Tag Archive for: direct mail marketing

Why Direct Mail Matters for Your Political Campaign

Direct Mail Political Campaigns Are More Effective Than You Think!

Political ads—you see them all the time, good or bad. This candidate hates puppies; how can they possibly be trusted to run our great state? Or, since they announced their candidacy for Governor, over five people have said that they’ve personally witnessed him pick his nose in public!!! Is this someone you want making decisions for your taxes?  It’s easy to think that this is the only way a political campaign is won (or lost—who would vote for someone who hates puppies?), but a lot of elections come down to more than just commercials. After all, buying up ad space on TV can cost a fortune, and a lot of candidates don’t have room in their budget for just one type of campaign.

That’s where political mailing lists can be a huge boon for your campaign—instead of a big, fancy (and mean) ad, pivot to a medium that’s plenty reliable and only costs a fraction of the price. We’ve outlined some of the key benefits of a direct mail campaign, and what steps you need to take to make sure that your targeted audience reads and listens to what you have to say.

Effective, cost-controlled marketing

When you’re deciding which direction to go in for your political campaign, your budget is undoubtedly one of the most important things that you need to consider. Why waste all your money on one medium, when you can diversify your options while still reaching your target audience? Direct mail is a cost-effective method of reaching the people you want to reach. Compiling a mailing list is relatively easy—you can choose voters that are active participants in local politics (you can see how many elections they’ve voted in recently), which party they vote for, what precinct they voted in, and where they’re registered to vote.

How to avoid the garbage can with your mail

Now that you’ve determined who you want to target with your mail campaign, how do you make sure they don’t immediately toss it away, never to be read again? While some voters that take a little more time to read what you have to say, the vast majority of recipients will barely skim your mail before throwing it away almost immediately. There’s not much that you can do to change what people do with their mail (some people would rather not receive mail at all), but you can certainly change the content of your letter to get your message across more effectively. You want to let your voters know why you’re running for office in as little time as possible—delivering a message that is too granular, issue-specific, you risk accelerating your trip to the trash can. Two key parts of a direct mail campaign are:

  • Raising name awareness
  • Highlighting your message/emphasizing negatives about your opponent

If there’s one thing you want the reader to see, it’s your name. Soon, they might be asked, “are you voting in the local election?” They may not have the best idea yet, but at the very least they’ll know your name. If there’s another thing that you want them to see, it’s what you do well, or what your opponent doesn’t do well. As long as you’re effective in your brand positioning, you’ll be able to reach the audience you want with minimal hassle.

 

Millennials and Direct Mailing

The internet is an indispensable part of everyday life for nearly everyone. Some more so than others, as millennials are spending a lot of time online, reading blogs, browsing social media, reading email. The internet provides everything that used to be done by leaving the house. If you had a question about a topic you went to the library and looked it up. Entire networks were based around buying but you still had to leave the house to do most of your shopping. And when it comes to letters and postcards, do millennials read their snail mail, or even know it exists? Why would a generation used to instant gratification have any patience for direct mail marketing?

The fact is that direct mail is an extremely effective tool for reaching consumers of any age or demographic, including young people. Millennials respond well to direct marketing and here is why.

They respond well to targeted advertising – Just as Google uses your browsing history to prompt advertising, so does direct mail, albeit in physical form. The same online methods used to gather consumer data that allows brands to target individual consumers with accuracy can be used to great effect with direct mailing campaigns. Instead of sending mass postcards, marketers can clearly define an audience and tailor the message to them.

There is no substitute for physical marketing materials – Rather than being gradually replaced by online advertising, postcards and brochures are integrated with online materials creating a combined experience into a unified brand. All a postcard needs to direct an interested millennial to more information, or an online order form, is a QR code and a spare minute.

Individuals that grew up in the digital world still read the mail – Even mailings that are considered “junk mail” are still read and sorted by millennials on a daily basis. And the response rate for millennials to direct mailing campaigns is equal to or in some cases greater than older generations.

Direct mail gives you the opportunity to show off your brand – You can be authentic in direct mailing offerings.  Since you control the entire message, how it is presented, and most importantly, who gets it, you can use the opportunity to show a strong, cohesive brand identity which is something that appeals to millennials. When you treat your customer as a human being, create a sense of connection with the individual consumer, and humanize your brand, you are appealing to this new demographic regardless of how long your brand has been around.

Millennials don’t ignore snail mail because it is old, they do so because it is irrelevant to them. Your marketing can be tailored specifically to this demographic and with precise market research and a fantastic and eye-catching design, your direct mailing campaign can indeed reach millennials. Call Presort today. We know how to design a campaign that will help you achieve these goals.