Step 1: Research your audience

As with any marketing campaign, digital or otherwise, for true success you first need to understand who exactly you’re hoping to reach. In order to craft a message that really encourages action you’ll need  to know some key things about your audience, including:

• Age
• Gender
• Income
• Geographic location
• Interests, and more

When you have these details locked down you’ll be better able to anticipate your audience’s needs and wants and therefore craft messaging that will resonate with your specific audience. This will also allow you to reach a larger audience (with a more targeted purpose) and as a result you’ll be more competitive in the market. 

Step 2: Define your goals 

Once you understand your audience you can then define your goal or goals. In general, the ultimate goal of direct mail is to encourage action — usually buying a product or engaging a service. But there are lots of other goals direct mail can help foster, such as:

• Building brand awareness
• Improving relationship management
• Stimulating lead generation or conversion

Identifying your primary goals will help shape the language, method, and other elements of your campaign to create cohesion and direction throughout the process. 

Step 3: Build your mailing list 

Okay, so now that you’ve nailed down your audience and your goals it’s  time to start building your mailing list. If you don’t already have a list of existing customers and clients, you’ll need to do some leg work. There’s a lot of online resources that can help you build a mailing list for free, including Spokeo, the White Pages  & Yellow Pages, as well LinkedIN — among others. 

Step 4: Craft a CTA

A CTA, or Call-to-Action, is your campaign’s hook. It should be attention grabbing and based on your campaign goal. When you’re crafting your CTA, think about what it is you want to accomplish. Do you want more foot traffic in your store? Are you hoping to move merchandise before the season’s over? Or perhaps you’re hoping to build your customer list. Whatever your goal, make sure to be intentional and clear when writing your CTA. Some examples may be: 

• Call today for a free consultation
• Visit our store today for 40% off select styles 
• Attend our annual fundraiser and we’ll match your contribution 3-to-1

Step 5: Determine your format 

There’s lots of different formats to send direct mail. Some of the most common include: 

• Postcards
• Coupons
• Letters
• Flyers
• Newsletters
• Brochures
• Catalogs

Much like some of the other elements we’ve discussed, format will depend on what you’re hoping to accomplish. Postcards are a quick way for recipients to absorb information and often work well for customers who are already familiar with the brand. Meanwhile, official enveloped letters create a sense of familiarity that may encourage new customers to quickly open up and find out more. Do a bit of research on your audience and consider what might appeal to your target demographic. 

Step 6: Design your direct mail

When you’ve determined your verbiage and format, it’s time for design! Not a graphic designer? No problem! Local printing shops, like Replica Printing, can help put together your next direct mail design. Replica’s in-house designers have the knowledge and tools to pull together striking graphic elements that will help your campaign shine. 

Step 7: Create your mailing schedule 

Okay! Now you’re ready to set your mailing schedule and get your direct marketing collateral out into the real world. Replica printing also offers mailing services, including addressing, folding, inserting, metering and… mailing! From design to posting, direct mail is made easy when you have the right partner to help get it done.