Direct mail refers to mail sent to a person by a commercial or private enterprise. It is sometimes called “chase mail” because the receiver of the mail is expected to return it within a short time. Direct mail advertisements, or commonly referred to as direct mail, catalog mail or postcard mail, is the mailing of marketing materials to consumers of regular commercial mail. Unlike the other commercial mail services such as letters, postcards and telephone bulk telegrams, the distribution of direct mail advertising materials is not controlled by any regulatory authority. Direct mail companies are not required to provide a return address or send a postal specimen to the recipient.
Direct marketing companies are service providers to organizations who require a highly efficient and cost effective way to reach their target audience. Direct marketing services include mailings, catalogs and postcards. These marketing publications are used to reach the intended target audience. Direct marketing publications are either sent through regular commercial post or are sent through specially designed electronic mails. Direct mail companies often use various strategies to reach their clients.
Direct marketing companies usually offer a wide range of marketing products and services, including postcards, catalogs and brochures. They also design and develop special advertising pieces, such as postcards, brochures and catalogs. Some companies even design the content of the direct mail pieces to match the client’s business requirements. Postcards, brochures and catalogs can be used to introduce new products or to solicit new customers. These publications are also used for introducing special sales and promotional offers. A large number of companies offer these services and can be located through a simple search on the Internet.
Direct mail is a very cost effective method of marketing. Unlike most other marketing campaigns, a one-time mailing expense is much less expensive than printing and distributing numerous leaflets, postcards and catalogs. There is no need to invest in expensive display materials, which means that a company can keep its costs low without making any drastic cuts to other areas. However, direct mail campaigns sometimes require a great deal of time and effort on the part of the advertising agency, as well as the cost of sending out the postcards, catalogs and other printed materials. Direct mailing is not only convenient, but it has a number of distinct advantages over other advertising strategies.
Direct marketing is often used by businesses in conjunction with other forms of direct marketing, such as direct mail campaigns and political campaigns. The two marketing strategies often work together to promote a client’s business. Political campaign material is often sent to every residence in a targeted political district to encourage citizens to vote. Direct marketing letters are often written to every household in a targeted block to encourage citizens to sign up or participate in an upcoming campaign.
One other advantage of using direct mail for marketing is that the cost of postage is greatly reduced, which makes the campaign much more feasible. This cost savings is especially significant for start-up companies. For every ten pieces of politically themed advertising mail that is sent out, the cost of postage drops from ten cents to just pennies. Many marketing experts believe that every dollar that is spent on a campaign should be aimed at increasing the number of new customers the company attracts, and direct mail is a great way to accomplish this. In addition, by targeting a specific geographic area, every door-to-door direct mail campaign is sure to generate a minimum of one new customer for every five pieces of political advertising mail that is sent out.