case studies
With budget pressures and the increasing trend to online, Nick Evans tells how we've helped home shopping clients to save an average 28% on direct mail costs.
There are two major issues currently facing proponents of direct mail:
1. Budget - budgets are under more pressure, calling into question the effectiveness of large volume direct mail spend
2. Digital media - as digital marketing grows in popularity and sophistication, you need a low risk approach to adopting a multi-channel DM strategy
Traditional mail order companies are understandably cautious to transition their spend to digital; despite high print and fulfilment costs, the returns are usually ROI positive, even on relatively low response rates.
However, the cost and flexibility benefits of digital media are difficult to ignore, as is the increasing trend toward online shopping. Digital media offers the same degree of measurability but also myriad opportunities to tailor the message and offers to individual consumers.
So how do direct marketers make an informed, risk-free transition, with the evidence to support the inclusion of digital media channels?
1. Get rid of the dead wood
Identify those areas of traditional spend that are inefficient, delivering poor ROI and cost per sale.
We're increasingly asked to apply our common-sense investigative analysis to establish the relationship between mailing frequency and response. This identifies where the incremental cost of mailing an individual can no longer be justified by the likelihood of response. Our analysis identifies an average 28% saving on mailing budgets where return on investment is minimal. That's because up to this point, you will already have captured around 95% of the individuals likely to respond.
2. Reinvest your cost savings
This is where the flexibility of digital media comes into its own. You can reinvest the budget saved to drive acquisition through Search Engine Marketing (SEM) or deploy personalised emails with bespoke incentives and product offerings to increase conversion and cross sales.
Nobody's advocating digital at the expense of offline media - the very best marketing strategy is, as always, the deployment of integrated campaigns, in the full knowledge of what works, when, where and for whom.
