Long before the internet (the first documented catalogue of printed books, direct mail, is from 1498), marketing pros and world-class copywriters mastered the profitable art form of direct mail marketing. These principles and strategies have been used for years, and they’ve withstood the test of time because they are effective. Here are 5 effective tips for improving your print marketing campaign.
- Know Your Target Audience
Both digital and print campaigns need to answer the question: “who do we want to buy from us?” Not answering this question means you are trying to appease a wide variety of people… and interesting none of them. (This is easier done than said for digital marketers.) With print, you can address specific consumers you know have a problem that your product/service can solve.
- Design
How your campaign looks are the first thing people notice. “Don’t judge a book by its cover” may seem fine and dandy, but it isn’t true. We as people do judge books by covers; it’s how we’re hardwired. As consumers, we decide whether we want to buy something or not for the first time based on outer appearances. Hiring a good designer increases the chances that your campaign hits (instead of missing). You could even make your materials feel more textured or make your text embossed (if the printing services allow it).
- Strong CTA
CTAs (call-to-actions) are the bread and butter of any form of advertising. Write a clear, sensible, no-fuss CTA that tells readers/prospects how to order—and when to order—to get the best deal “before the sale ends”. Marketing campaigns that use strong CTAs are more likely to create a sense of urgency: making people feel like they’ll miss out on something great is a huge emotional tease a lot of marketers use. Because of the simplicity of creating CTAs, this step is easy to overlook in the print marketing world. I don’t know why, since this step directly tells people where and how they can pay for your service or product.
- Digital Assets
Even though you’re using “traditional” print methods for your marketing, there is no reason not to highlight your brand’s website. QR codes are the easiest way to show your customers that you have a website, and they can access it easily if they want to know more. The reason you want to do this is because:
- you will be able to collect information
- you will be able to nurture leads
- you are integrating digital with print
which means you have more avenues to convert prospects into customers.
- Track Your Campaigns
Without tracking your ad campaigns, your marketing efforts are worthless. Because you know what customers are responding to or ignoring. Digital marketers use online tracking systems to make sure their campaigns perform well. You can do the same for your print campaigns by including discount codes, customized phone numbers, custom landing pages, personalized offers, etc. This way, you will know which specific campaign customers are responding to, which shows you which ones are successful, and which aren’t. This way you don’t have to re-invent the wheel when it comes time to roll out the campaign again.
Conclusion
Whether your marketing campaign is traditional or digital, keep in mind that these principles were around long before “digital” was even a blip on society’s radar. Improving your print marketing campaign means not being afraid of returning back to basics. By understanding how people operate and function, you could help them optimize their lives more efficiently.