Are Postcards Still an Effective Marketing Tactic?

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Outbound or Inbound?

A great deal of the debate among marketers today centers on the issue of inbound versus outbound marketing strategies. Of course, every progressive marketer is now fully aware of the advantages of successful inbound marketing techniques. This is the process whereby you the customer or prospect initiates the conversation with your company, as opposed to you trying to get their attention by traditional advertising or outbound processes.

The problem in this ongoing discussion is found in making the issue one of either-or. The reality is that a modern, cost-effective marketing strategy is almost always going to consist of carefully integrating both approaches. Certainly, the days of spending thousands of dollars a month on yellow page advertising are over for most companies. Likewise, simple mass mailings of unattractive direct mail pieces are probably useful in only a few circumstances today.

However, it is important to remember that today’s marketing message is all about the conversation. It’s great when the customer initiates that process, but it’s up to the company to make it a truly two-way and productive conversation. While you can respond with an email (and many fail to even do this), there are many traditional ways to follow up with prospects and clients that are cost-effective and relevant. According to a recent article in Agency Access, postcards are one of the most effective and affordable means of keeping that conversation going.

There are several reasons that postcards remain popular with creative marketers. At the heart of these are the capabilities of modern printing. Stunningly attractive postcards can be personalized and printed in small quantities to address any number of special needs for communications. Modern web-to-print services even provide full addressing and mailing services. These nifty items affordably and professionally announce a special event, send an automated reminder, or blanket a neighborhood with news of a grand opening.

Postcards may seem old school to some, but to many savvy marketers they’ve graduated to a new and powerful marketing tool that leverages inbound marketing success.

Effectively Use Web-to-Print

The Power of Digital Printing

Printing and attractive collateral items have always been an integral part of any effective marketing strategy. For decades, smaller businesses were limited in their options for printing by cost and quantity issues. Today, however, the world of printing provides any business, large or small, the opportunity to produce affordable materials of the highest quality.

This new availability is actually reshaping the expectations of many customers, both B2B and B2C. With the rise in the importance of branding and overall market image, companies are expected to show their commitment to excellence by using advertising and printing that takes advantage of modern technologies. For example, any company can now have a professional logo created and consistently rendered in all types of printed material and advertising.

Digital and Online

Graphic designers working with printers are given the ability to create stunning marketing materials without the need for traditional advertising firm services. These items can be easily and affordably designed, modified and printed by web-based print services in an as-needed environment.

What this means to your as a marketer is that you are able to easily modify a standard piece with a short run for a trade show or special event. You get consistent quality and branding and rapid turnaround on jobs that don’t cost a fortune. Instead of investing in a large quantity of one brochure every year or so, you’re able to freshen your message and add relevant information for specific events as often as you desire.

Your customers often evaluate your company by the execution of your marketing materials. Even small companies can now stand up against their largest competitors with materials that are available through a web-to-print strategy. Give your brand the attention it deserves and take the time to professionally position your products and services with the right printed materials and web-to-print services.

Marketing On A Budget

When you are marketing on a budget, you can’t afford to waste money on instances that are not essential. There are a few marketing tips that you can use when you are marketing on a budget.

1. Crafting a Great Pitch

In order to craft a great pitch, you need to do a little bit of research. Research shows that the average adult has an attention span of about 6 to 8 seconds. You need to create an awesome pitch within this little bit of time to keep them interested. It is a tricky task, but it is not as difficult as it may seem. In order to keep their attention, make sure that your entire pitch is not over one minute and a few seconds. Another thing that you can do to keep them engaged in your pitch is ask questions.

2. Thinking Locally

A lot of people are under the impression that they have to spend thousands of dollars to create thousands of marking efforts. The good news in this instance is that you don’t have to spend millions. All you have to do is look at the events that are taking place within your community. Thinking locally is one of the best techniques to use when you are marketing on a budget. Sponsoring will take you further than you may think. For starters, it will be a good idea to sponsor a little league team or your local library.

3. Being Able to Collaborate

Although you may be an individual that enjoys completing projects on your own, take the time to collaborate here and there once in a while. In this instance, you can creat a business within your area that is non-competitive. Set certain rules that everyone agrees on and cross-promote each other.

These three tips will help you kick start your marketing efforts when you are on a budget. These marketing tips are inexpensive and will open doors to thousands of other marketing opportunities.

5 Tips for Digitally Printed Materials

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Thanks to the progression of computer technology, digitally printed materials have far surpassed the use of traditional printing techniques. Whereas pre-computer days meant that printing involved messy powders and time consuming paper printing methods, today you can print on a variety of mediums. Digital printing provides the tools to print on practically any surface ranging from walls to T-shirts to mesh. However, with this form of printing you should consider ways to make this technique work to your advantage.

  1. A simple image is important for viewers. For example, a logo with a highly detailed graphic filled with 10 different colors and shadowing is going to be difficult to identify from a distance, such as via a billboard or wall image.
  2. Digital photos may not stretch into a large scale without becoming blurry or grainy. Consider this when taking photos to be used on your digitally printed materials. Opt to use the finest resolution possible, as well as a high quality camera with a zoom feature.
  3. You can print on a wide variety of surfaces including flooring, canvas, plastic, 3M ControlTac™ and glass. Keep this in mind when you are selecting a printing process. Sometimes you can have an idea about where and how to share your marketing message that goes beyond the basic print on paper.
  4. Skimp on spending somewhere other than your digital printing needs. A poorly printed sign or the use of a cheap surface will translate into poor execution of an idea, as well as a spendthrift business. Show potential clients that you will do whatever it takes to win their business, which includes spending what is necessary to print high-quality marketing tools.
  5. Once you decide on a logo or business slogan, stick with that graphic or phrase throughout all of your printed materials. Whether you are printing flyers for an upcoming sale or you are printing copies of your newsletter to distribute to clients, your logo should always be included in the prints.

Maintain a professional manner by choosing digitally printed materials for your business’s needs. By making the most of this technique, you are more likely to benefit in the long term.

Digital Campaigns vs. Print Campaigns

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The very basic fact – which has been true for some time now – is that digital email campaigns don’t have as high a conversion rate as commercial printing. The reason: brochures, posters, banners, direct mailers, and similar products are in front of potential customers, and in easy view. For example, anyone who has ever gone through their physical junk mail knows that any flyer, brochure, etc. that is high quality and has a particularly visual ad will easily draw their attention. Thus, they are effective at generating interest in a service or product.

On the other hand, email campaigns are much more affordable and can reach a much larger volume of potential customers than print campaigns can. However, what needs to be taken into account is that cheaper isn’t always better. Most email account holders can and often do delete an ad email without ever reading the actual email. Moreover, most people are bombarded by dozens of emails each day and they most often only pay attention to emails sent from people they know. This makes it difficult for a large number of people to open a digital advertisement email. There’s also junk email filters and spam filters to worry about as well.

Any product from a quality printing company – posters, direct mailers, brochures, etc. – will allow you to reach more people, captivating their interest from even thirty feet away. This is effective even if it’s for a moment or two. Some printing advertisements can be seen as works of art that capture the human eye, and ultimately the person’s interest. Sure, print costs more but it has proven time and again to have the highest conversion rate among potential customers just for the fact that you can’t immediately delete a print advertisement.

How Does Blogging Benefit Your Business?

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When the Internet first gained ground, websites were the main way a business could interact with customers online. Today we have several forms of social media that encourage open, community generated exchanges. One of these forms is called a blog. Blogging allows you to set up a website that is updated on a regular basis, which encourages a more active readership. The more web viewers that check out, return and spend time reading your blog, the better your blog’s site will rank in search results. Here are steps you can take to ensure your blog is benefiting your business.

Using a Blog for a Business

As you set up a blog, which you can do for free using many cookie-cutter blog services, you need to have a set goal. In order for a blog to work for a business, you must be able to measure the results. For instance, perhaps your goal for blogging is to share news related to your latest products. To measure the success of your blogging efforts, you would want to know how many readers are returning to your blog more than once. You also want to know how many of those readers are looking at your products and possibly purchasing these. By setting measurable goals with numerical values, such as the number of visits or the length of time spent on your blog, you can determine if your time spent on your blog is worth it for your business’s needs.

Social Engagement

Whereas SEO, or search engine optimization, once was the key to gaining better page rankings, social engagement is becoming more important. Social engagement goes along with social media sites, such as blogs and Facebook, where social interaction between viewers promotes ideas, products and services. In order for your business to best benefit from a blog, you want to provide plenty of avenues for social engagement. Add a forum and encourage its activity, and respond to all of those comments posted to your blog no matter if they are positive or negative. You should also encourage interaction between your blog and others in your network, as a way to gain exposure for your business to a greater audience.

Is Email Marketing Still an Effective Marketing Tool?

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This is a trickier question than it seems to be. Print campaigns and email blasts both have their benefits and drawbacks. It may be safe to say that in order for companies to truly be effective in their marketing endeavors, both campaigns should be used. That being said, email blasts are not completely dead as an effective marketing tool.

There are a number of reasons why email blasts continue to be part of the business arsenal. If a company sends out a traditional print mail campaign, that company cannot track whether or not the intended recipients trashed the mailer, read it then trashed it, read it and kept it, etc. That is the beauty of email campaigns – you can do what you can’t do with print. Of course, it is important to mention that print campaigns do have a higher conversion rate than email campaigns. But that depends on the design of the printed materials, the quality, and who you’re sending it to.

With email blasts, assuming a company is using an established email marketing system, there are a number of advantages. For one, most of these organizations provide email reports that allow companies to know if their email was opened, when they opened it, how many times it was viewed, if it was forwarded, which links they clicked on, and a number of other useful pieces of information. In turn, this information can be used to then target future email campaigns to certain individuals to ensure that they both open the email and actually read it.

One of the most obvious reasons email blasts still exist is their cost effectiveness. It is much more affordable to have a company create and design an email blast and send it out than it is to design print materials.

Effectively Use Print-to-Web

For new businesses, small companies, or establishments new to digital marketing, PDF magazines are a budget-friendly and simple way to start. This form of digital literature allows publishers to keep the same print format but offer a convenient option for those on the go. PDF magazines are easy to create and cost much less compared to printing physical copies but offer few features.

Ease into Flip-Books

A “flip-book” is similar to PDF magazines but give readers more features. Also known as digital magazines, there are different formats available. These online magazines allow readers to search for content, zoom in and out, and advanced features such as bookmarks. Flip-books keep the traditional book format allowing them to view and turn pages exactly as they would with a real magazine.

Understand the Age of Blogging

When the print presence of a business begins to lower or simply does not exist, blogging is the best solution for most types of publications. Blogs are not only cost-effective but they are far more popular now than decades ago. A successful blogging strategy is more effective than most print methods and is easy to distribute. Blog subscribers receive email updates and commonly follow the company’s RSS feed.

Print-to-web is a vital marketing strategy to succeed in business today. More consumers are looking online for products and services without considering a magazine or catalog. Learn more about print-to-web strategies that work for every industry.

QR Codes and Social Media

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Social media sites, such as Facebook and Twitter, are massive marketing tools for businesses. However, having a sign, postcard or newspaper advertisement telling readers to “like” your social media profile is not efficient. Enter into the equation QR codes. Also known as a Quick Response code, this is a useful tool for inbound marketing in the hands of potential customers and clients.

How QR Codes Work

A QR code is a square shaped symbol filled with matrix code that functions in the same way as a bar code on a product at the supermarket. Individuals can scan these codes using a digital reader with a camera feature, such as a smartphone or tablet. The information saved within the QR code will lead the user to a social media site, where they are then able to like or comment on your profile. For instance, someone can read about your business in a magazine. If you’ve included a QR code for your social media profile, they’ll be able to scan the code so to connect with your social media page.

Creating QR Codes

Start by utilizing a website that will create a QR code for you. All you need in order to create a QR code is the address to the website in which you want to connect to using the code.

Utilizing a QR Code

Once you have a QR code you can print off a copy of the code and paste it onto various forms of print media. For example, you would want to include the QR code for your social media sites along with your press releases, advertisements, YouTube videos, and business cards. Brick and mortar establishments for businesses often include a QR code linking to their social media page on signs placed strategically throughout the building. By allowing customers to connect to your social media site in a clever and efficient manner, you ensure that more individuals are reaching your marketing platform on the web.

Applications of Direct Marketing

Direct marketing puts the customer and the business in direct contact with one another, therefore the term direct. The main benefit of using this form of marketing is that the results can be measured using hard data, such as through numbers or statistics. This allows marketers to understand if the applications they are using to engage customers are working. In terms of applications of direct marketing, there are several to mention.

Print Media

Years before there was Internet, print media ruled the world of direct marketing. Today it is still useful, albeit with less of an emphasis. Catalog distribution, fliers and promotional letters are three of the most common forms of direct marketing. Additionally, if your business publishes magazine or newspaper advertisements that encourage a response, such as a survey or coupon to be used in a store, this would be considered direct marketing.

Internet Methods

As email became a commonplace way to communicate, it joined the ranks of direct marketing applications. Often you will see web based forms asking users to submit their email address either for contest entries, a newsletter sign up, or to receive free material such as an eBook. This is another form of direct marketing as it allows businesses to create a database using the email addresses of web users. Blogs that promote interaction between customers are another form of direct marketing online. The website advertisements that encourage users to click to redirect to a business’s page allows marketers to track web users’ activities so they can measure the success rate of such ads.

Mobile Technology

One of the first direct marketing applications using the telephone was through telemarketing. Marketers continue to use this technique. However, the methods have changed from cold-calling to connecting with customers who call in to customer service agencies for specific needs, such as when signing up for a credit card or updating banking information via the telephone. Cell phones with their ability to text message provide businesses with another form of direct marketing. This application allows marketers to reach customers through their mobile devices as yet another means of connecting with potential customers. Often times a text will include a coupon or sales ad that will promote a business, while helping marketers track the users of this application of direct marketing.