Can direct mail marketing still work for restaurant or other small business owners?
Is direct mail marketing to target business owners really dead; or can it still work and why? I'd like to try a direct mail piece to business owners as I did years ago. But my thought is that with the explosion of social media & devices glued to your eyes, it may be a lost cause. On the other hand, I'm thinking it may still be successful for a certain segment. In example, a restaurant owner or small business decision maker who would pay attention to what lies between the bills. It’s not cheap so I'm wondering who might have recent feedback on a B2B postcard mailer campaign?
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Feb 27, 2019
Yes, direct mail marketing works well for restaurants or other small business owners.
Feb 25, 2019
Direct mail still works for many cases. Unfortunately, it is one of the most expensive ways to advertise because of the postage cost. Also, the direct mail industry as a whole (along with print industry) has been declining and losing advertising dollar to the internet. I expect this trend will continue. However, I believe, that direct mail will be effective for many years to come. Direct mail is still very strong in industries like nonprofit, mortgage refinance, real estate... etc.
I put together FAQ on this page: https://www.theaddressers.com/learn
Apr 1, 2015
Hi,
Yes it still works very well, but you need adequate skill to make it effective. In regards to other promotional channels you mention, none is best for everything, but they can all work together exceedingly well.
Mar 21, 2015
Direct Email marketing never dead. If you run your campaign similar on past then it does not more effective. You need to become more smart then other. So the question is how i can be smarted from other. You need to use social platform to generate leads. Like from LinkedIn you can find proper contact information. There are some tools and techniques that will bring you 100% verified emails. In past people run campaign ordinary campaign like send too much mailing from yahoo or gmail. But all the emails go on junk or spam folder. There is no one how check his junk mail. So you can use Getresponse or MailChimp for email marketing. This will much helpful because you can set up emails and date time so when a user log account auto mail send to target person. If you use proper methods then it will be fruitful.
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here is the post link : https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/secret-tips-using-linkedin-b2b-lead-generation-raju-ahamad
Mar 20, 2015
Greg. Yes it works. It works because there is a real and growing backlash against social media. It is called "Social Fatigue". My friend writes personal messages on post cards and sends them. He gets massive r.o.i. That is "Return on Ink". He is also doing talking postcards which have a QR code or shortlink url on them which takes the recipient to a personal voice recording online.
Mar 19, 2015
Yes. Direct mail works and in some cases, it can be even better than email.
However, the real secret is not the tactical piece (direct mail, email, etc.) it is the strategic piece or the message. If the message is wrong or it goes to a disinterested market, then it doesn't matter. It will not work.
Therefore, you need the right message targeted to your target market, delivered by whatever medium your target market wishes to receive it.
Mar 19, 2015
Hi Greg, great question. A part of what I do and bring to businesses is to look at different sales and marketing strategies. One of them that always works is a direct mail (letter) campaign. But there is a few things that you need to be aware of (maybe you are, but will list them here for everybody who is interested in this):
1. Always address directly to the business owner/ CEO/ Manager by name. A lot of letters come in the post of businesses addressed with Dear Sirs or similar. Don't go down that road. You still need to do your research of who it is that you're targeting and would like to talk to.
2. The first 2 phrases are the most important and should contain your core message. Many people don't read beyond the first 2 lines (no matter if it's email or letter marketing that you do) and the reason being is as soon as they suspect that this is a marketing letter they will ignore it and not read on. Unless you are a wizard with the pen and can grab your audience like there is no tomorrow, it might be ignored.
3. Follow up within 3 - 5 days of a letter campaign (1 - 2 days of an email campaign). This is the crucial part that many leave out. If you wait until somebody replies to you, you will get nothing out of it or very little. Out of 100 letters or emails you may get 1 or 2 who respond but again it depends on your core message and if you have a proper call to action included. If you follow up by phone with the prospects you will gain at least 25 - 35 meetings/ sales out of that campaign. That brings me to the next point:
4. Inactive call to action. An inactive call to action is when you ask the prospect to give you a call at a time that suits them. This could be something simple such as: After reading this letter and you can't wait to learn more about what we do, please feel free to contact me directly on xxx xxx xxxx.
5. Add a pro-active call to action. A pro-active call to action is when you take matters in your own hands. You let the prospect know that you will ring them on a certain date to discuss this further. We've had great successes with this one as people are actually expecting your call. Don't put in a time as they might try to ignore you. But if you leave it open, you will get them eventually. It also shows straight away that you keep your promises (even on a small scale).
6. Always combine both, inactive and pro-active call to action in the letter.
7. Add a picture of you. A picture in the letter of who it is that is sending the letter is always a great way to start a communication. This will enhance your way of doing business with the prospect. Everybody can send out mail campaigns but not everybody is adding a picture of themselves. This is called Self-promotion and is the most powerful marketing tool you ever discover. We always promote our business but leaving out ourselves in the process. Turn it the other way around. Promote yourself first, then the business. People like doing business with people.
Our programme PerfectPitch was designed to help companies develop a 30 second sales elevator pitch to gain up to 50% more referrals from networking groups, networking events, and customers and includes powerful email/ letter marketing campaigns that are designed to your business needs and target market in mind and gives you a return of 25 - 35%. If you would like to learn more, feel free to connect with me on linkedin and I'll send you on some information about the programme.
Good luck with your campaign and hope this is helpful :-)
Carsten
Mar 19, 2015
Yes, I believe direct mail has a place in a marketing environment dominated by digital and social channels. However the success of any direct mail piece today depends much more on how the target audience prefer to receive communications. See my answer to a similar question posed here recently: http://www.mosaichub.com/answers/question/what-is-the-best-way-to-increase-traffic-to-a-webs
What I would add is that, nowadays, the reach and effectiveness of a direct mail piece can be optimized by parallel communication via other channels appropriate to the audience. You could look at such initiatives as 'warming-up' the prospect so that they're more receptive when they get the mailshot. A series of jabs before delivering the uppercut, so to speak.
Customers don't want to hear *from* you until they've heard *of* you.
Mar 18, 2015
We often receive positive feed back when we send real tangible items in the mail to existing clients as way of thanks for example. There is too much focus for online marketing to the point that some of the tried and tested traditional forms have been forgotten or ignored of late. Many direct marketing techniques (with a little modern day tweak) have stood the test of time. In many cases it is still the most targeted and powerful way to reach a busy prospect. Here is an article we recently wrote on this topic: http://www.evolvedsound.com.au/why-direct-marketing-is-making-a-comeback/
I fully agree that the message is critical. It must be branded and crafted to create the emotion and the reaction you want.
However, delivery methods can have a huge impact on your client. By using snail mail, they will unconsciously be evaluating (usually with approval) the extra effort you put in to contact them. I advise using the best quality print and making your images powerful, leaving a strong impression of the emotion you want to convey.