Good News!

Recent changes by the USPS will affect your current postage fees. Please read the following information to learn when these changes will take place and what you can do to prepare your media plans for the coming year.

United States Postal Service Announces Closure of Exigent Rates

As recently stated by the United States Postal Service, the Exigent Rate Case will cease to be in effect on April 9, 2016, at the conclusion of the business day. Beginning April 10, 2016, al lmailings will see a 4.3% average decrease on postage expenses.

The exigent rate increase was put into effect on January 26th, 2014 to recoup $3.2 billion in lost revenue from the recent recession. The measure was set to end the following year in the middle of the summer, but the realization of a calculation error revealed that there was actually a $4.6 billion deficit. The new calculation established a new maximum recovery number, thus extending the exigent rate increase period. The recovery of this lost revenue was listed by the USPS in Docket No. R2013-11. By February 14th, 2016, the USPS was able to recoup approximately $4.3 billion of the total deficit. The USPS is aware that this will greatly impact current marketing plans as mailers will have an opportunity to pay lower postal fees. The postal service remains hopeful that the extra savings will be allocated to expanding marketing efforts via mail.

Current projections, in accordance with information from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, estimate virtually no significant increase for USPS postage rates, which also reduces the possibility for future increases. A MTAC meeting held on November, 2015 has confirmed current speculation by stating that current CPI projections will not call for increased rates.

When you think holiday in April, you think Easter. However, there are many different, albeit smaller, holidays and events to celebrate. This leads to so many different angles your April marketing can use, besides Easter.

It’s no joke… April begins with the classic “April Fools Day.” Use this lead for humorous ads and discounts to stand out and grab attention. This kind of ad doesn’t even really have to “sell” anything, but just draw attention to your company. Popular companies do things like Nestle’s Kit Kat bars releasing a fried chicken flavored candy bar and Scope releasing a bacon flavored mouthwash. This makes us look twice and makes your ad memorable.

Spring Cleaning… Out with the old and in with the new! Talk about your new products and services you’re unleashing. Offer discounts on trying them out. Showcase on how your company can help them transition from winter into spring –even prepare for summer.

Spring Break… Want to attract a younger crowd? Or entice tourists? Play up on the fun nature of spring break to draw people in. This works great for “hip” or easy-going companies.

Earth Day & Arbor Day… Show how green your company is! Specialty Mailing offers recycled paper and other products to showcase and note on your correspondence. Possibly set up a recycle center in your space and send out a notice offering people a discount or service for recycling to get them in the door.

The Return of Baseball… It’s no secret that the Cardinals have the best fans in baseball! Specialty Mailing is no exception, being a St. Louis based company. We have to hand it to the Royals for keeping the World Series win in Missouri, though. We also just love baseball in general as it is America’s favorite pastime and it is a great theme to incorporate into your marketing.

If you have different ideas, tell us! Specialty Mailing is open to all ideas and willing to work with any you may have.

In March everyone wants the “Luck o’ the Irish!”

Send some luck everyone’s way. Let people know as your customers and friends, they don’t have to be Irish to be lucky! Mail out coupons and special offers through simple coupon booklets, catalogs or postcards. However, Specialty Mailing has some ideas to get creative with your March marketing…

Fun & Different Ideas for lucky March Marketing:

Create, print and mail special lottery tickets or scratchers to your targeted audience.  Everybody gets a thrill out of possibly hitting the jackpot. The prize doesn’t have to be money; your jackpot can be a free product or service from your company.  Free is one of Americans’ favorite words and a shoe-in to get new customers and clients in your door.

A Golden Ticket –Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory- type scheme. Print and hide “golden tickets” in certain merchandise to drive sales. Decide how many you want to print and what the special offer for each will be. Release these tickets at different times throughout the month to create suspense and active participation.

Leprechauns love their riddles. Come up with a clever riddle and every week send a clue as to the answer. Everyone that figures the answer out by a certain deadline gets a prize. Even if it’s just something as little as a 20% off coupon, you are keeping people engaged with your business and making a lasting impression.

Where’s that pot of gold at the end of the rainbow? No one knows, but you can give them “gold” tokens with your business on them. Make each token redeemable for a product or service.

Quite a few people like to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day with a beer or two (or more). A festive way of marketing would be koozies with your company logo on them. These partiers will be at public places such as the parade and pub crawls; even just a neighborhood party would be good exposure.

– Whatever you decide to do for your March marketing, Specialty Mailing has your needs covered.

A Direct Mail Marketing Campaign can fail for two reasons: A weak call to action that does not entice motivation, and poor targeting in which the mailing did not drop into the right places. If 50% of an unsuccessful mailing is due to targeting, it is imperative that the direct mail piece is mailed with the most advantageous mailing routes that will deliver them the best outcome through the mailing list that is generated.

Knowing about your best customers is a key factor in targeted direct marketing. Once you understand your customers you can use this information to build a targeted list of potential new leads. Mailing lists reach people that will buy and respond, so it is important not only to know your customer but to choose the best route to reach them.

According DMNews & Pitney Bowes, close to 40% of respondents say they have tried a new business for the first time because of information received via direct mail. Nearly 70% report renewing a relationship with a business because they received a direct mailing or promotional item. Talk about return on investment! This local awareness attracts new customers and encourages repeat business.

Ways Direct Mail Can Benefit Your Company

1. Promote an upcoming event or special.
2. Announce a grand opening of a new location.
3. Customer Retention- Send out scheduled reminders to prevent inactivity, promote loyalty, and grow sales.
4. Introduce a new and exciting product.

Call Specialty to help with your Demographic Target Mailing Lists!

Every industry has a set of principles that hold true despite years of change, innovation and disruption. Direct mail marketing is no different. Although there is an expanding array of channels, when it comes to the overall marketing mix, direct mail is still fundamental to marketing. It’s the flour to bread, the grapes to wine, and the apples to pie. It is the workhorse within direct mail marketing, and it absolutely should be the cornerstone of your marketing channel strategy. These four principles of direct mail set the foundation for any successful campaign:

1. Goals:  Know what you want to sell or what your specific goal is. Before you begin any campaign, it’s important to know what you’re trying to accomplish. Are you acquiring new clients through selling a new product or service and targeting existing clients for retention?  Your goal will determine who you send to, how you craft your message and will set your overall creative direction.

2. Target Audience: Knowing to whom you’re selling is the most important fundamental to get right. Luckily, there are many great sources to get that valuable data today. Focus on the demographics and/or behaviors that fit the type of customers you are trying to attract.

3. Design & Call To Action: Creative design is what gets the prospect to open the piece and pay attention. Focus on how the mail piece looks and a call-to-action to creates a sense of urgency to your goals.

4. Track & Analyze: One huge benefit of direct mail is that it is quantifiable. Its performance is easily tracked. By constantly testing new variables and finding new ways to tweak and improve your data, message, creative, etc. you are also improving your ability to provide better ROMI for you and your company. After all, you are not living to mail; you’re mailing to live. Use this fundamental to improve how you use direct mail as part of your overall marketing efforts.

These principles of direct mail remain relevant and stand the test of time because they work. What will change and is already changing is how they will be used across multiple channels. Today there is growing evidence that tying pairing direct mail to other channels, such as email or social media, can dramatically impact the effectiveness of those channels! It will be exciting to see how this continues to unfold in the future.

Specialty Mailing is a full service lettershop that can take care of your organization’s mailing needs. We offer the latest technology in laser printing, inkjet addressing, folding, inserting, data management, and many other aspects of direct mail. We also provide the personal service you expect. We can process projects of any size, and focus on providing the quickest turnaround possible to help you reach your customers in a timely manner. When you call, you will speak with a live person, not a recording. We are available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Specialty Mailing is dedicated to saving you money while providing superior service. For your next mailing, please call us.

“Love is in the air”… That means Love Letters are in the Air!

Jewelry, chocolate and candy are Valentine staples for your honey. -Perhaps a stuffed animal, too. But, they aren’t complete without a romantic card that exclaims your profound, undying love! Fortunately there are many written ways you can express your love and you can break the boundaries of cliché Valentine cards.  (Not that there is anything wrong with the classic card).

The most important part of a gift, card or letter on this particular holiday is the genuineness of it. Printing a sweet, tailored card is wonderful by itself. Being original and different on the delivery is just an easy way to gain some bonus brownie points.

One creative form of a love letter is to create a love note puzzle by gluing a love letter to a thin piece of cardboard and cutting it out into individual puzzle pieces, according to the Reader’s Digest article, “40+ Creative Romantic Ideas.” Mail your special someone the puzzle to put together or create suspense by mailing one piece at a time.

A second creative way is to print a custom certificate, award or ribbon for your significant other. Congratulate your wife for things such as being “The Best Wife Ever” and gal for “Best Kisser.” Acknowledge your man’s patience and understanding when you’re cranky sometimes.

Since a love letter is not something you write and send all the time, you may consider nixing the plain paper in favor of decorative stationary or paper in that person’s favorite color. Don’t forget to buy an envelope, too. Ladies, sealing the envelope with a kiss in your favorite lipstick is a great finishing touch (S.W.A.K.).

Writing these letters and cards by hand is the most personal way. If you must type it, choose a romantic font. Nobody wants a love letter in Comic Sans or boring New Times Roman.

Keep in mind that Valentine’s Day isn’t just for you lovers. Tell other special people in your life how much you love them. Do you have a younger sister who adores you? An older brother that always watches your back? A best friend who knows everything about you? The best mom and/or dad ever? Send them your love.

 

 

 

 

 

Inspiration for all: http://www.thedatereport.com/dating/love/the-10-best-love-letters-ever-written/

Extra Help for Men: http://www.artofmanliness.com/2009/06/27/30-days-to-a-better-man-day-28-write-a-love-letter/

“You have to spend money to make money.”

Mailing and printing services are an imperative company expense that is easy to overlook when creating your fiscal calendar for the year. Why are these services essential to your business’ success? Because, they’re great MARKETING tools! In an earlier blog we wrote (Direct Mail vs E-mail), we talked about how direct mail still makes a huge impact in marketing and that you can’t just rely on email and internet networking. Social Media can only go so far.

And, guess what? Ads that you run in newspapers, magazines, direct mail campaigns, brochures, flyers, car wraps, catalogs, give-away items like pens aren’t free as well as production costs.

How do you make a marketing budget for mailing and printing for a WHOLE year?

The first step is to review 2015. How did you do managing your finances in 2015? Hopefully you did well, but there is always room for improvement. If something didn’t really work for you, cut out that cost and focus on something that did. If you really like sending brochures, but car wraps were a bust – cut car wraps out and spend more money on brochures. Also, if something like catalogs are really working for you, invest more money and increase the margin of success. Shift the money around as needed.

You do not have to set an exact monetary amount like $1,000 for marketing. A popular method that works especially well for a smaller business is to use a percentage of your sales towards marketing. On average, 39% of small businesses use about three to six percent of sales on marketing and 40% less. Newer businesses tend to have to calculate a higher percentage into their budget because they haven’t established a name, brand or audience yet.

Free template and downloads: http://quickbooks.intuit.com/r/budgeting/create-marketing-budget

Are you ready for New Year’s Eve? Make the end of 2015 memorable.

Remind your clients and customers what a great year you had in 2015 so they look forward to sharing 2016 with you.

One option is to make a collage or flipbook of Success Stories and Testimonials by clients from the year 2015. Specialty Mailing can also print high quality images if you want to highlight photos of happy customers with your products or their testaments (with their permission, of course). You can even get quotes from happy customers about how they’re looking forward to shopping with or obtaining services from you in 2016. This establishes a sense of trust and security since these people have made a commitment to your company. Sharing success stories and testimonials from your clients is also a humble way to brag about how great your company is.

Secondly, a great sales method for New Year’s Eve used by many corporations is to offer and promote “close out deals” or “end of the year specials.”  You can send coupons to everyone and/or VIP discounts to preferred customers with these limited end of the year specials. It’s also a great opportunity to clean out the stock or services you don’t want to carry into the next year.  Consumers rush to grab things that are limited and may not be available to them in the future.

The third option could be to throw a shindig! Open “houses” with snacks and a chance for networking will entice visitors to your humble abode. It’s a win-win situation for everyone.  Send your party invitations with custom postcards that have your logo on it. You could print some VIP passes or tickets to send as well. People will have to hang on to those and be reminded of your company and it also gives them a little souvenir to keep. Things like VIP passes and tickets make people feel special and elite.

Basically, shower your customers and clients with how positive the year 2015 was and show how special they are so that they roll into 2016 with continued patronage.

For many of us, writing a letter to Santa was the first letter we ever wrote as children. Christmas is a pivotal time in a kid’s life because Santa knows if you’ve been naughty or nice. Good kids get rewarded with things they want. I bet you’ve been good this year. But, how will Santa know what good kids want unless they write him? How can you make sure you stand out from the crowd and he gives you that ultimate present you’ve been eyeing all year?

Besides exemplary behavior, you can add a little pizazz and pop of color to your letter.  Pick out unique stationary, festive envelopes and top them off with holiday stamps. An eye-catching piece of mail won’t be lost or forgotten by Santa.  A little elf told me he appreciates the effort. You can also ask Santa few questions about Mrs. Claus, the reindeer or the North Pole and he just may reply!

Make sure Santa gets your letters in time. As well as other loved ones, such as family and friends, of course. Shipping Guidelines & Deadlines:

Holiday cards and packages going to military addresses in the Middle East, Iraq, Afghanistan and all other military addresses is Thursday, Dec. 10. The U.S. Postal Service offers a $2 discount on its largest priority mail flat rate boxes for military mail.

For other international destinations, mail-by dates started Tuesday and run through Dec. 11 depending on the destination. Global Express Guaranteed service is available through Dec. 19 for most countries. Suggested mail-by dates for cards and packages destined for U.S. addresses are Dec. 15 for standard post, Dec. 19 for first-class mail, Dec. 21 for priority mail and Dec. 23 for priority mail express. More information is available online at usps.com/holiday.

Dec. 18 is the last day to ship UPS 3 Day Select packages to be delivered before Christmas Day. The last day for FedEx Ground delivery is Dec. 16. Both companies offer two-day and next day air shipping services.

Unless your name is Scrooge, you probably want to spread holiday cheer!

Like the old saying goes, “Out of the mouths of babes”. Nobody writes a funnier letter to Santa than a kid does. For a good laugh, check out the various hilarious letters on these sites:

Some Ecards

List25

Little Things

Huffington Post

Thanksgiving is around the corner. While it’s always important to show your clients and customers gratitude for their patronage to your business, Thanksgiving is always a great excuse to go a little over the top. You can simply send them some form of card-postcard, greeting card, etc.- telling them that you’re grateful for them and just wishing them a wonderful holiday.

OR, you can step it up a notch. You can implement a great marketing strategy to really show you appreciate your clients and customers. Why not take a chance to say “THANK YOU” with a special coupon or discount for being so great? Make them feel special and emphasize this coupon or discount is specifically for them.

It’s not imperative that they receive your thanks by Thanksgiving, but rather that you send it and it’s postmarked before Thanksgiving so the message is sincere. You don’t want them to think it was an afterthought on your part or just a marketing scheme. While it boosts your sales and services and that’s a benefit of these actions, you really are thankful for these people. You wouldn’t be anywhere or successful without them!

The designs can be intricate or simple. For a minimalistic approach, top off your mail with custom Thanksgiving stamps. A touch of holiday spirit goes a long way.

 

Thanksgiving also paves the way for Black Friday. Millions of companies participate in Black Friday and offer special products and deals. Consumers get in a frenzy over participating in one of the (THE?) biggest shopping days of the year.  It also creates a sense of urgency that Christmas is around the corner and this is the BEST time to grab those Christmas presents for your loved ones. Why not be one of those companies and cater to clients and customers.  They’re expecting it.