Case Study

For the last ten years, we created direct mail campaigns for a medium sized client outside of Chicago. In order to save money, he cut his advertising budget and decided to design his ads himself. As you might expect, his rate of response went from bad to worse. When he started getting our newsletter, he remembered why he hired us in the first place. We are one of the few affordable advertising agencies that combines well thought out marketing strategies with professional and effective design. A few months ago, he called to see what we could do with a small budget. We outlined a monthly direct mail program that he could afford. While he isn’t breaking any sales records, he’s back in the black.

We first created an effective sale mailer that would generate interest and awareness. I know, you’ve been having sales for years, but we’ve been doing this for a long time for many different clients and we really do know what works.

We combined that with another point of contact, an electronic one. We included a web address, along with a QR code, scannable with a smartphone, that would allow the customer to go directly to the portion of the website that would offer an emailed coupon for further discounts. So, whether they typed in the address on their computer or scanned it on their phone, they would arrive at a page that would send them the additional discount. Either way, our client got the email address of an interested prospect, an extremely valuable resource. An email list can be built and must be used on a regular basis to keep you in front of your prospects.

Finally, we set up a schedule that involved splitting their list into three segments. We created a sale mailer that was sent to one third of the list every month for three months. Then another mailer was created and the schedule was repeated. Four repetitions will cover an entire year, each person on the list is contacted four times per year, cash flow is smoothed out and the cost per month is affordable.

Here are some suggestions that may help you stay profitable in this stressful economy:

More than 80% of prospects begin their search online.
Make sure your website is easy to navigate with a comprehensive collection of the inventory you carry. Then, develop a realistic advertising budget that you can commit to. If you are like most retailers, business is slow and spending on advertising feels like a necessary evil. However, in time, business will come to a screeching halt if you choose to do nothing.

Your website MUST do more than just show beautiful products.
It must brand your business and incorporate well thought out, results oriented marketing strategies. This often has more to do with time than money, but I am certain it’s well worth the effort.

Take advantage of a reduced field of competitors.
Without question, if less businesses are advertising in this economic climate, your market share with increase. Research has shown again and again that businesses that advertise in a down economy fare significantly better when the economy rebounds.

Determine your target demographic with as little waste as possible.
It is always better to reach a smaller group of prospects several times than to research a larger group just once. We recommend analyzing your responses to optimize your list in future mailings.

Use direct mail to drive traffic to your website.
Web advertising is in your future. If you don’t get involved now with a long term program, you will fall behind. You don’t have to jump in with both feet, but you do have to get started with some basic steps to position yourself ahead of the curve.