Many marketing efforts have moved to digital platforms, where every microscopic movement is trackable and sometimes even recorded for future playback. Print communications were traditionally more difficult to track. Not anymore. If you are considering using a printed mailer or postcard as part of your marketing efforts, there are ways to track the engagement of the recipients.
Businesses are still utilizing print campaigns to support their digital efforts and trackability is more important than ever. The total cost to design, print, and mail a postcard or paper promotion will very likely be higher than delivering a message digitally. But the ideas below can help boost engagement and also help track the effectiveness of your next printed mailer or postcard.
Exchange Mailer or Postcard for a Perk
Exchanging your printed mailer or postcard for a free item, a discount, or to gain access to special benefits is a fantastic way to track engagement. Codes can easily be incorporated into the printed item so it can be utilized at a retail location, online, or via phone call. For example, my wife recently used a postcard with a discount code from a local eatery when we picked up food to go.
Request Action on Social Media
With fewer companies sending printed mail to houses and businesses, it’s easier than ever to stand out. Clever and strategically thought-out marketing efforts, teamed up with an intelligent list and data generation, will get you closer to converting a recipient to a customer or advocate. By persuading a person to share your message on social media you can introduce your brand to many more people, as well. When you think about it, odds are that your target person has friends who are similar to them—gaining your company valuable exposure. For example, we designed a coupon for Mulberry House Restaurant customers to “enjoy a scone on us” for sharing a photo, taking an image, or checking in on social media.
Offer Code
Sending a printed mailer or postcard with an offer code is nothing new. But utilizing the offer code to track customers’ behavior will help you to better cater offers to them that can be utilized between print and digital marketing efforts. A CRM (customer relationship management) system such as Zoho, Hubspot, or Salesforce can help track and segment your list(s) into relevant groups. This way, your offers can be targeted in a way that makes the most sense to the recipient—resulting in better conversion rates and ROI.
Unique URL
PURLs (personalized URL) have been around for some time. Have you ever seen a marketing promotion where it tells you to go to XYZ.com/YOUR-NAME? This is a PURL. A database is utilized to render a webpage that is catered exactly to you. In many cases, you can utilize this same data to personalize the printed mailer or postcard. For example, your favorite store knows you purchased several red shirts in the past. The unique URL can include “RED” in it as well as your name—and the postcard can include the newest red shirt. If the PURL is utilized, it is tracked and you will know the exact engagement level of the recipient.
The power of printed mailers and postcards
Print can still be a powerful tool to utilize in marketing. It can be effective especially when you team it up with digital marketing efforts. Tracking engagement of your next print campaign can start happening before you know it. With a little effort, trackability will be worth the investment.
If you’d like to have Trillion create a special campaign for your next marketing effort, give us a call at 908.219.4703 or just use our handy contact form. We can design the next tangible marketing piece your business delivers as a reminder for why your product or service is so fantastic.
