Get Cost-Efficient With Better Direct Mail Targeting
Direct mail is an effective marketing tool capable of driving engagement, conversions, and brand loyalty. This is especially true for small businesses who have seen the ROI on digital advertising plummet since Apple changed iOS privacy settings. Despite (or maybe because of) the ubiquity of digital marketing, direct mail continues to make a lasting impact on prospects and a positive contribution to the bottom line. But to get the most out of your direct mail, you first have to ask yourself who you are trying to reach.
Targeting your data can increase the efficiency and effectiveness of your direct mail campaigns. Without targeting, you will waste time, money, and resources mailing to the wrong people. This is not just a possibility, it’s a certainty.
By being more selective, you can send direct mail to a smaller, more focused audience, reducing your printing and postage costs. You can also tailor your direct mail to match the interests, preferences, and needs of your specific audience segments. Relevance and personalization lead to higher response rates. And higher response rates mean you can achieve your marketing goals with a smaller number of mailings (i.e., more cost savings).
Once you start targeting your data and pulling out only the best segments for direct mail, you’ll find that your budget stretches further and your response rate improves. Here are four ways to start segmenting your data to reach your target audience.
Demographic Targeting
Demographic targeting uses data like age, gender, income, education, and occupation to help you reach your ideal customer. This type of targeting works well if you have a defined persona you can model your segment after. For example, if you are promoting a luxury product, you might target individuals with higher income levels. In the B2B world, you can use company or job title to help you reach the right stakeholders.
Geographic Targeting
With geographic targeting, it’s all about location, location, location! You can use recipient location information to target people in a specific city, state, or zip code. Every Door Direct Mail (EDDM) is one way to use geographic targeting to reach all of the households in a zip code or set of zip codes. This is a great targeting option if you’re a local business or promoting an event.
Psychographic Targeting
Psychographic targeting uses info on a recipient’s personality, values, interests, and lifestyle to create a more personalized and relevant marketing message. For example, you might market your newest eco-friendly product to people who are passionate about the environment. You can gather the data needed for psychographic targeting through surveys, interviews, social media listening, online behavior analysis, and customer segmentation models. Just be careful not to run afoul of any data or privacy regulations.
Behavioral Targeting
Behavioral targeting is similar to psychographic targeting but differs in one key way: it relies on inferring interests and motivations based on specific behaviors rather than volunteered information. Using data on purchase history, browsing behavior, or content engagement, you can make assumptions and target your direct mail accordingly. For example, if a prospect downloads your ebook, you might send them a direct mail follow-up with related content, testimonials, and an offer of your services. If you’ve ever been looking at a product online and then received a postcard a week later featuring that same product, that’s not a coincidence—it’s behavioral targeting.
Automate your direct mail with Banjo
Targeting your data is an essential part of a successful direct mail campaign. By using different types of targeting, you can ensure that your direct mail pieces are reaching the right people and resonating with their needs and interests. To do this effectively, you need accurate and up-to-date data that captures the relevant information about your target audience. By using the right tools and data, you can achieve better results and drive higher response rates for your direct mail campaigns.
Looking for a way to automate your newly targeted direct mail? Our automation platform, Banjo, helps you take advantage of direct mail’s stellar ROI without having to manage the time-consuming, everyday hassle of running manual campaigns. Drop us a line to learn how Banjo can help you start sending targeted, relevant direct mail.