The COVID-19 Economy – Strategies to Help Your Business Recover from Prolonged Downtime

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direct marketing covid19 coronavirus image tortise turtle

The COVID-19 Economy – Strategies to Help Your Business Recover from Prolonged Downtime

With the coronavirus pandemic wreaking absolute havoc on the global economy, the way we do business, as well as how we present our marketing strategies – are looking at quite a shift.

Air travel and the entire cruise business have been hit especially hard by orders to ‘stay at home’, sports games and major events are canceled, countries have put up travel restrictions to try to keep the virus out (and contained), and public health officials and hospitals have been continually bracing for the worst. In such times of crisis, it can be rather difficult to remain calm and think optimistically. Entrepreneurs and business leaders have no choice but to stay calm under pressure. After all, this is part of their role.

By taking proactive steps now, you will be able to keep your business in a secure position to stay strong and recover faster once the crisis subsides. In fact, China, where we first heard of this, is already showing signs of economic recovery. Here are some key strategies and economic insights to help your business recover from COVID-19, and any other economic catastrophe that may present.

Strategic Thinking – How Coronavirus May Affect Your Customers

Depending on your industry, your customers may be having specific new pain points related to this pandemic. You must think strategically about how this is affecting your customers, what their worries are, and how you can specifically help. Then you can adjust your sales pitch to match your marketing – each built around how to address these specific challenges and concerns. For example, are your customers…

  • Struggling with market uncertainty and slowdown in demand?
  • Wondering how to manage their cash flow?
  • Worried about supply-chain disruptions?
  • Facing a shortage of key inventory or supplies driven by consumers panic-buying and stocking up?
  • Worried about how to manage employees in an environment where everyone might need to work from home?
  • Worried about travel restrictions?

All of these challenges for business can really be exacerbated by a crisis like COVID-19. Your duty as a business owner is to figure out ways to re-position your products and services so they are most helpful, as well as address the specific pain points that your customers are confronting.

For example, if you sell video-conferencing solutions, this is an ideal opportunity for you to offer additional support and consulting to help your customers figure out how to adapt their remote workflows. If you are in the logistics business, now is a good time to reach out to your customers with possible solutions to navigate the latest issues affecting the global supply chain.

Embrace new sales channels

Even as more of the country goes into lockdown, people still are going to want and need to buy things, creating opportunities to serve your market via alternative sales channels. For example, if coronavirus is cutting down on foot traffic to your retail business, look to expand your e-commerce offerings. Restaurants in China have seen a decrease in in-store customers, so they’re selling takeout meals instead, and offering curbside pickup and free local delivery.

You must not give up on advertising. Think of ways you can boost your online-marketing efforts and e-commerce sales – can you create more conversations on social media and LinkedIn instead of in-person sales? Many B2B companies are already well-positioned for this, especially if they sell software or other digital solutions, and those who use targeted direct mail advertising should still be sending their coupons and discounts – but changing their call to action to send customers to a knowledgeable telephone sales representative, live chat, or directly their order site to use a coupon code from the mail piece.

train direct mail keep advertising i think i can i know i can


Think about the affect of on long-term investments in your business.

If you’re in B2B sales, COVID-19 might be an opportunity to make some longer-term investments in your business. Especially if you’re seeing a short-term slowdown – this is the time to re-evaluate your operations, platforms and processes and do some long-term strategic planning.

If you have a few big prospects in your sales pipeline, now would be a great time to put more energy into lead management and nurturing those longer-term opportunities. It’s so important to keep checking in with your leads, reassure them if needed, and let them know that you are planning for contingencies. Most importantly, let your customers know you’re always there to help.

This unprecedented situation is, of course, driving a lot of cancellations for things like airline reservations, cruises, concert tickets and conferences, but bigger-picture B2B sales may not be quite as severely affected, unless the crisis goes on for so long that it causes companies to cut back on spending and investments. It’s always important to keep on top of your business leads with the long game in mind, even when the short-term headlines seem dire and the situation feels uncertain.

Related: 3 Ways to Safeguard Your Business as Coronavirus Spreads (entrepreneur.com)

lion be prepared direct mail covid-19 recovery blog image


Prepare in advance for ‘held’ demand.

A lesson to look at from Chinese businesses is that the post-coronavirus economic recovery may potentially be faster than we expect. If you cut back too far right now, there is a chance that you might not be positioned to capitalize on the post-crisis recovery. We definitely don’t want to downplay the seriousness of the public-health aspects of this crisis – everyone still needs to take precautions to stay healthy and reduce the spread. But we really believe that companies can put some good measures in place right now to be positioned for greater success when this becomes the past.

There will always be change, challenges and crises that affect our businesses. What we can control – what we can DO is recognize and adapt to the challenges and embrace the opportunities they present. What we as businesses can do now, may allow us to bounce back stronger, even from a major crisis like COVID-19.


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The Importance of Continued Advertising– Even when it seems like everything is “on hold”.

Direct Mail Consistently Offers Proven Results

With the 2020 world economy changing nearly overnight, service industries are beginning to CHANGE their direct mail marketing messages to let customers know they’re open and operating with safety in mind. They have not stopped advertising– they’ve just made some changes. And their direct mail is STILL WORKING just as well as always!

HVAC-Direct-Mail-Postcard

Let’s take HVAC companies, for example. Big changes happened at the beginning of springtime. Tune-ups STILL need to be performed so people aren’t without A/C for the summer, and advertising needs to point that out. Along with a GREAT offer such as a “keep this magnet handy for 20% off future service calls!” or “Just $49 can SAVE you HUNDREDS!”… The possibilities are endless.

Back to the Direct Mail aspect:


Again: Direct Mail Offers Proven Results

There is a very simple reason why direct mail marketing campaigns still thrive in this digital age: they work!

Think about how many ads you will see on television or hear on the radio– or see on billboards throughout the day. It’s so many. It’s enough that consumers have learned how to tune them out.

A simple reason people might ignore this kind of advertising so easily is because it’s not tangible. Direct mail, on the other hand, so very tangible – you hold it! It gives you a sale, promotion or coupon that you can grasp right in your hand. That’s quite a bit harder to ignore. In fact, when you present an attractive offer on your mailer, your business is going to see some nice returns. But who will I send it to? (See our mailing list info here).

Due to direct mail’s impact on its recipients, you should expect to see better returns on your physical mailers, compared to digital advertisements.

What this means is: a direct mail campaign will give your company more ‘bang for your buck’ than an email, social media, or paid search strategy.

Better ROI Really Does Make Direct Mail Cost Effective

What makes service industry direct mail so cost effective is the impressive ROI. The cost of direct mail is really only a tiny portion of the returns it generates for the business – and that’s why service companies SHOULD consistently send direct mail.

For example: According to the PRC, “Direct mail median household return on investment is 29% (23% paid search, 16% online display, 30% social media).”1

With these statistics in mind, it’s relatively easy to understand why direct mail ends up being a more cost-effective option than digital advertising. The ROI generated by this proven service industry marketing method really outweighs those shipping and production costs.

While such shipping costs are not a part of digital advertising, the bottom line profit resulting from direct mail still far exceeds the profit of digital marketing techniques.

Bottom line here:  Send Direct Mail – it works.

Direct Mail Brings Improved Response Rates

Response rates are so important for business success. Let’s repeat that: Response rates are so important for business success. The more responses you receive from customers, the more likely your sales and service teams will create revenue from interested leads. The result? More dollars for your business – which will offset any costs spent on your direct mail campaigns.

To give you an idea of just how effective this approach is in generating great response rates – according to the Data & Marketing Association (DMA), 2018 brought about a 5 percent response rate for in-house lists and a 9 percent response rates for prospect lists. But How? Why?

Due to its tangibility, it’s more personalized and memorable. When your target audience can easily understand and remember your company’s campaign, they’re more likely to consider you as a ‘go-to’ provider for their service and maintenance needs, especially when you are consistently reaching the household. 

We’ll say it again, just in case: Keep sending direct mail, (even if you want to push online sales). Because direct mail WORKS.


1 PRC Study Reference


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Dealerships find Success in Marketing their Internet Sales Departments

Direct Mail Offers Proven Results

With the 2020 world economy changing nearly overnight, automotive dealerships have turned the page and begun marketing their internet sales departments with direct mail just as they would normally advertise their in-house sales events. And guess what: It’s WORKING!

The idea of internet sales for automotive dealers and the more “traditional” sales managers may still be a confusing gray area, and some may think it is best left to those who are more “technologically advanced.” Unfortunately, so-called “experts” and even some dealer trainers heavily profit in keeping internet sales a mystery for the average dealer’s management team. 

“The truth is that internet sales are not just relatively easy to master; internet sales are so easy to master that they’re actually kind of boring.” according to Ask The Manager in their informative online automotive dealer publication.

Back to the Direct Mail aspect:

internet auto sales departments for online car sales


Again: Direct Mail Offers Proven Results

There is a very simple reason why the direct mail marketing campaign still thrives in this digital age: it works.

Think about how many ads you see on television or hear on the radio– even just see on billboards throughout the day. It’s a lot. It’s enough that consumers have learned how to easily tune them out.

A good reason that people might ignore this kind of advertising so easily is because it’s intangible. Direct mail, on the other hand, is very tangible. It gives you a sale, promotion or coupon that you can hold right in your hand. That’s quite a bit harder to ignore. In fact, when you present an attractive offer on your mailer, your business is going to see some major returns.

Due to direct mail’s impact on its recipients, you can expect to see better returns on your physical mailers, compared to digital advertisements.

What this means is: a direct mail campaign will give your dealership more ‘bang for your buck’ than an email, social media, or paid search strategy.

Better ROI makes Direct Mail Cost Effective

What makes automotive direct mail so cost effective is the impressive return on investment. The cost of direct mail is typically only a tiny portion of the returns it earns for the dealership – and that’s why dealers send SO MUCH direct mail.

For example: According to the PRC, “Direct mail median household return on investment is 29% (23% paid search, 16% online display, 30% social media).”1

With these statistics in mind, it’s relatively easy to understand why direct mail ends up being a more cost-effective option than digital advertising. The ROI generated by this proven automotive marketing method far outweighs the shipping and production costs.

While such shipping costs aren’t a part of digital advertising, the bottom line profit resulting from direct mail still exceeds the profit of digital marketing techniques.

Bottom line here:  Send Direct Mail, even to push your online sales.

Direct Mail = Improved Response Rates

Response rates are very important for dealership success. Let’s repeat that: Response rates are very important for dealership success. The more responses you receive from customers, the more likely your sales and service teams will create revenue from interested leads. The result? More dollars for your dealership – which offsets any cost acquired from your direct mail campaign.

To give you a sense of just how effective this approach is in boosting response rates, according to the Data & Marketing Association (DMA), 2018 brought about a 5 percent response rate for in-house lists and a 9 percent response rates for prospect lists. But How? Why?

Due to its tangibility, it’s more personalized and memorable. When your target audience can easily understand and remember your dealership’s campaign, they’re more likely to consider you as a ‘go-to’ business for purchasing a vehicle, especially when you are consistently reaching the household.

Automotive direct mail’s versatility allows your team to give out free “perks” for a test drive or contest and personalized, attention-grabbing mailers to your customers – BUT HOW does an online test drive work?! Delivery.  Plain and simple. 

We’ll say it again, just in case: Keep sending direct mail, even to push your online sales. Because direct mail WORKS.


1 PRC Study Reference


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pick-up, take-out, food delivery

Pick-Up and Delivery for Restaurants: Where to Begin?

It seems that now is the time of staying at home and enjoying life from inside your house. How can restaurants stay afloat without customers walking through their doors? The answer is simple – bring your restaurant to them!

Let Them Eat – At Home

Just because people aren’t sitting in your restaurant , doesn’t mean they don’t still want your food. Keep your customers your primary focus and make it as convenient as possible for them to enjoy your menu from the comfort of their couch. There are many ways to do this and it all depends on the scope of your business and how many changes you are able to make.

With minimal effort, dining establishments can offer take-out options for their customers. Their customer can either call ahead, or place an order when they walk in, and then simply take their food home with them. Many bars and restaurants already have take-home containers and plastic silverware and napkins. This is pretty much all you need to get started.

The Next Step: Delivery

While offering take out is certainly a great first step, you can take it to the next level by offering delivery services. If you aren’t quite ready to dive fully into providing your own delivery services, think about partnering with delivery services in your area. Uber Eats, Postmates, Grubhub, Door Dash, and Bite Squad are just a few options for you to choose from. While each of these partners are different, they generally take a percentage of your profits. However, it may be worth it because they often take away a lot of the leg work for you. You provide the food, and they can do the rest! Be sure to do your research to make sure which food delivery partner is best for your business.

If you’d rather just provide the delivery service yourself, you’re going to have to do a bit of homework first. Does your area require a special insurance for this service? What are the legal requirements of offering delivery? The answers to these questions and more will vary from location to location, so you really need to do your research.

laminated postcards, magnet post card, restaurant menu

How do We Promote Our Pick-Up and Delivery Services?

The first thing you need to do is make your customers aware of the services that you are providing. An easy way to do this is to send out a piece of direct mail showcasing that you offer pick-up and/or delivery service. For bonus points, provide them with a menu so they can easily know what items they can order from your restaurant. You then need to incentivize your customers to order from you. Consumers are always looking for a way to save some money! Offer discounts in the form of free delivery or discounted menu items. Many restaurants also offer some sort of loyalty program. If a customer spends so much with your company, they can earn rewards and use them to save money in the future. This is a great way to turn a one-time customer into a repeat, loyal patron to your restaurant.

When combining these tips, you can expand your business and grow exponentially in the future. To start your next direct mail campaign, contact PrimeNet today! With a combination of attractive art and a top-notch mailing list, you’ll be sure to attract customers in no time!

Call PrimeNet today at 1-800-826-2869 or fill out our contact form here.


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Is Your Direct Mail List Accurate & Up-To-Date?

Questions about your direct mail list? We’re here to help.

heres-the-phone-pup


Some Thoughts On Duplicate Data

The most common (and counterproductive) data quality issue is the dreaded DUPLICATE DATA in the direct mail list. Duplicate records can come from several sources – origin input error, import/export errors, or even mistakes from your data entry team. *gasp*

Duplicate data can potentially harm your direct mail marketing and sales campaigns, so we want you to be ‘in-the-know’ when it comes to avoiding it.


duplicate data direct mail blog fish image blue


So, what is duplicate data?

Duplicate data can consist of any record that shares data with another record in your marketing database. The most easily spotted form of duplicate data is a 100% carbon copy of another record. These are the most visible, and usually occur while moving data between programs or systems.

Exact carbon copies of records are not the only type of duplicate data, however. They are actually the least harmful of all duplicates (BUT their existence can lead to more serious issues in the future).

The most commonly occurring (and most harmful) type of duplicate data are partial duplicates. These records may contain the same name, phone number, email, or address as another record, but these will also contain non-matching data, so they can be difficult to spot right away.

Partial duplicates can be created by human error if a customer or associate enters information by hand. Someone may create a new record for a prospect, customer, or company that is already contained in your marketing database without realizing it.

Sometimes, partial duplicates will start out as a carbon copy and progress to a partial duplicate. For example: you have a customer record in your database that was exactly copied during the importing process. Now you have two customer records for the same customer. Now, as you collect more data about that person, only one records gets updated while the other still exists. You may be inadvertently adding new data to each record, separate from the other. Over time, this will cause the two records to become more and more different from each other.

Understanding duplicate data is a great first step. Now, here’s why you should actively avoid it:

Duplicate data wastes your marketing budget.

When you have frequent duplicates in your database, you may be sending multiple marketing messages to the same person. It’s possible your campaigns may pull data for personalization from the wrong customer record, thus trashing your conversion rates and burning through your ad budget. Plus employee time – editing data by hand is a time-consuming task, potentially taking days or even weeks for large databases.


duplicate data direct mail blog fish image


A single customer view is critical.

The benefits of a single customer view will flow throughout your organization. Marketing, sales, and customer support teams all end up sharing the same data, so it’s imperative that this data is correct.

A lack of a single customer view is perhaps the most detrimental aspect of duplicate data.

Duplicate data presents quite an obstacle to proper personalization.

If you aren’t using personalization to its full potential, you can be sure that you’re losing business to competitors that are. It’s a staple of any effective modern marketing campaign. Many companies rely on CRM data to help them segment their target customers. Time and time again, research has shown that customers are willing to pay more for a product that offers a personalized experience.

Records reflect a moment in time. If you have duplicate records for the same customer, one may be from when they first visited your company as a new customer, and one where they were making their buying decisions. Customers who are at different stages in the buying cycle require different messages to influence their choices. Part of personalization is understanding what your customers want to know and when they want to know it. When you have eliminated duplicate data throughout your databases, it becomes much easier to personalize your messages.

Customer confusion can happen.

When you send marketing messaging that includes outdated or inaccurate data, your customer support team can potentially spend a lot of time answering questions from confused customers. Your customers may feel like they have missed a critical step or need to provide more information. You always want to make your customer interactions as high-quality as possible, and a clean list can help!

Eek, How embarrassing: Inaccurate Information on Sales Calls

Having accurate data and a single customer view is critical for your sales team. They need to be able to access reliable information about a person’s former interactions with your brand. You never want them to go into their sales calls feeling unprepared.

If duplicate data is frequently a problem for your sales reps, they may constantly double check your databases before they talk to prospects. This is a waste of valuable time they could be selling and earning commissions. Happy sales reps make happy (and more) customers.

Inaccurate reporting gets in the way of data-driven decisions.

Every company would like to utilize more data for their decision-making processes. This is valuable information when you can trust your data. If your marketing database has a lot of duplicate data and/or other errors, that results in inaccurate reporting leading to marketing decisions that don’t hold value.

You have to remedy duplicate data issues and errors before you can have faith in the data-backed decisions that your company makes.

Avoiding duplicate data is key.

Duplicate data can have quite a negative impact your business. Our dedicated list managers are here to point you in the right direction and assist you in getting your list cleaned up. We can even offer solutions for your list acquisition so you don’t have to worry about it at all.

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Laminated Menus: The Durable, Safe, and Smart Choice

Whether you run a massage studio or a restaurant, nearly every business needs a menu – the place where you list all of your products or services. Your menu will leave a lasting impression on your customer, shouldn’t it be a good one? Besides an attractive design, your menu should also be durable, professional-looking, and sanitary. One simple way to achieve all of the above is to go with a laminated menu option.

Why Should I Use Laminated Menus?

  1. Longevity: Laminated menus last longer because lamination increases the durability of a piece. This will save you money on reprinting.
  2. Durable: Laminated menus are protected against stains, smudges, spills, marks, oil, grease, dirt, moisture, and fingerprints. Laminated menus are nearly waterproof! So the next time a coffee gets spilled on your menu, you can just wipe it off instead of throwing it away.
  3. Appearance: Laminate is a completely transparent material and will not impair or blemish your menu in any way.  In fact, laminate enhances ink colors and makes pieces more vibrant. This will make the images on your menu appear even more appetizing.
  4. Professionalism: Lamination thickens and strengthens printed material, creating an impression of higher quality and importance. Customers love to feel like they are important and that they are going to an establishment that invests in their products.
  5. Sanitary: Laminated menus are easier to clean. This means that they can be sanitized! Decrease the spread of germs and bacteria in your business.

laminate menus, restaurant, drink, food, lamination

One-sided, double-sided, and bi-fold menu options available.

Why Stop at Laminating Menus?

Lamination is a great option for more than just your main menu. You can also provide guests with laminated drink menus and kids menus. This may be especially useful since kids are known for being a bit messy. You can even provide a laminated placemat for extra protection.

You can also use lamination with your advertising! Plastic postcards are a great option. Imagine your customers receiving an offer in the mail with a coupon or two with your business on it. Lamination will put you one step above the competitors! You could also provide take-out menus with a magnet attached. Now your food menu can be hung on a customer’s fridge and they’ll think of you any time the thought of cooking dinner that night seems too daunting.

laminated postcards, magnet post card, restaurant menu

Laminated postcards, menus, and coupon mailers offer value.

Have to see it for yourself?

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If it does not, please use the contact form.)

Call us today at 1-800-826-2869 to get started on your new laminated menus!


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mardi gras direct mail blog image

Party like it’s Mardi… Mardi Gras Marketing Ideas for Your Business

Mardi Gras– Carnival– Fat Tuesday– Shrove Tuesday… Whatever you want to call it, it happens every year, (sometimes in February, sometimes in March) and is one of the biggest times to “let loose” for some, before the Lenten season begins. For others, it’s just a “big ol’ party”.

As a business, Mardi Gras, and Carnival which leads up to it, is a good time to play up the celebration time by adding themed sales events to boost business. Here are a few ideas to get your good times rolling:

1.  Mardi Gras “Fat Tuesday” Sales Events

Host special discount sales events for Mardi Gras. Use the FOMO tactic– the idea that customers need to stock up and enjoy so they don’t miss out before Lent.  Send direct-mail postcards, hand out brochures or flyers at point of sale and at the door, or hang posters to spread the word locally. Be sure to post events on your company’s facebook page and other social media as well.

2.  Be Part of the Masquerade by offering discounts.

If you are a retail establishment or family restaurant, you could give a small freebie or sample– or offer a discount to anyone who enters your establishment with a mask on Mardi Gras. This is a good way to engage on social media as well, by taking pictures of people who give you permission to post them on your page(s).

3.  Mardi Gras Costume Contest

Invite your customers to enter a themed costume contest where the winner gets a nice prize, and everyone else who enters gets a discount. ALSO a good way to engage on social media. Snap pictures of people in costume (only people who give you permission) and post them on your page(s). Before you know it, you’ll have people tagging themselves at your establishment.

4.  Hand Out Beads Early!

If you advertise you’re handing out beads, you should begin the week or 2 leading up to Mardi Gras. This way, people will have them for their parties, ready to wear (and throw?) Offer a small giveaway or discount to pose wearing their beads in front of your sign and post on social media. You can even create your own hashtag and offer additional incentives to people who use it to share your business.

5.  Host your own Mardi Gras themed party.

Depending on your type of business, a party of your own might be just the ticket to bring in sales. This doesn’t have to happen ON Mardi Gras, because people may have their own plans, and also – it’s Tuesday. People likely have to work the next day. However – BEFORE Mardi Gras is a good idea, since Carnival lasts the entire month leading up to it anyhow. Give your customers a special Mardi Gras party which doesn’t take much to organize. You can sell tickets at the door to offset your costs of food, drinks and entertainment. Tickets can later be used in a raffle – Another option is to invite non-competing businesses to sponsor the party with you.  Let people know about your event ahead of time by sending invitation cards or even sell advance tickets.

6.  Give away a Mardi Gras trip.

Start a promo to enter “loyalty” customers into a drawing to win a trip to next year’s Mardi Gras in New Orleans.

7.  Remember the people who prefer not to party.

Not everyone likes to party on Mardi Gras.  Send business-minded customers a postcard or sales letter that features a “Staying-in” discount – because they “have more productive things to do.”

These are just a few ideas we have seen prove successful in the first quarter of the year. Mardi Gras is a fun time, so with advertising to reflect that, it will be a piece-of-cake to bring in business.


baby in the cake mardi gras marketing blog image

Fun Fact: The King Cake is a New Orleans tradition
that involves a pastry, a small plastic baby, and a party.




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Omni-Channel Marketing with USPS Informed Delivery® Service

Omni-Channel Marketing is certainly the hottest buzz word of 2020, but what does it mean exactly? Well, that answer can actually be kind of complicated. For a more in-depth read about the difference between Omni-Channel Marketing and Multi-Channel Marketing, this article is a great resource. However, the simple explanation is that Omni-Channel Marketing incorporates marketing techniques from all different sources – in-store, printed ads, and digital ads.

Omni-Channel Marketing – Where to Begin

If the thought of creating different ads for both the physical, and digital spaces intimidates you, a great place to start is by promoting your online presence ON your physical ads. Assuming that you already have a website and social media accounts, place links to your sites on your direct mail pieces. You can do this by simply writing out the URL or putting a QR code that the reader can scan and be launched to your site.

Postcard with QR code, omnichannel marketing, digital advertising
6×11 postcard with QR code linking to website and URL for their Facebook page

Being User-Friendly is Key!

Writing your website URL out on your direct mail campaign is certainly important, but not everyone is going to take the time out to write that URL into their web browser. Utilizing QR codes certainly takes this a step further – generally readers can use a QR reader on their smart phone and it will launch them directly to your website. However, not everyone uses or understands the concept of QR codes just yet. Wouldn’t it be easier if the website on your direct mail was actually just a clickable link? Unfortunately, that technology doesn’t exist quite yet. Or does it?

Using USPS Informed Delivery®

Although you may not be able to click directly on your physical mail piece, there is a tool that can get you close! According to the USPS website, Informed Delivery provides eligible residential consumers with a digital preview of their household’s incoming mail scheduled to arrive soon. Users can view greyscale images of the exterior, address side of incoming letter-sized mailpieces (not the inside contents) via email or an online dashboard. This means that before customers even check their physical mailbox, they can get a preview of what’s to come. Since the reader is already using the internet, they are more apt to visit your website. This makes having an attention-catching mailer even more important! For tips on how to make sure your direct mail campaign stands out with Informed Delivery® Service, read our previous blog post.

informed delivery postcard, omni-channel marketing
Screenshot from a Informed Delivery® e-mail with a preview of a postcard.

But instead of hoping that your reader looks at your website listed on your piece of mail and then decides to type the URL into their web browser, why not make it even easier for them? By integrating an interactive campaign, you can put a clickable link directly in their Informed Delivery® preview! This means that the reader will see the outside of your mail piece, as well as a small digital ad and a corresponding link that will launch them to wherever you decide. So even if the customer never opens the physical piece of mail you’ve sent them – they may still open the digital version and get your message all the same.

informed delivery envelope, omnichannel marketing
Screenshot from a real Informed Delivery® e-mail with an interactive campaign.

Tracking ROI

The USPS also offers methods to track your marketing efforts. For each campaign you run, they can provide the number of people in your list that have signed up for Informed Delivery®, as well as the number of people that have opened the email containing your interactive campaign. As long as you are using unique URLs, you can also track on your own the number of people that have clicked on your individual links. With everything being traceable, you can get a better understanding of what works and what doesn’t.

In a world where the answer to question, “Is online advertising or print advertising better?” is always changing, it’s best to cover all your bases. Contact PrimeNet today to get started on your next direct mail campaign with USPS Informed Delivery®!


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In Memory of Mark Keefe

mkeefe


July 18, 1959 - March 15, 2018

Friend, mentor and leader whose legacy will be remembered. Time will never erase the work you have accomplished here or the positive impact you have had on our lives.

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