Lately I’ve seen some people around me agonize over what elements to include or not to include in their direct mailers. They consult books, web gurus and so on looking for the secret formula that will get the direct mail response they are looking for. There is a lot of great advice on direct mail available, but sadly there is also a lot of trash being tossed out there to unsuspecting customers. At the end of the day, however, it all boils down to one question: Would you respond to it?
If you didn’t know what you know about your product or service and all you had to go on was your mailer, would you respond? It is difficult to be truly objective, but you have to clear your mind and put yourself in your potential customer’s shoes. Does you direct mail piece grab your attention? Does it make you want to open it? Is it immediately clear what the offer is? Does it make you want to pick up the phone and call your order in or rush the order form out to your mailbox?
These are the questions you must answer. No matter what the “experts” tell you, at the end of the day what really matters is what the customer thinks. Does the customer “get it”? Do they want to “get it”? Make sure that your mailer grabs your attention, informs you about the offer and makes you want to buy and chances are that your potential customers will feel the same way.
