Vol. 7 No. 1

DM News & Tips

Direct mail gains market share
A recent survey showed that 67% of all consumers made a purchase by catalog in the past year. Another 46% responded to a direct mail offer. In contrast, only 16% reported that they bought via e-mail, 12% made purchases through banner ads, and just 5% were sold due to outbound telemarketing pitches. It was also revealed that many people rely on printed catalogs and direct mail pieces to drive them to web sites so they can research products online.

New database of former employees
At least 30% of the contacts in most business databases are no longer employed at that company. NCOA only tracks businesses that move, not employees. The Ecological Mail Coalition is tackling the problem. They’ve created a national, cooperative database of verified, outdated business contacts. It already contains contacts from over 6,000 companies. By joining the coalition you can reduce the amount of wasted incoming mail to former employees. By suppressing this file against business mailing lists you can identify and eliminate outdated contacts before mailing to them. Free charter memberships are now being offered. To learn more visit www.ecologicalmail.org/free or call 800-620-3975.

USPS OKs odd-shaped mail
A new postal classification was approved in 2003. Customized MarketMail (CMM) took effect 8/10/03. Until now, non-rectangular pieces, irregularly shaped pieces, or pieces with holes or voids were not allowed as a mailpiece. CMM allows such pieces as long as they meet certain requirements. Creative direct mail pieces could be shaped like a motorcycle, a house or a basketball. The postage rate is 57.4 cents for each piece. More details are available at www.usps.com, then search Customized MarketMail.

Attention getting design idea

TRY WHITE SPACE.

Yes, you see white space in full-page magazine and newspaper ads quite frequently. Art directors love to design ads with one line of copy, a logo and about 100 square inches of emptiness. That blank space in a publication can cost up to $5,000 per inch. It grabs the readers attention in an otherwise cluttered medium. It could work in direct mail too – and for whole lot less money! An important product benefit could be printed as a single line of copy on a separate insert and included in the direct mail package. It’s an idea worth testing.

Postal trivia
The post office first began using Zip Codes on July 1, 1963. A cartoon character called Mr. Zip was used to promote and encourage Zip Code usage. In 1983 the Zip+4 was introduced. ZIP is an acronym for Zone Improvement Plan.