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Choosing a Print and Mail Service Company

A direct mail campaign today is not something that doesn't work any more just because of the rise of Internet marketing.

A direct mail campaign, if it's done right, will still get you a great ROI.

And one of the most important parts of any direct mail marketing campaign is the choice of print and mail service.

It should be advised you select a company that has a combined print and mail service.

There are companies that strictly do one or the other, but as you know from your business experience it's always less expensive to have a combined bundled package. Not only can you save money on bundling options this way, it's

also more convenient for you, so that you save time and trouble.

Your direct mail print and mail service should be competitive, of course, and obviously it can't be the post office if you're going to combine the two different aspects of service.

Choosing a Print and Mail Service Company

What Should You Look For in a Competitive Print and Mail Service?

First, a print and mail service company that can help you with the mailing recipient list research should be chosen if the price is affordable.You want to get as close to a 10% response from readers as

you can, and the only way to do this is to target your audience carefully.

If you have a research partner right there with your print and mail service, so much the better for you.

Yes, you can attempt to do this research all on your own, but a direct mail print and mail service specialist will have experience that they can offer you that you might not have.

Using Direct Mailing List Doing mailing recipient list research is crucial to

your success, because otherwise you are just sending out mailers to people who will mostly just throw them away.

Direct mailing lists are about getting your mailers out to the correct people.

When you use a direct mail database, you don't do the "shotgun" approach to marketing. You are now doing targeted marketing, and that's what works.

Purchasing Direct Mailing Lists

These are made up of household names and addresses that have been put into a direct mail database. These names and addresses are gathered together through various

means but typically involve public records searches: warranty cards, vehicle owner registrations, court transcripts, and so on.

A direct mailing database may also include names and addresses of all people in certain professions in certain areas.

Now, these compiled mailing lists get stale pretty quickly--that's their downside.

Compiled Mailing Lists

One of these is a direct mail database made up of consumers who've bought or asked about a product or service from a direct mail catalog, from another direct mail offer, from a direct response ad from TV or radio, etc.

You can start putting one of these together by analyzing your own customer database.

But if you are looking for new customers rather than repeat business in your direct mail campaign, you can analyze your customers and then look to purchase new response direct mailing lists that contain people with similar buying characteristics.

Purchasing Direct Mailing ListsResponse Direct Mailing Lists

Second, use them as a consultant on your design work. Who cares if you have the best printer, the best mail service, and

the best offering if you don't deliver that message in the medium?

They will be able to act as an objective third party as well as a direct mail marketing consultant and help you to know whether or not your current mailer is going to work.

They can advise you with informed detail about what could be changed and how they would respond if they got your mailer. Remember, they've "been there, done that" with other clients

before you.

What Should You Look For in a Competitive Print and Mail Service?

The Print Aspect of Your Print and Mail Direct Mail Service

What should you understand about printing direct mail?

It seems so simple. Just get a decent mailer design and look around for the cheapest printer, right?

No, it's not that simple at all. The entire process of printing direct mail needs to be carefully considered and approached.

Selecting Your Service Provider

1. When selecting your service provider for printing direct mail, you should choose one who is experienced in the techniques of direct mail production.

- Such a provider will see mistakes and recognize how to correct them before anything gets mailed out.

2. You should use a direct mailer designer who is likewise experienced. With such a designer you'll save time, which in business always saves money.

- But you'll also be assured of having the job done properly the first time (at least in all probability), and you'll also save more money by having someone who understands how to create the best possible direct mailer for the least possible cost. 

Some Tips in Printing Direct Mail

1. Provide the graphic artwork in its original format to the company that will be printing direct mail for you.

When you submit the artwork in a format like a PDF file, the printing service can only make minimal alterations if they are needed.

This could lead to extra time required to get the mailers printed up in the right way, or it could even lead to errors being mailed out.

2. Have your direct mail production vendors sit in on the early design meetings.

3. Also, whomever you give the job to should be that vendor who best suits the needs of your current direct mailer campaign.

By choosing carefully you prevent nightmares from happening later on, and you also solidify strong relationships with different vendors (if you use more than one).

Some Tips in Printing Direct Mail

4. Choosing the correct paper stock is a must--and again it's a process that is all too often taken for granted.

The paper stocks that you select need to work with your downstream insertion machines as well as the imaging equipment that will be used.

Choosing the wrong stock causes the need for reprints and, clearly, it causes delays--both of which events cost you money.

Some Tips in Printing Direct Mail

5. Yet another way to ensure yourself that you save money with printing direct mail is to keep down the number of laser shells (offset-printed stock versions).

Keep this number as low as possible. Having too many versions leads to higher risk of errors in production.

Variable data printing (VDP) is the best way to go if you possibly can. Also, you can use personalization to keep down the total number of printed versions.

Keep down imaging costs via pre-printing the non-personalized parts of your mailer such as multiple pages, underlining, colored text, handwritten parts, and signatures.

Some Tips in Printing Direct Mail