. Read full bio.