Wednesday, July 18, 2012

Getting the Most Out of Direct Mail Marketing

It can be challenging for small and new business owners to afford advertising when their client base is small. Without advertisement they won't draw customers and without customers advertisements remain unaffordable. That sounds like a no-win situation but there is a solution. Many small businesses cannot afford billboards or television ads but direct mail marketing is not only affordable it is effective.Follow the link to learn about the great options available offered by the Ballantine Corporation. 

With Direct mail marketing, business owners send advertisements to future customer through the mail. Direct mail marketing has the biggest reach when it comes to connecting with customers because everybody checks their mail and with other forms of advertising there is no guarantee that your ad will even be seen. Bulk mail, which is what most direct mail marketers use, comes at a discount making this type of advertisement financially attractive as well. A direct mail marketing campaign can be very successful if the right steps are taken.

In order for a direct mail advertisement to make an impact it has to catch the eye of potential customers. There are many businesses utilizing direct mail marketing which means there is a lot of direct mail circulating. To make sure that an advertisement gets noticed it needs to grab the attention of the audience. Using distinctive materials, unique designs and distinguishing shapes and colors is a quick way to grab attention.

Grabbing the audience's attention is a good start but it is important that the message is just as attention grabbing. The message should be sharp, easy to understand and call the audience to action. The purpose of direct mail marketing is to move potential customers to action. It is impossible to motivate people without an extraordinary message. Visit ballantine.com for more information.

If a direct mail marketing campaign targets the wrong audience, then it doesn't matter how great the mailer looks or how on point the message is. Knowing the target market is crucial. The target audience is the group of people who are mostly like to patronize a business. A mailing list that has been compiled carefully using extensive research is the only way to assure that the mailers will reach the correct audience. There are companies that offer very extensive and well researched mailing lists but a business owner would be well served to also keep a list of potential customers.

It is also important to know that direct mail marketing isn't a one shot deal. Even the target audience only responds to advertisements when they need the goods or services that are being advertised so an intermittent stream of direct mailers will increase the chances that the ads land in their mailbox at the right time.

Much of the success of direct mail marketing hinges on following up. Read more about how Ballantine creative can help your business. A piece of direct mail is like bait on a hook and an effective campaign will hook potential clients but they still need to be reeled in and that is where the follow up comes into play.