Follow Through For Direct Mail Success
The other day I walked into a taco shop and on the counter sat an Ipad with a big sign that read: “sign up for our mailing list to receive special offers and promotions”. The ipad was mounted securely onto the counter so that it could not be easily removed and stolen. On the screen was a permanent contact form with a submit button. They asked me for my name, mailing address, and email address. I happily filled out the form while I waited for my food in hopes of receiving some special coupons for a free drink or discounts on my next taco purchase. Well, its been 6 months since I filled out the form and to this day I have not received even one communication from that taco shop.
A lot of companies start off with the best of intentions but don’t follow through. Don’t let a great idea like this go to waste. When I saw that iPad on the counter, I thought to myself “this is one of the best ideas I’ve ever seen”. What could be better than getting your customers thinking about your product, visualizing it in their mind and wanting it. Its like Dr Hannibal Lectar tells Calrice Starling in Silence of the Lambs ” We begin by coveting what we see every day.” His reference was a little darker than what we are talking about here, but the same principals apply. In marketing this is called staying on “top of mind.” Reminding your customers that you exist and that they like and want what you have to offer.
Staying on top of collecting data
The first step in staying “top of mind”: is collecting data. Some companies have an easier time generating a customer list than others. If you sell online for instance, you have a customer list being automatically built for you as you customers purchase items on your website. If you are a service business, restaurant or retail store you may need to take a few extra steps to collect data. To collect data you may need to use some creative ideas like the ipad example above. There are several apps available to collect data from customers. Some even show photos of your products in slide show form in the background. You will want to physically block the home button at the bottom of the ipad so that it can always stay on the same app and can’t be messed with.
Follow through
The second step in staying “on top of mind” is following through. Once you have your customers data, make sure you follow through with some kind of marketing plan. Its important you don’t just say to your self “if things slow down, I will send a mailer”. Set up a plan that gets something into the hands of your audience monthly or quarterly. Here is general idea of the beginning stages of a good marketing plan:
July 1st: Postcard – Happy 4th of July Sale – Tweet to watch for postcard – coupon code
July 20: Email – Summer Sale – Post to Facebook – Tweet
August 1st: Postcard – Summer Sale
August 15: Email – New products for fall
September 1st Back to School! – Postcard – TBD
Putting your plan down on paper will help you to visualize your marketing and stay on track. Try to think of some good reasons for contacting your customers such as: Thank you for your business, news about our company, come back and see us, or happy birthday(if you have this data).
Postcards and e-mails don’t always have to be about sales or coupons although those ideas tend to work pretty well. If you’re feeling creative, sit down and make a list of ideas that you can refer back to. Put those ideas down on your calendar, sketch up what you want to do and give us a call or shoot us an e-mail. We will be happy to point you in the right direction or help you develop a consistent marketing plan that will work with your companies growth strategy.