I’ve been getting asked daily about how the direct mail industry is doing, what’s working, what’s not working, and how this economy is affecting which industries more or less.  Though, on average, BB Direct is about 30% busier today (mid December 2008) than we were one year ago, there are some mail service providers who’ve slowed down considerably.  I believe this is partly because we haven’t put our eggs into one basket, but instead, we’ve aligned ourselves with clients who intelligently market to those segments of the business community that do well no matter how our economy is doing.  Yes, we’ve seen an evaporation of mortgage lender mailing opportunities and a big drop in the auto dealership marketing as of late.  But we’...

Seems there’s a lot of finger pointing going on with who’s responsible for the mess on Wall Street and Main Street.  Yesterday I watched on CNN how the over site committee interrogated previous CEO’s of both Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae.  Given only 5 minutes per chairperson, there was little these gentlemen were able to accomplish other than ask sound bite questions and get sound bite answers.  Not to mention that these former CEO’s are frankly pretty sharp men.  With salaries in excess of $4 million per year, there’s little room for the duller, less fortunate….like some of those doing the interrogating.  Ultimately, the committee members resulted to asking them what must be done.  And in 5 minute sound bites, these former CEO’s ea...

When considering a mailing list provider, you should consider many aspects of their ability.  Before your next direct mail campaign, consider reviewing a number of these important points while interviewing your potential mailing list broker.
First of all, consider your naivety in this process.  Have you prepared for a direct mail marketing campaign and carried it through from start to finish with success?  What kinds of experience can you yourself draw from?  Are there others you know that might could offer advise or insight to your mailing list provider selection process?

Consider the following helpful tips to increase the likelihood you’ll find the right data for your campaign needs.

1. When it comes to providers, generally speaking, a mailing list b...

1. Usage reports

When renting a mailing list that’s a managed property, you can request a usage report before ordering. The usage report is a list of direct mail marketers who’ve tested the mailing list you’re considering. The usage report will also list those direct mail marketers who’ve not only tested the mailing list but have come back and ordered the mailing list again because the initial test direct mail campaign performed well.

By reviewing the usage report a new direct mail marketer can get a glance of other direct mail marketers who’ve either had success or failure. Those direct mail marketers who you recognize to be similar in product/service and offering, and who’ve had continuation on the mailing list, could be signaling that you...

1. Consider timing of your campaign
Your direct mail piece competes with the other mail pieces in the mailbox that day as well as the attention span of who you mailed the direct mail piece to.  In the summer months, the kids are out of school and families are busy with summer activities.  The weeks around December are filled with holiday activities that occupy a direct mail recipients attention that directly competes with the consideration of your mail piece.

2.  Consider the competition
How is your competition positioning themselves to the very audience you’re attempting to win business with?  What’s their offer, and is it similar to your offer?  Consider for a moment what the direct mail recipient considers when they receive your direct mail piece and...

Direct mail marketing businesses rely on accurate sales leads to grow their business.  Without accurate mailing list data, many businesses miss out on lost opportunity.  Overtime, the best mailing list can become stale.  People relocate and mailing list records change.  That is why it’s so vitally important to keep your mailing list updated and current, track these changes, and avoid missed opportunity.

Mailing list data hygiene processes all you to keep your internal customer mailing list clean and healthy.  Like visiting your doctor for a regular check-up instead of just when problems occur, keeping your mailing list clean avoid potential problems from ever occurring.

This also holds true with regard to telemarketing record data.  As people relocate, their...

Customers new to the direct mailing industry may not understand common issues that occur in mailing list compilation and the direct mail delivery process. Following are some common questions and explanations.

It is important to note that mailing list accuracy is only one aspect of deliverability. Production processes and creative execution also impact mailing list deliverability rates.

What deliverability rate should I expect with my direct mail campaign? What is an acceptable direct mail deliverability rate?

The industry average typically quoted is 90%. Reasons for delivery errors are primarily due to the issues addressed below.

Why are there deceased individuals on my mailing list?

The main source for the Dece...

While most industries are tightening their advertising budget during an economic downturn, some business segments prosper and even excel during these times by using direct mail.  While most businesses are bringing in less revenue and tightening their budget, some business industries are earning record profits to recessionary periods.  Marketing and related services like Direct Agencies, Specialized Marketing Firms, Direct Mail Printers, Direct Mail Letter-shops, Mailing List Brokers, and Newspapers can all benefit by focusing on these vertical business segments during recessionary times.  The more direct mail marketers understand these markets, their needs, and the appropriate mailing list audiences to be used, the better they will exceed through the economic cycle.

Below are the categories and industries that, in effect, weather better than businesses in other industries.  These industry types are not all weather proof but more weather resistant than others.  The categories below give you a feel for the logical reasoning of how businesses are affected by our ever changing economy.

Upgrades Can Wait

Products and Services
*  Auto Parts stores
* Uses car dealerships
* Auto repair service
*  Do-it-yourself home improvement

Considerations
Why buy new when you can repair or trade for used and save thousands.  With the current home values so low, it’s virtually impossible to sell without bring cash to closing.  Homeowners stay put if they can, make repa...

According to the USPS, 72% of Hispanics receive almost all of their direct mail in English. But 36% would prefer to receive their direct mail in Spanish. These percentages are pretty telling when you think of how much direct mail campaign costs are wasted. The direct mail marketer can now expect to increase their response rates by utilizing mailing list data designed to separate ethnic surname from language spoken in the household. Combining a better, more sophisticated, mailing list with proper direct mail piece copy will enhance the mail moment and attract more attention from its recipient, thus producing more and better sales leads.

The Mailing List

But not all mailing lists targeting ethnicity are the same. Some mailing list sources atte...