Direct Mail Tips Blog Category Why Nordstrom and J. Jill’s Direct Mail Mistake Cost Them Millions info Posted June 12, 2019 by Ashley Luehmann in Direct Mail Tips A very unexpected article drew me out of my usual morning email-checking haze today. My supervisor Debora Haskel had forwarded me an “interesting read” from MindFire, highlighting a drop in sales for clothing retailer J. Jill. The headline read “Retailer J. Jill learned the Hard Way Why Direct Mail is Still Relevant,” and the smell of scandal perked me up more than the cup of coffee I was holding [...] + Read More The Outer Envelope is Key to Getting Your Direct Mail Opened info Posted May 21, 2019 by Marcus Johnson in Direct Mail Tips Fair or not, your audience is always going to judge your direct mail by its outer envelope. Their three-second assessment of your outer envelope (part of the 3:33 rule of direct mail—a topic in itself) will make or break your mailing. If they’re not moved to open the envelope, you don’t get to talk to them [...] + Read More Tips for Creating a Call-to-Action that Can’t Be Ignored info Posted March 1, 2019 by Marcus Johnson in Creative, Direct Mail Tips From time to time, in direct marketing writing and design, we need to focus on the fundamentals to help us stay sharp in conveying the purpose and value proposition of what we’re selling. Why? Because so many direct marketing packages fail to answer these basic questions: Do we give our audience a reason to open? […] + Read More 3 Times You Can Break the Grammar Rules in Your Marketing Copy info Posted February 15, 2019 by Ashley Leone in Creative, Direct Mail Tips Grammar is nit-picky and tricky, and it’s constantly evolving with our culture and turning hard-and-fast rules into bendable guidelines. Yes, there are still rules, but they can be a bit obscure or not entirely enforced in colloquial speaking, so we can run into situations in which following proper grammar rules makes writing sound overly formal […] + Read More The Power of Direct Marketing Copywriting, Tips, and Testing, Testing… info Posted October 9, 2018 by Marcus Johnson in Creative, Direct Mail Tips Quick, which offer will pull better: 50% off or Half Off? Should you offer something FREE or Complimentary? Buy One Get One Free or BOGO? If you answered “It depends” to the questions above, you’re right. That is why we test. + Read More Proofreading Tips to Improve Your Content info Posted September 7, 2018 by Ashley Leone in Direct Mail Tips I know I talk about the importance of proofreading more than the average bear, but it deserves repeating: proofreading is important. Having polished, error-free communications is crucial in every industry—and doubly so in marketing, where messaging can play such a huge role in direct mail design. Proofreading can be tricky, but there are […] + Read More Direct Mail Best Practices: An Update for 2018 info Posted September 5, 2018 by Mike Dietz in Creative, Direct Mail Tips, Direct Marketing Trends While direct mail best practices tend to stand the test of time, they aren’t carved in stone. Today, I’d like to take some time to revisit one of my more popular blogs from a few years back, titled “Maximize Value with These Effective Direct Mail Techniques,” and see what has changed, what hasn’t, […] + Read More Essential Elements of a Medicare Advantage Marketing Plan to Nail the AEP info Posted August 22, 2018 by Maggie Stack in Direct Mail Tips Our hats go off to all our Medicare Advantage marketing partners this time of year. We know their to-do lists are long leading up to October 1, when marketing can officially begin for the Annual Enrollment Period (AEP). There are marketing plans to finalize, prospect databases to compile, creative to develop, and Centers for Medicare […] + Read More The Right Way to Use Color Personalization in Your Envelope Design info Posted July 18, 2018 by Mike Dietz in Creative, Direct Mail Tips In a world where consumers are bombarded with hundreds of ads a day, we’ve been conditioned to make snap decisions on what deserves our attention and what doesn’t. When you think about it that way, envelopes are everything when it comes to direct mail design. The envelope needs to capture your recipient’s attention and spark […] + Read More The Importance of Establishing a Marketing Copy Proofreading Process info Posted July 6, 2018 by Ashley Leone in Direct Mail Tips Establishing a strong proofreading process is crucial, no matter what business you’re in. Clear, consistent communication is vital to establishing brand trust, effectively marketing your product, and protecting your business. For marketing copy in particular, it’s important for your organization to establish a process to ensure proofreading is taken seriously and done properly. Here are […] + Read More Pages: 1234567891011121314151617181920212223Load More Articles
Why Nordstrom and J. Jill’s Direct Mail Mistake Cost Them Millions info Posted June 12, 2019 by Ashley Luehmann in Direct Mail Tips A very unexpected article drew me out of my usual morning email-checking haze today. My supervisor Debora Haskel had forwarded me an “interesting read” from MindFire, highlighting a drop in sales for clothing retailer J. Jill. The headline read “Retailer J. Jill learned the Hard Way Why Direct Mail is Still Relevant,” and the smell of scandal perked me up more than the cup of coffee I was holding [...] + Read More
The Outer Envelope is Key to Getting Your Direct Mail Opened info Posted May 21, 2019 by Marcus Johnson in Direct Mail Tips Fair or not, your audience is always going to judge your direct mail by its outer envelope. Their three-second assessment of your outer envelope (part of the 3:33 rule of direct mail—a topic in itself) will make or break your mailing. If they’re not moved to open the envelope, you don’t get to talk to them [...] + Read More
Tips for Creating a Call-to-Action that Can’t Be Ignored info Posted March 1, 2019 by Marcus Johnson in Creative, Direct Mail Tips From time to time, in direct marketing writing and design, we need to focus on the fundamentals to help us stay sharp in conveying the purpose and value proposition of what we’re selling. Why? Because so many direct marketing packages fail to answer these basic questions: Do we give our audience a reason to open? […] + Read More
3 Times You Can Break the Grammar Rules in Your Marketing Copy info Posted February 15, 2019 by Ashley Leone in Creative, Direct Mail Tips Grammar is nit-picky and tricky, and it’s constantly evolving with our culture and turning hard-and-fast rules into bendable guidelines. Yes, there are still rules, but they can be a bit obscure or not entirely enforced in colloquial speaking, so we can run into situations in which following proper grammar rules makes writing sound overly formal […] + Read More
The Power of Direct Marketing Copywriting, Tips, and Testing, Testing… info Posted October 9, 2018 by Marcus Johnson in Creative, Direct Mail Tips Quick, which offer will pull better: 50% off or Half Off? Should you offer something FREE or Complimentary? Buy One Get One Free or BOGO? If you answered “It depends” to the questions above, you’re right. That is why we test. + Read More
Proofreading Tips to Improve Your Content info Posted September 7, 2018 by Ashley Leone in Direct Mail Tips I know I talk about the importance of proofreading more than the average bear, but it deserves repeating: proofreading is important. Having polished, error-free communications is crucial in every industry—and doubly so in marketing, where messaging can play such a huge role in direct mail design. Proofreading can be tricky, but there are […] + Read More
Direct Mail Best Practices: An Update for 2018 info Posted September 5, 2018 by Mike Dietz in Creative, Direct Mail Tips, Direct Marketing Trends While direct mail best practices tend to stand the test of time, they aren’t carved in stone. Today, I’d like to take some time to revisit one of my more popular blogs from a few years back, titled “Maximize Value with These Effective Direct Mail Techniques,” and see what has changed, what hasn’t, […] + Read More
Essential Elements of a Medicare Advantage Marketing Plan to Nail the AEP info Posted August 22, 2018 by Maggie Stack in Direct Mail Tips Our hats go off to all our Medicare Advantage marketing partners this time of year. We know their to-do lists are long leading up to October 1, when marketing can officially begin for the Annual Enrollment Period (AEP). There are marketing plans to finalize, prospect databases to compile, creative to develop, and Centers for Medicare […] + Read More
The Right Way to Use Color Personalization in Your Envelope Design info Posted July 18, 2018 by Mike Dietz in Creative, Direct Mail Tips In a world where consumers are bombarded with hundreds of ads a day, we’ve been conditioned to make snap decisions on what deserves our attention and what doesn’t. When you think about it that way, envelopes are everything when it comes to direct mail design. The envelope needs to capture your recipient’s attention and spark […] + Read More
The Importance of Establishing a Marketing Copy Proofreading Process info Posted July 6, 2018 by Ashley Leone in Direct Mail Tips Establishing a strong proofreading process is crucial, no matter what business you’re in. Clear, consistent communication is vital to establishing brand trust, effectively marketing your product, and protecting your business. For marketing copy in particular, it’s important for your organization to establish a process to ensure proofreading is taken seriously and done properly. Here are […] + Read More