Internet Direct Mail Campaign from Development to Results Analysis (TreeWorks white paper)

8/15/2019 Internet Direct Mail Campaign from Development to Results Analysis (TreeWorks white paper)

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Internet Direct Mail Campaign

From Development ToResults Analysis

A recent study reported that 40% of the Internet users change their opiniondue to the information they gathered online. In this terms it is veryimportant to pay a special attention to the brand image you create usingonline advertising and e-mail maerketing campaigns.

TreeWorks

Blvd. Coposu nr. 4bl. 105 A sc. A ap. 1Bucureti, Romnia

Phone: +40.213.260.602Fax: +40.213.267.233

[email protected]


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Definition

Benefits

Elements Of An E-mail Marketing CampaignList Of SubscribersDevelop The Content And Format Of The MessageEvaluation And Review Of The Campaign

Avoiding Spam Messages

Conclusion

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Content


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DefinitionInternet direct mail is an e-mail advertising a

product or service and soliciting orders, which issent to a large number of potential customers.

Benefits

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1. Inexpensive

The email is less expensive than otheradvertising options, such as the banner ads,

outdoor and telemarketing. The price ofsending a single B2C email marketing messageis less than 1 cent, the Association ofInteractive Marketing shows in their reports.

2.Measurable Results

There is software designed to measurecampaign success. These programs generatereports on the number of emails opened byyour recipients (open-ups) and the number oftimes your clicks were clicked (click-through).Being able to quantify the success ofcampaigns in progress, marketers can quicklyadjust their strategies to increase responserates.

Direct Mail permits the marketer to design marketing pieces in many different formats like:

Sales Letters: Often personalized, the sales letter pursuades the recipient to buy theproduct or service.

Response Device: This can be an order form, opinion survey or applications used to buy theproduct or service. This piece involves the recipient.

Lift Note: The lift note is extremely effective in boosting the response to an email. You canhighlift an important to buy, incorporate a testimonial or print an endorsement by acelebrity.


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3. Wide Reach

Email became already a part of many people'sdaily routine. It is a communication mediumwith an exceptional large audience and allowsrecipients to immediately respond themessage. An email can be sent in a fewseconds, anywhere in the world.

4. Drives website traffic and registration

You can include in your messages links thatdirect the consumers to your website. This willincrease site traffic and the will lead to

increase website registration. You may thenfollow up by providing your customers withpersonalized and targeted content.

5. Strengthnes Brand Awareness

Regularly delivered emails that containimportant subjects and logos reinforcecompany' and product awareness. Emailcreates an interactive connection withcustomers and nurtures long lasting, qualityrelationships.

6. Emails can be highly customized

When email list works together customerdatabase, even the large volume campaignscan be customized so that messages includespecific customer data.Database integration also allows selectcustomer groups to receive messagesappropriate for only a portion database entries(for example, ZIP Code, gender etc.).

7. Time saving

According to the Association of Interactive

Marketing, companies that use emailmarketing to administrate campaigns ratherthan traditional direct mailings save 60% oftheir time.

8. Email is easy to implement and requirerslimited resources.

Email campaigns can be easy implemented andrealized with only minimal software, hardwareand personnel investments.

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Elements Of An E-mailMarketing Campaign

1. List Of Subscribers

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First step in an email marketing campaign is

compiling a list of email addresses from thosewho have agreed to receive your messages.This is known as an opt-in email marketing andis a very important part of the campaign. Arecent study reported that only 6 percent ofpermission-based e-mail is deleted unopened,while 59 percent of opt-out e-mail is deletedunopened.

Start gathering addresses with:

Current Customers who may have given you

their e-mail addresses and permission to sendmessages. Depending on how your businessoperates, there may be multiple opportunitiesto collect clients' email addresses (order formsetc.). Or, perhaps e-mail communication mayalready be the most common way youcorrespond to your clients and therefore theperfect opportunity exists to ask them if theywould like to receive newletters or otheroffers.

Prospective Customers

These e-mail addressed can be obtainedthrough sign-ups on your website or in-storelocations. There are e-mail list managementsoftwares that can interact with your site andyour visitors may automatically subscribe tonewsletters without having to perform thisfunction manually.

List Brokers companies specialized incompiling opt-in mailing list. To make sure youwill get quality opt-in lists, ask your brokersthese questions:

What is the website's method for optingin the people on its lists?

What type of relationship does the sitehave with the people in its list?

How old are the names? How is the e-list maintained? What selections are available on the e-

list? Does the e-list owner offer any value-

added services?

These questions can help you determine whichlists can produce profitable results for yourproduct or service.


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2. Developing the Content and Format of the

Message

Messages should be created according to theresults you wish to achieve. Establish yourcampaign goals and then create a strongmessage that reinforces your brand, describesyour products and clearly establishes how theconsumers can contact you. The subject line ispossibly the most important part of an e-mail

message. Write a powerful line, by combiningan action phrase with a response-boostingincentive.

Message format: text, HTML (text andgraphics) or multi-part format.

HTML mail has the ability to strengthen themessage, by combining fully graphic images(like your company's logo) with text.

Studies show that less experienced internet

users tend to desire HTML e-mail, while theexperienced ones prefer text-only. It isadvisable to allow subscribers to choose theirdesired format. Recipient format preferencescan be stored in the data base, just like otherpreferences and demographic information.

A multi-part specification allows you to sendemail in both text and HTML format, while theemail program of the recipient will exposeonly the desired format.

Message Content

Ensure your message reaches thetarget audience needs. Make sure theoffer of your products and servicesreaches the needs of the recipient ofthe mailing.

Get to the point quickly. Do not startthe e-mail with general information,get to the point from the beginning. Itis important to make your point in thefirst five lines.

Keep most direct e-mails short. Themessage should be short, clear and to

the point. On the Internet people wantinformation and the want it right away.

Mention sell benefits. If you want tosell don't forget to tell potential buyersabout the benefit of using your productor service. Before starting to write,make a list with all the benefits thismaight bring. When you write thecopy, be sure to start with the firstthree major benefits.

Use an impersonal style. It isrecommended to personalize eachletter you send in the direct e-mailcampaign. Write like you are talking tothe recipient of the letter. Beconversational, informal, but be surenot to use a too familiar language.

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Use letters to generate leads, notsalesA one-page letter is an excellent tool to

generate interest, but is much to shortto effectively sell. Your goal is togenerate a response, either it is areturn mail card, an email, a phone or afax. You just want an opportunity, youcannot get the sail from the first directmail.

Use a P.S. A response rate surveyshowed that often recipent's eye movesdown the page to the P.S before theyread the entire letter. If possible,restate your selling proposition in theP.S.

Use white space. It is difficult for auser to read a block of text. Use shortparagraphs, bulleted or numbered lists. These will help the recipient readyour message.

Include a call to action. Do not let therecipients wonder what to do. It is not

enough to tell them to check your homepage. Include in your message a specialURL that people can click on to go toyour site and fill out a form to requestadditional information.

Make a no risk offer. Offer therecipient something and make it norisk. A free trial and a money backguarantee are will work when yourbuyer is uncertain about accepting your

offer. Make sure it is clear there is norisk or obligation on their part.

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Create a deadline. Even if it is a real oran imaginative one, be sure to include itin the email. Usually, the imposition of

deadline increases the rate of answersbecause the recipients understand theyonly have a limited time to act.

Include a guarantee. If you can offer aquarantee, do it. Some products orservices do not easily lend themselves tothe offer of a guarantee. In this case youcan guarantee the delivery, the serviceor the best price. By offering aguarantee, you offer credibility to your

products and services.

Include testimonials. Testimonials fromsatisfied clients are the strongest way tobring credibility to your copy. Also,recommandations from a celebrity canlend a note of credibility.

Include all your contact information.Include in the message your name, phonenumber, fax and e-mail. People responddifferently, so offer them the possibilityto choose.


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3. Evaluation And Review Of The Campaign

Create a pilot campaign that tests theefficiency of the message on a selectedportion of your database. Measure the resultsfrom the trial, make adjustments and test iton another group. Refine your message untilyou think it is good enough to launch a fullcampaign.

Once you have sent your final message to the

recipients you may start measuring the resultsof the campaign. Monitoring responses enablesyou to determine the quality of your recipientlists and the effectiveness of the message.E-mail marketing programs are capable ofrecording if the recipients open or not yourmessage, if they click or not on the URL thatlinks to your website. Being able to quantifythese activities you can measure the succes ofthe campaigns and make adjustments toachieve a higher conversion rate. This is thekey of an e-mail marketing campaign.

Response Analysis

There are three main measurement wayscurrently used:

Click-through rate. This tells you how manypeople who received the message clickedon a link in the e-mail to a specific site,page or form on the web.

Replies of the people who clicked though

to a response form, how many completedthe form and submited it to you.

Sales or inquires. How many people whocompleted the form actually ordered aproduct or requested more information.

Your e-list manager should provide log reportsthat summarize the results. Such a reportshould include the data of transmission, thenumber of promotional email transmitted,click-through response rate, undeliverablemessages and opt-outs.

Measuring Results

Campaign success is measured through ROI(return of investment). Other standardmeasurements, such as cost per piece or costper lead are useful, but they will not providethe big picture view given by the ROIanalysis. The most accurate ROI calculationtakes into account the amount of sales

generated by the consumers over the time.

The first step is to run small tests mailings toget a feel for your baseline response rates.Subsequent mailings can try different things,such as: a different design of the mail, adifferent text or a new mailing lists. When youare confident of your results you can extendthe campaign at a larger group, assuring thatthe return of investment will be positive.

While the standard profile of a subscriber doesnot assume a minimum rate of response, eacheffort must be made to achieve the biggestanswer rate possible, using the followingprocedures.

Resonse Rate can be calculated as it follows: substract the non-deliverables from the

amount of sent messages to determinethe net mail-out;

substract the incomplete or non-usablereturns from total returns to determine

net-returns; divide net returns by net mail-out to

determine the response rate.

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The following example illustrates how theresponse rate must be calculated:

Total mail-out ................................. 1,000

Non-deliverables .................................. 99

Net mail-out ...................................... 901

Total returned ................................... 541

Net returns with completed Demographicquestions* ......................................... 500

Response Rate ....................................55%

*A questionnaire is considered complete only when twothirds of the mandatory demographic questions havebeen answered.

One way of maximizing ROI is to drive outhidden costs throughout the process of sendingmail. For example, there are direct mailservices that allows you to achieve greateroperational efficiencies by having all theprocesses under one roof and minimizingadministration costs.

A good rule in strategy is to test between1000-5000 pieces before strating. In this wayyou will get a sufficient number of answersback from your mailing to determine whatyour response rate will be.

The response rate will vary depending on yourproduct, industry, target market and otherfactors, no general rules apply. For instance, asub 0.2 percent response rate is common in

the credit card industry, while a response notehigher than 50 percent is common for thenonprofit companies. This should notdiscourage you; on the contrary, it highlightsthe necessity of tracking your response ratefor your prospecting customers list. If you donot do this, you will only get a vague idea ofthe real chances of your campaign and you riskwasting money.

To increase the response to your nextmailings, watch out the next factors:

Campaign GoalEstablish the campaign goal: rise awareness,generate leads or generate website traffic.Once you have decided, establish a baselineand track responses again. For instance,determine the average number of phonesreceived during a month and compare it to thenumber of phones you get the following monthafter your mailing. Alternatively, if you takeorder through a website, your mail piece canask customers to enter a discount code when

placing the order by which you can track thesales associated with your mailings.

Target AudienceIdentify consumers and their social,pshychological and demographiccharacteristics. This will help you build atargeted prospect list to gain more customers.

The OfferConcentrate your campaign on selling thebenefits of receiving and responding the offer.

Do not forget the goal is to convince yourtarget purchase your product and increaseyour ROI. If you succeed in making theminterested enough to respond to the offer,then you could get them to buy.

The Mailing ListWithout testing your mailing list, offer ordesign you will never know if the success ofthe campaign was due to an attractive offer,eye catching graphics and enticing text or agreat list. Consequently, without testing youwill not know which aspect of your campaignneeds improvement.

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Avoiding Spam Messages

Conclusion

" A Spam" is an unsollicited message, usuallypromotional, sent out to multiple recipients.

To generate spam special programs that canscan the text and recognize your email addressare being used. They add the email address ina database and it is possible to buy such a list.

The spam is considered unethical and its risksare considerable: using it you can loss theinternet services and also affect yourcompany's reputation. The voice of internetusers is a strong one and your company couldbe labeled as a spam advertiser).

The golden rule for preventing spam is theopt-out possibility.

If you are developing a promotional emailcampaign, ask costumers for consent. Remindthem in every message that they can opt outfrom receiving future messages and give themthe chance to make this simple, just byclicking Remove or Unsubscribe.

The Direct Marketing Association launched an

email preferences service which allowsconsumers to register for free at www.e-mps.org for an opt-out list indicating theydon't want to receive promotional emails.Marketers can download the list online andeliminate these names from their own mailinglist.

Also, you should not try to deceive customersinto thinking your e-mail marketing message isnot a promotional one.

Email marketing is an effective communication method with customers, prospective customersand business partners. The main objective is increasing products and services sales, but also theimproval of company's image and clients' reports. Being an easy-to-use tool that creates apowerful bond between the clients and the brand, it allows the testing and retestingcampaigns and offers an accurate image of the results. The email marketing is used by a fifth ofthe European marketers. The actual tendency is rising, in America the use rate is a lot higher.

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http://www.e-mps.org/http://www.e-mps.org/http://www.e-mps.org/http://www.e-mps.org/


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Resources

Robert W. Bly, Michelle Feit, Steve Roberts, Internet Direct Mail - The Complete Guide to SuccessfulE-mail Marketing Campaigns; NTC Business Books - NTC Contemporary Publishing Group INC; 2001.

http://www.zairmail.com/direct_mail_articles.asp

http://www.lsoft.com/

http://www.kochgroup.com/directmail.html

http://www.accessabc.com/

TreeWorks

Blvd. Coposu nr. 4bl. 105 A sc. A ap. 1Bucureti, Romnia

Phone: +40.213.260.602Fax: +40.213.267.233

[email protected]
http://www.zairmail.com/direct_mail_articles.asphttp://www.lsoft.com/http://www.kochgroup.com/directmail.htmlhttp://www.accessabc.com/http://www.zairmail.com/direct_mail_articles.asphttp://www.lsoft.com/http://www.kochgroup.com/directmail.htmlhttp://www.accessabc.com/

Internet Direct Mail Campaign from Development to Results Analysis (TreeWorks white paper)

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