BB Direct has announced they are now able to provide a mailing list of auto insurance holders of specific carriers.  This new database is ideal for competing insurance carriers looking for new business from other providers.  The ideal scenario with campaigning to the competition’s customers is that the mailer not only wins new business, but also gains relative market share.

The database is compiled from self-reported sources such that only individuals who’ve recently disclosed their auto insurance carrier is added to the list.  Many more of those individuals remain unidentified.  To give you an idea of the approximate coverage, State Farm has recently reported they have over 3 million auto policies active within the state of Florida.  The Automobile Ins...

When considering the many descriptors of your market territory, many retail businesses owners will consider the closest population from their store location.  This tool is available with most mailing list providers today and if used properly, can be an effective way to identify potential prospects.
A radius is the circumference population defined by distance from the centroid (center).  From your store, you may want to reach out 10 miles in every direction.  The 10 mile band is called the radii band which identifies the furthest most prospects you may want to consider mailing.  With some mapping programs, the radius function grabs all data contained within the radii band, while others cross through a whole carrier route.  In crossing through this carrier route, the ...

If you’re planning on using direct mail marketing as a way to promote your business or organization, creating your own mailing list is easier than you might expect.  The internet has made creating your own mailing list easier than ever before.  Plus, the ability to target your ideal audience has become increasingly easy.  What was once a chore to understand the database compilation, available selects (filters), and undating schedule is now available online 24/7.  There is simply more information available at your fingertips.

Define your market territory
This process is fairly easy.  The goal here is to maximize your exposure by synchronizing your direct mail campaign with the other advertising mediums such that all are focused on the sa...

Mail better, not less

Fear of economic turmoil can kill the momentum of any growing business.  The mental distraction alone can be paralyzing to upper management decision making.  Many find themselves tossed between cutting marketing budgets, anticipating the worse is yet to come, and staring at the competition that’s muddling in the same insecurity.

The fact is that businesses must evaluate their previously set goals, and adjust their marketing strategies to meet or exceed these goals.  Those businesses which put their head in the sand and wait out the cyclical nature of the economy will likely miss the opportunity to dramatically increase market share.  Integrated direct mail advertising should be used not only ...

As I’ve been asking around about the future holds for direct mail service providers and have been getting the general consensus that business is good.  This week a slump in retail sales and the USPS considering shorting their delivery days to 5 per week, it’s no wonder many are concerned.  But in conversations I’ve had this week, I mostly hear about the ice, snow, and blistering cold.  I do hear that acquisition mail (those campaigns to cold prospects) are down, but listening to the voice of mail service providers throughout the country, business is maintaining and businesses are continuing their direct mail campaigns.

I’ve been also polling the data providers.  With this group I’ve been hearing a mixed bag of response.  For some, thos...

Considering mailing to licensed professionals in the medical field?  Before you do, there are couple things you should know.

Where do the names and addresses come from?
Many mailing list providers draw their licensed professionals mailing list data from one or more sources.  But there’s truly only a few places this type of data can be drawn from.  Since many professionals must renew their license with the state in which they practice, the state is a obvious first place to look.  Each state releases information about who is licensed in a particular field.  Data of this type can also be drawn from organizations that capture memberships in a particular field such as the AMA (American Medical Association).  The AMA does directly sell their ...

Dun & Bradstreet, better known as D&B, is the premier business database compiler of choice for BB Direct.  Though there are several business to business database compilers, D&B uses strict guidelines for which business enterprise is ultimately added to the database.  This is important to remember when you are considering a direct mail marketing campaign to businesses.  So many businesses today come and go before they become profitable.  So many others are really just, “Doing Business As”, businesses of another company.  And still, so many businesses relocate and become difficult to track the age and size of the business enterprise.

One of the unique characteristics of the Dun and Bradstreet business database is that every business record has...