Ideas and Examples of Postcard Marketing Campaign

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Successful Postcard Marketing Ideas to Help You Get Started

Companies are always thinking of new marketing strategies to increase their exposure and push up sales. And what better than the traditional and most effective direct mail marketing channel?

Though digital marketing may seem prevalent in the marketing industry, direct mail is still more dominant. Renowned companies like Google prefer sending direct mail as a crucial part of their marketing programs.

However, if you are not convinced yet and want to get your hands on some more facts, find the statistics below to clear your doubts:

• 92% of all the door drops sent to Australian households are read.
• 40% of customers bought something in the last three months after receiving a direct mail item.

Out of all the direct mail marketing items, postcards are the most effective and cost-saving ones available around. They help you talk about your product or service in brief and grab the attention of your target audience.

Postcard marketing is a form of direct mail marketing that helps you get a high ROI at very reasonable costs. Printing and mailing postcards also takes comparatively less time than letters and other items.

Therefore, postcard direct mail marketing is effective, cost-saving, and result-bearing, making it one of the best direct mailing strategies.

Keep reading below to know the postcard marketing secrets and make the most of your campaigns.

Why Does Postcard Marketing Work So Well?

Postcards are very small and compact, which is why people wonder how they could make an impact. Here’s how:

• Postcards make people feel special. In a study, 57% of respondents said that postcard direct marketing makes them feel valued. Thus, postcards are great for interacting with people and delivering your marketing messages.
• They are attention-grabbing. Well-designed postcards with attractive headlines are sure to turn heads.
• Postcards have high read rates. Since they don’t need envelopes, recipients can read the message in one flip. So, you don’t have to worry about your mail being thrown away without being read.
• In this digital world, postcards offer a nostalgic effect and emotional value. They also set aside your company from the competition.
• Direct marketing postcards are long-lasting. Recipients are likely to save your postcards for later use if you add a special offer or coupon.

Use Cases of Postcard Marketing Campaigns

There are many postcard campaign examples that you can use for your brand. Some of the best use cases or examples are:

Convince Customers to Complete Checkouts

A lot of people add things to their shopping carts only to abandon and forget them. Such abandoned carts can affect your conversion ratios negatively.

But, you can turn things around and motivate these customers to complete their checkouts.

The best way to do that is to send them postcards with a discount offer. You may send a code that helps customers get a 5% discount on checkout. Such small incentives can help you reduce cart abandonment rates tremendously.

Cross-Sell New Products to Customers

It is always a great idea to cross-sell to your already existing customers. They are already aware of your brand and its offerings. So, there are more chances that they might look into buying other products or services from you.

Postcard marketing can help you inform your customers about such new offerings quickly.

Grows the Leads in Your Pipeline

You can use one-time postcard marketing campaigns to attract new customers or grow your leads list. Once you get enough responses, you can follow up with the respondents and keep your sales cycle running for a few months.

Conduct Recurring Campaigns

Recurring campaigns can help you stay fresh in the minds of your target audience.

Thus, you can conduct recurring postcard marketing campaigns spread throughout the year. But, take care to not spam your prospects’ mailboxes with continuous mailing. Try starting with two to four mailing campaigns per year.

Re-Establish Connections With Old Customers

Send “we miss you” postcards to customers who haven’t bought in a while. It is crucial to keep reminding them of your brand every once in a while.

Postcard marketing is an excellent strategy to win back old customers.

Introduce Referral Programs

Referral programs are one of the most effective ways to grow your connections. You can motivate your customers to refer your brand to their friends and family in exchange for something.

For example, one of the best real estate marketing postcard ideas is to ask your clients to bring in other clients. Add a small bonus to your postcards to motivate your clients to do so.

Tips to Conduct the Most Effective Postcard Marketing Campaigns

You can get productive results from both B2C and B2B direct marketing campaigns. Find below a list of postcard marketing tips to help you do it right:

Craft Strong and Upfront Headlines

Craft headlines that summarize your message in one line. They should intrigue the reader and convince them to read the rest of the copy.

Try to keep your headline as upfront as possible to make it easy for the readers to understand your intent.

You can also use actionable headlines that reinstate your call to action, like:

Feed a child today by donating $10.

Order any two dishes and get the third one free.

Add a Compelling Call to Action

What do you need your audience to do after receiving the postcard? Do they need to book an appointment? Visit a landing page? Walk into their nearest store?

Before sending out your real estate marketing postcards, make sure you have a clear CTA. Also, take care that you are ready to handle the customer responses.

Here are some examples you can refer to:

Call us now and book your seats.

Download our app today and sign up to get free fitness tips.

Visit the link below to access our products and services online.

Scan the QR code to see our today’s specials.

Use Relevant Images

If you go through some samples of marketing postcards, you will notice that they all have big, bright images.

These images help make the postcards eye-catching and describe the purpose of the mailing.

For example, real estate marketing postcards templates often have images of happy people inside a house. Or dental marketing postcards have pictures of a dentist helping a patient fix his smile.

This way, you can include relevant images as well and make your message pop. Make sure to use high-resolution pictures with bright colours.

Incentivise Your Postcard Recipients

Keep yourself in the place of your prospects and think about a compelling offer that can make you take action.

What do your prospects want? How can you solve their problems?

Once you get an answer, go ahead and introduce an exciting offer—for example:

Buy 1 Get 2 Free

Visit our website to unlock 100 free points

Get yourself a 20% discount on our latest Gold Spa

Such small incentives can boost your response rates tremendously.

Don’t Forget to Mention Your Contact Details

Your postcards for business marketing should not only have your brand name and logo but also your contact information.

The best marketing postcards have the company’s phone number and email address at the bottom. If possible, also add your office address as it makes your company look more credible.

Pay Attention to Benefits More Than Features

Some marketing postcard examples may portray a lot of features. But, people don’t like reading a long list of technical features on a postcard. Instead, they would like to know the benefits the product or service has to offer.

For example, people buy a watch to see the time, not because it has a mainspring.

Hence, focus on talking about benefits. You can list them in bullet points to make them easy to read.

Avoid Giving Away Too Much Information

Marketing postcard sizes can range from small to oversized, but your messages should always be short.

Try adding short sentences and paragraphs. Include some concise points, and ask the recipients to visit your website or offline store to get more information.

If you overwhelm the readers with a lot of details, they might not complete the CTA.

Track Campaign Performance

Do postcards work for marketing? We have already discussed above that postcards are one of the best forms of direct mail marketing. But why not try it yourself and see the results?

For doing that, you should have a sound tracking mechanism in place. Below are some trackable features that you can incorporate into your campaigns:

• Dedicated phone numbers
• QR codes
• Personalised URLs
• Coupon codes, etc.

You can use these features to record all engagement and draft your postcard marketing statistics. These can help you plan better campaigns in the future.

Update Your Mailing Lists

In the year 2019-20, about 368,700 Australians moved interstate. Thus, mailing addresses change rapidly, making it crucial to update your lists from time to time.

To conduct a successful postcard marketing campaign, make sure that you use only valid postal addresses. This way, your postcards will reach the correct recipients, and you won’t have to deal with returned mail.

Online postcard marketing companies like PostGrid can help you clean your mailing lists and conduct fruitful campaigns.

Personalise Every Postcard

Generic postcards may be helpful to some extent, but a modern marketing strategy demands personalisation. Your recipients are likely to pay more attention to personalised postcards as compared to generic ones.

It can be as simple as adding someone’s first name to your marketing postcard design. Personalisation makes your postcards personal and relatable—helping you convince your audience to respond to them.

Include Customer Testimonials

Before buying something, would you like to hear about it from the brand itself or its customers? Naturally, we are more likely to trust customer reviews and real-life examples. The same goes for direct mail campaigns.

Including customer testimonials in your postcard copy can help you increase its credibility. You may also include links to video reviews so that the recipients can visit your page online and get more information.

Combine Postcard Marketing With Digital Marketing Channels

Today, it is not enough to stick with only one marketing channel. Therefore, most brands combine their online and offline marketing channels to get the most out of their campaigns.

You can also combine your real estate postcard marketing campaigns with social media, email marketing, and other online campaigns. This way, you can connect with more people at the same time and push up engagement levels.

But, make sure that your marketing messages, offers, and designs are consistent on all channels.

Leave Adequate White Space

Always leave adequate spaces in between words and designs on your postcards. Don’t overcrowd your best marketing postcard designs with tons of elements. Instead, make them well-spread and easy to understand.

Also, leaving enough white space helps you drive more attention to your CTA and offers.

Get Creative

How to design a postcard for marketing? Well, first draft your copy and then create an artwork that complements it. Take care to add something to your design that your audience has never seen before.

One of the most eye-catching postcard ideas is to put your thinking caps on and get a little more creative. You may use calligraphy to make your words stand out or use various shapes and colours. The point is to spice up your artwork and make it impressive for your recipients.

PostGrid’s postcard API has several marketing postcard templates that you can use. They can help you create your own artwork in only a few minutes. Apart from postcard design, they also help you automate the entire postcard marketing campaign. Thus, you can save time, effort, and money, and still conduct successful postcard mailings.

Factors to Consider While Conducting Postcard Marketing Campaigns

Before conducting a campaign, you need to decide on a lot of factors like:

Campaign Objectives and Target Audience

The first step is identifying the objectives of your postcard marketing campaign. What do you want to achieve from this campaign? Some possible campaign goals include:

• Introducing new products and services
• Generating highly targeted and fresh leads
• Spreading brand awareness
• Re-engaging existing customers
• Increasing sales with discounts and other offers, etc.

It is best to have more specific goals, like convincing 50 customers to buy again or generating an ROI of $5,000.

To achieve such goals, you also need to choose your target audience wisely. Consider your current buyer persona. Below are some geo-demographics you can use to compile new mailing lists:

• Age
• Gender
• Marital status
• Annual income
• Location
• Number of children (if any)
• Job title (in case of B2B marketing)
• Buying habits
• Interests and preferences, etc.

Postcard marketing services like PostGrid can help you segment your mailing lists according to the above factors.

Postcard Marketing Campaign Costs

It is advisable to set a budget and estimate an ROI before the campaign. Please note that your postcard marketing costs depend on several factors like:

• Design
• Copywriting
• Marketing postcard sizes
• Choice of mailing list
• Printing
• Mailing

If you handle your postcard design and copywriting yourself, you can avoid spending on them. Similarly, using house mailing lists instead of renting them can help you save a lot.

Furthermore, postcard sizes can affect your budget significantly. Small-sized postcards are very cost-effective. Yet, some companies use expensive oversized postcards to make a better impression on their audience. So, you can control your campaign costs as per your needs.

Marketing Postcard Printing and Mailing

As said above, printing and mailing postcards have a significant impact on your budget. Let’s see how.

The type of printing options you select can define your campaign success. For example, suppose you print low-quality postcards on lightweight paper stock. The postal services would not allow you to mail such postcards without an envelope. In this case, you would spend more on printing envelopes. At the same time, your audience may not like these lightweight postcards and toss them out instantly.

Therefore, choose your paper stock, postcard size, and printing quality carefully. Consider the points below:

• Print your postcards on heavy and thick paper stocks.
• Opt for a glossy coating to make your postcards eye-catching.
• Consider printing oversized postcards if your budget can accommodate the expense.
• Select a vendor that offers variable data printing at no extra costs.
• If you want to print a large number of postcards, select a printer that offers bulk discounts.

Moving on to the mailing part, take care that your postcards reach their destination on time. Australia Post offers several mailing classes for you to select from, depending on your campaign timeframe.

PostGrid’s print and mail API can help you send your postcards via an ideal mailing option. This way, you don’t need to stress over the postage costs, mailing speed, etc., as PostGrid can handle it all on your behalf.

The Final Word

PostGrid can help you streamline your postcard marketing activities and get the most out of your campaigns. Some of the things our postcard API offers are:

• Pre-built postcard marketing templates
• Building targeted mailing lists
• Printing and mailing postcards
• 2-business day SLA
• Easy-to-use dashboard
• Flexible user settings
• Campaign insights and reports, etc.

Postcard marketing is a very flexible and affordable way to get new leads. If done right, you can achieve all your marketing objectives easily.

Furthermore, PostGrid makes it easier for you by assisting you in all the tasks. To unlock all our features and start with your postcard marketing activities, click here.

The post Ideas and Examples of Postcard Marketing Campaign appeared first on PostGrid.

source https://www.postgrid.com.au/postcard-marketing-guide/

Australia Address Format

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Australia Post Address Formats

Did you know that the address format you use to send postal mail can change from country to country? The chances are that you have already noticed this if you have ever tried sending an international postal mail.

The address format used in Australia is slightly different from the standard address format in other countries. In Australia, the standard address format is defined by Australia Post, the country’s official postal service provider.

Similarly, the standard address format for other countries is defined by their respective official postal service provider. For example, the USPS determines the standard address format for locations inside the US, Canada Post for Canada, and more.

The standard Australia address format is essential for ensuring the punctual delivery of your direct mail. Therefore, any business that sends direct mail to their customer, prospects, or partners in Australia must take the time to learn the Australia address format.

Companies often underestimate the role of postal address format. As a result, the business communication through direct mail for such companies is often not optimized enough. Here, we are going to help you understand the significance of postal address format and how it can optimize your business communication.

But, more importantly, we are going to teach you how to correctly write an address according to the standards specified by Australia Post. And, perhaps, the best place to start to understand the Australia address format is to examine an example.

Australia Address Example

What you see below is an example of the Australia address format. If you are familiar with US addresses, you know that the standard Australian address format is pretty similar to the US. The most noticeable similarity between both addresses is that the city name, state, and postal code all appear on one line.

Mrs McGonagall
92 McPherson Road
GREAT SOUTHERN, VIC, 3685
AUSTRALIA

Now with the example above, it should be relatively easy for you to understand and write Australia address format when sending letters, postcards, invoices, etc. However, it is worth noting that the address format, even inside Australia, can sometimes vary. For example, the PO Box addresses are not like regular addresses. Hence, their form is also slightly different from the regular one.

Understanding Australia Post Address Format

From the example above, it should be easy for you to get a general idea of the address format in Australia. Then, we will analyze the Australia Address Format deeper to get a better understanding of the address format.

Australia Address Format For Regular Address

There are mainly two types of addresses in Australia. One is the regular address that all of us are familiar with, and the other is the PO Box address.

The latter is not as popular as the regular address as it is not that widely used. However, given below are some guidelines you can use for writing regular Australia address format.

Always Start With The Name of The Business/Person.

Start with the addressee’s name (or business name) as with any other address format. The beginning of the address format is the one thing that is common for almost all address formats around the world.

Follow The Name With Street Address.

According to the standard address format, you should write the street address below the business or person’s name.

In Case The Destination Is An Apartment Address.

If you are dealing with an apartment address, write the apartment number before the street number. When you do this, one thing to remember is to separate the two with a dash (/).

Example: 14/08 Albus St

Follow The Street Address With City, State, And Postal Code.

The Australia address format starts to look a lot like the US address format here. After writing the street address, you must write the city, state, and postal code.

The address format at this portion resembles the US address format because we use the abbreviated form of the state name.

The following table shows the abbreviations of all the Australian states. You should probably save this table for later as it can come in very handy for your direct mail operations.

State Or Territory Name	Abbreviation
Australian Capital Territory	ACT
New South Wales	NSW
Northern Territory	NT
South Australia	SA
Tasmania	TAS
Victoria	VIC
Western Australia	WA
Queensland	QLD

Add “Australia” On The Last Line

The last line of the standard address format is just as predictable as the first line. You must add the country name on the last line of the address, which in this case is Australia.

Adding the destination’s country name is also a common practice in almost every standard address format. However, it is not strictly necessary if the mail you are sending is a domestic one.

Australia PO Box Letter Address Format

The address format for PO Box addresses in Australia is not the same as the address format for regular mail. However, the difference between the two formats is not easily noticeable. In fact, to the untrained eye, the two formats will seem identical.

The only difference between the PO Box address format and the regular address format is that the former includes a PO Box number. Hence, it goes for all types of mailers you send to an Australian PO Box address, including parcels, packages, and letters.

The following example will help you better understand the PO Box address format in Australia.

Mrs McGonagall
PO Box 69
GREAT SOUTHERN, VIC, 3685
AUSTRALIA

How To Correctly Write An Australian Address On Your Direct Mail

You may have noticed that we write the address on a specific portion of the envelope. Usually, we write the address on the bottom right-hand corner of the envelope and follow a similar format when writing addresses on direct mail you send to Australia.

The following diagram will help you get a more comprehensive picture of how you can write an Australian address.

As you can see in the image above, you can divide the front of the direct mail envelope into four zones. They are:

• Service Zone
• Postage Zone
• Address Zone
• Clear Zone

1. Service Zone

The service zone is where you can provide the advertisements or your return address. Most companies choose to provide the return address in the service zone. However, it is not uncommon to see advertisements in the service zone. Some even use it to pitch a marketing offer.

2. Postage Zone

As you may have already guessed from the name, this is the part of the envelope where you stick the postage stamp. The postage rate for sending direct mail can vary depending on the type of postal service, distance, etc. Therefore, the number or value of postage stamps can also vary.

3. Address Zone

The address zone is where you can provide the address of the recipient. Make sure that you write your address on the bottom right-hand corner of the envelope. However, it would be best if you also remember to keep a 15mm distance from the edge of the envelope on the corners.

4. Clear Zone

A small portion of the envelope goes along the bottom right corner, which is called the clear zone. The clear zone slightly moves the address zone from the corner. Unfortunately, many people often forget about the clear zone, and it might end up slowing down the processing of the direct mail.

Tips You Can Use While Addressing Envelopes

There are a couple of things you can do to ensure faster processing of your direct mail by Australia Post. In this section, we will list some helpful tips that help you provide fast and accurate delivery of your direct mail via Australia Post.

Ensure The Accuracy Of The Postcode

Postcode is perhaps the most significant part of the full address. An accurate postcode allows Australia Post to sort and deliver your direct mail quickly. Hence, you should make sure that the postcode is valid. You can use software solutions such as PostGrid to validate the postcodes.

Use Quality Printers And Dark Ink

The next thing you need to do is make sure that you use quality printers. Use dark ink to enhance the readability of the mailer, including the address. Black on white is usually the preferred choice for business communication letters. Try not to use colours like red, yellow or orange for the ink.

Ensure Symmetric Address Lines

Sometimes the address lines on the envelope tend to indent and stagger. Thus, it is not a desirable address format. Hence, maintain some form of symmetricity when writing the address.

Do Not Underline Any Words

Some people have a habit of underlining important parts of a text, and they tend to do the same on direct mail addresses. However, this is not a desirable action as far as Australia Post is concerned. Therefore, you should not underline any words in the postal address.

Always Include a Return Address

When writing a letter, especially for business communication/marketing, you should always include a return address. It is essential to have a return address. The returned mail will give you valuable insights, including undeliverable addresses.

Use Printed Envelopes

Use printed envelopes instead of handwritten ones because they have better readability. Printed envelopes also have a faster processing time than handwritten ones.

Use PostGrid As Your Automated Direct Mail Solution

PostGrid is an automated direct mail solution that enables you to automate your direct mail process fully. In addition, it can standardize and validate your postal address database. PostGrid’s system uses top-quality printers and ensures that your direct mail addresses are printed in the standard Australia address format.

Conclusion

To ensure fast and accurate delivery of your mail sent to addresses inside Australia, you must follow the Australia address format. It means that you have to ensure that the address you print or write on your envelopes needs to be according to the standards set by Australia Post.

However, it is easier said than done, especially if you send direct mail in bulk. The best solution to ensure a valid address format for your direct mail is using a software solution like PostGrid. PostGrid is an advanced direct mail automation tool that can provide accurate printing and mailing of your direct mail.

With an advanced solution like PostGrid, you can ensure the accuracy of the address format and validate their deliverability. Every business that uses direct mail to communicate effectively should employ PostGrid to optimize its direct mail process.

The post Australia Address Format appeared first on PostGrid.

source https://www.postgrid.com.au/australia-address-format/

What is a PO Box?

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Why You Must Have a PO Box Address For Your Business

Privacy is important to all of us. We don’t want strangers snooping around our personal or professional lives. But, to some people privacy is vital and they don’t like giving up their address even for receiving postal deliveries. Also, the chances are that you know at least one person who is particularly careful about keeping their private life private.

PO Boxes are a perfect fit for such people. It is also ideal for people who want to maintain a different address to receive their personal or business mail. Today, we will take you through everything you need to know about PO Boxes along with various aspects that make PO Boxes special.

The applicational use of PO Boxes may vary depending on what you intend to use them for. Understanding its unique characteristics and advantages will help you figure out how to use it for your business/personal use.

So, let’s get straight into it.

What is a PO Box?

PO Box or Post Office box is literally a box inside a post office, and even though this is an oversimplification it is still true. But, if we were to define a PO Box, we would say that a PO Box is a lockable mailbox inside a post office.

You may also know PO Box by the name Postal Box. Traditionally, PO Boxes were used by people who lived in remote areas where there were no postal services available. Traditionally PO Boxes were a way for people who live in remote areas without direct mail delivery to access the postal mail services. However, postal services like Australia Post have grown by leaps and bounds over the years.

There are very few areas that still require Post Office Box services. So then, why are PO Boxes still relevant when almost every part of the country can easily access the postal mail service? Why are we still talking about it? Because these days, PO Boxes serve a different purpose altogether. A few years ago, people used PO Boxes out of necessity, and now they are used for their convenience.

What Are Some of The Advantages of Using a PO Box?

PO Boxes have a lot more to offer you than what you might think they can. The advantages offered by PO Boxes are so diverse that they can appeal to almost everyone. It means the PO Boxes can be used for personal as well as professional needs. Consider the following advantages of using a PO Box. You will see why and how it is perfect for numerous mail requirements.

Get a Permanent Address

Post Office Boxes serve as a permanent address for your business or personal postal mail. So, even if you are homeless, you can still have an address for yourself. In other words, a PO Box address can be very useful for startups and businesses that don’t have an office address. Also, a PO Box address can go a long way in creating your own “Amazon” story.

Protect The Privacy of Your Home/Personal Address

Maybe the most significant advantage of a post office box is its ability to protect your privacy. You can safely avoid disclosing your home/personal address by using a PO Box address. This way, small businesses can save the embarrassment of using the home address for their business.

Much More Secure Than Regular Mailers

If your main concern about direct mail is security, then a PO Box address is the best solution for you. The PO Box is probably the most secure way to receive your direct mail. It is located inside a post office building and they are usually protected by various security measures.

The post office building is constantly monitored via CCTVs and guards, so talking about safety and security- Well, it doesn’t get much better than this.

Additional Security of a Locked Mailbox

Let us now assume that your mailer is a super-secret document like the recipe for Coca-Cola. You would imagine the Coca-cola recipe to be kept in a safe facility, much like the post office in our case. The final element that is missing from this scenario is a massive safe where they keep the recipe. Although the humble locked mailbox is nothing close to a ridiculously large safe, both serve the same purpose.

Get Your Mail And Packages Delivered Faster

The Post Office boxes are located right inside the post office and every mailer first arrives at the post office. Therefore, the PO Box mailers are always delivered before a delivery person takes charge of their respective mailers. You can get your mail and packages faster than regular mail.

What Are The Disadvantages of Using a PO Box?

Post Office Boxes have a lot of advantages, as we have just discussed above. However, it is far from perfect, and it has its own set of disadvantages as well. PO Boxes can also be used as an emergency measure for new startups that are yet to set up a working space. However, it is best suited for personal use rather than for business purposes. Some of the disadvantages of using a PO Box address for your business are as follows:

• Lacks a professional business image.
• LLCs and Corporations require a physical street address for the registered agent, and PO Boxes are unacceptable.
• Post Office Boxes can receive mail only from the select mail carriers. Third-party postal service providers may not deliver to PO Box addresses.
• PO Boxes run the risk of getting filled, and businesses would have to stay on top of their mail to avoid an overfill.
• Australia Post sets the package aside if a package has dimensions bigger than what the PO Box can fit.
• It is relatively expensive to forward mail and parcels from a PO Box as extra charges may be applicable.
• You have to physically travel to the post office to get your mail and packages.

5 Reasons to Consider Using a Post Office Box Address For Your Business

There are several challenges and disadvantages involved in businesses using Post Office Box addresses. But, there are some compelling reasons for companies to consider using PO Boxes. And, they are as follows.

1. Superior Mail Security

As mentioned before, the mail one sends to a PO Box address has superior security to one sent to a house or business address. This is because the PO Boxes are located inside the post offices. Additionally, these post Boxes are locked, and you can’t access the mailers inside without the right key or lock combination.

Some specific post offices even offer 24/7 lobby access so you can pick up your mailers whenever you need them. It means that your mail is securely stored and easily accessible using a PO Box address. In comparison, your home mailbox is accessible for anyone to open and read.

2. Protect Your Real Address

For someone who doesn’t want to reveal their home or office address to others, the PO Box could be a perfect option. Every post box has a unique postal address which also contains the PO Box number. You can give the PO Box address to anyone without revealing your actual address.

It also means that you can use the PO Box address to keep your work and personal lives separate. For example, you could give the Post Office Box address to all your work-related contacts and physical address for personal matters. This way, you can keep on receiving your mail at your home address while enjoying privacy.

3. Faster Deliveries

No other type of address can get mail delivered faster than a PO Box address. Why? Because every mail has to first go through the post office even if the mailer is a premium or express class type.

With a Post Office Box address, you no longer have to wait around for the delivery person. Also, you don’t have to worry about not being present at your home or office when Australia Post makes the delivery. So, PO Boxes can be highly convenient specifically for mailers that require same-day mail-out.

4. Affordable Pricing

Australia Post offers affordable pricing for their PO Box service, and they even offer different sizes for the PO Boxes. You can lease a PO Box for up to 1 year and renew it annually if needed. All you have to do is visit your nearest post office and check the availability along with the prices. Remember that the price may vary according to the PO Box sizes in Australia.

The annual fee can range anywhere from $46 to $1027 depending on the PO Box size, its location, and eligibility for a reduced price. It is worth noting that Australia Post charges an establishment fee of $20 for new leases. And also offers pro-rata pricing for their PO Box services.

5. Post Office Box Rewards

Another attractive aspect of using Australia Post’s PO Boxes is that they offer an attractive reward program. You can get discounts on leading brands like Coles, Woolworths, Sheridan, and more from Australia Post. Additionally, you can save on venues like hotels, restaurants, cinemas, etc.

All you have to do is link your PO Box through MyPost and avail of these rewards like never before. For those of you who don’t know, a MyPost account is explicitly created for accessing any rewards from the Australia Post for using its various services.

Writing an Australia Post PO Box Address

Suppose you are planning to use the Australia Post PO Box for either sending /receiving mail. First, you should know how to address the mailer. The most important part of a post office PO Box address is the PO Box number.

Hence, you must ensure that the Box number is clearly written/printed on the mailer. Its position should be under the addressee’s name. In case there is a company name, then the PO Box number should be under that too.

However, you need not provide the street address on a PO Box address. Why? Because the mailer will never leave the post office with a delivery person. You should also include the city, state, and postal code for the address or post office.

Conclusion

PO Boxes may not be the most convenient place to send or receive direct mail, but they have some compelling advantages. They offer superior security, better privacy, faster delivery, and affordable pricing. Australia Post even offers attractive discounts and rewards if you avail of their PO Box services.

But, sending direct mail to PO Box addresses can be a little confusing at times, mainly if you are dealing with a lot of them. As a result, businesses that send direct mail to PO Box addresses prefer direct mail solutions like PostGrid.

Using a system like PostGrid lets you validate PO Box addresses and automate the whole direct mail process. So, you can automate everything from personalization, printing, and mailing. The automation also ensures that the PO Box numbers are accurate to ensure maximum deliverability.

The post What is a PO Box? appeared first on PostGrid.

source https://www.postgrid.com.au/what-is-a-po-box/

Direct Mail Marketing

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Direct Mail Marketing and How It’s Beneficial for Your Business

Direct mail marketing helps companies generate good response rates and boost return on investment. The physical nature of direct mail is appealing to most people, and they love receiving it in their mailboxes. In fact, 81% of Australians open and read their mail items immediately.

Not just individuals, even companies love direct mail marketing as their top-notch marketing strategy. They can either conduct geographical or targeted direct mail marketing campaigns.

On one hand, geographical campaigns focus on the people residing in specific neighbourhoods. While on the other hand, the targeted campaigns focus on other demographics like age, gender, etc.

Keep reading this blog to know more about the advantages of direct mail marketing, ideas and examples, and how to get started. 

What Is Direct Mail Marketing?

Direct mail is any form of physical correspondence sent to prospects and customers. Companies can send marketing and transactional items as direct mail, such as postcards, letters, invoices, etc.

Direct mail advertising is a very old marketing channel. Yet, marketers continue to use it as a significant aspect of their marketing strategies.

This marketing form gives you a chance to interact with your target customers personally. Make sure to send something appealing and attention-grabbing that can convince them to buy from you.

Direct mail items come with an offer, a call to action, contact details, and much more. Apart from these, you can also add other aspects to display your creativity.

Why Does Direct Mail Marketing Work?

Why use direct mail marketing? There are several reasons why direct mail is still among the top marketing choices of many companies. Find the reasons below:

Direct Mail Faces Less Competition

In this modern era, people don’t expect to receive things in the mail. Most of the advertisements are shown online, and the masses are used to that.

This is why direct mail marketers need not face any competition, and their marketing items stand out from the crowd.

Direct Mail is Memorable

Direct mail is a tangible item that is sent directly to the physical mailboxes of your customers and prospects. These items can be stuck on a refrigerator or pinned to a board.

Also, they can be passed on from one person to another. Finally, direct mail’s tangible nature makes it memorable and increases brand recognition.

Direct Mail is Creative

You can be as creative as possible with direct mail. Marketers can come up with their own direct mail marketing ideas or take inspiration from elsewhere. Either way, direct mail allows you to get creative and showcase your brand in a good light.

Other reasons why companies should incorporate a direct mail marketing strategy are:

• Direct mail has a great response rate
• It is interactive and engaging
• Direct mail can reach a wider audience, etc.

Benefits of Direct Mail Marketing

High ROI

The median ROI of direct mail is 29%, which is much higher than social media and email marketing. It proves that direct mail offers a great return on investment and is a must-use for every company.

Drives Online Audience

The direct mail marketing industry has also understood the importance of increasing one’s online visibility. Therefore, all direct mail items today have QR codes, pURLs, etc., to help people connect with the brand online.

It helps the brand empower its reputation and awareness and convinces people to move ahead in the sales funnel.

Increased Brand Authenticity

Companies must prove themselves as credible and authentic. Running direct mail marketing campaigns can help you get there.

Direct mail is the most credible marketing channel. 74% of Australians attentively read the direct mail items they receive. It shows that people trust direct mail and consider it as a reliable means of information.

Offers a Direct and Personal Approach

There are many customisation and personalisation opportunities available for marketers with direct mail marketing. For example, you can use several variable data tags like name, age, gender, and so on.

Including such variables help you interact with people on a personal level. You can talk about their current needs and offer them a solution for the same. This direct approach is one of the key benefits of direct mail.

High Response Rate

Now, you must be thinking about what is a good response rate for direct mail marketing?

Well, the average response rate is 9%, but you can do pretty well with a response rate of 2-5%. But, again, it depends on the type of mailing list you use along with your brand messaging.

This response rate is much more than that generated by display ads, online searches, and other digital marketing channels.

Wider Audience

Many people don’t use social media platforms or other digital channels. But, you can connect with such people through direct mail.

Senior citizens love reading your mail items and also tend to engage with them. Nowadays, even teenagers and millennials have started liking direct mail due to the increasing digital noise. Therefore, direct mail helps you reach a broader audience.

Here, using automated tools can help boost your outreach. Tools like PostGrid can help you build targeted mailing lists that enable you to reach more people that match your buyer persona.

Direct Mail Marketing Campaign Ideas and Examples

Postcards

Postcard marketing makes the best direct mail marketing plans. However, if you are new to direct mail marketing, it is recommended that you first print and mail postcards. They are cost-effective and appealing, and a lot of people like collecting them.

You can send postcards:

• On your prospects’ birthdays and anniversaries
• To invite people to a trade fair or other events
• During the holiday season
• To inform customers about upcoming season sales
• For introducing new products and services
• To promote a new store or franchise, etc.

There are unlimited ideas on how to use direct mail marketing effectively with postcards. Find below some examples:

This postcard by Optical was sent to customers on their birthdays. It also offered a 30% discount to them as a gift. It is an exciting way to keep people hooked and encourage them to purchase from you further.

Here’s another example by NatureBox:

There are many things to note about this postcard, such as:

• The use of bright colours helps your postcards stand out from the other mail items in a mailbox.
• You can print your artwork in both landscape and portrait orientation. Make sure the layout fits with your messaging.
• Printing on both sides of a postcard helps you get added coverage.
• Always add an offer and CTA to fulfil the purpose of your mailing.

Letters

Letters have more space than postcards and also look more professional. So, if you want to talk about your brand in a little more detail, you can use marketing letters. Many successful direct mail marketing campaigns involved the use of letters.

Find below the marketing letter printed and mailed out by Domino’s Pizza:

This letter was sent to all their valuable members and regular customers as a gesture of appreciation. It also aimed at increasing its online sales.

As you can see, letters can be more personalised and make people feel special. You can add in other customizations as per your messaging. Below are some ideas:

• Include real-like stories and testimonials.
• Use a handwriting font to increase the appeal of your letter.
• Add some infographics to support your message.
• Mention a postscript at the end of the letter.
• Talk about your product benefits and uses, not features.

Press Releases and Newsletters

Companies can draft weekly or monthly newsletters and mail them to their target audience to keep them engaged. Add your company’s latest achievements, future plans, and other news in the newsletters. Make it fun, engaging, and persuasive.

You can also send press releases to your customers. It is a great way to talk about your brand and make people have an interest in you.

Content Kit

Direct mail marketing for insurance agents can work great, but they need to break down complex ideas into simple terms.

For that, most companies from the insurance industry and other similar industries put together ebooks, whitepapers, and reports. These informative pieces help prospects understand their operations better.

They can also print their case studies, reports, etc., and make a content kit to mail to their audience. This way, they can educate their audience and help them make the right decision.

Corporate Gifting

Another idea for conducting the best direct mail marketing campaigns is corporate gifting. For example, you can select merchandise like caps, t-shirts, notebooks, bottles, etc., and send them to your prospects as a gift.

Companies print their logos on such items and usually send it along with a postcard or small note.

How to Get Started With Direct Mail Marketing?

A lot of people are confused about the functioning of direct mail marketing and how to get started. So, keep reading below to know the steps to conduct a successful direct mail marketing campaign:

Build a Mailing List

If you ever conducted an email marketing campaign, then you are already aware of the term “mailing list.” All direct mail and marketing campaigns need a list of targeted prospects.

So, your first step is to put together a mailing list. Keep your customer profile in mind and make sure to only include relevant prospects in your list.

There are many different types of mailing lists like:

• Behavioural
• Demographic
• Geographic
• Firmographic
• Psychographic, etc.

Mailing lists are based on location, age, gender, income level, number of children, etc. These characteristics or aspects help you understand your relevant audience so that you can conduct targeted marketing campaigns.

Create Your Mail Pieces

Come up with a direct mail item idea that suits your campaign purpose. For example, you can use postcards for a giveaway or announcement, and letters for invitations and other purposes.

Focus on your mail design and include a relevant CTA and offer. Once the design is final, you can send your items to a printer or print them yourself.

Don’t make it too messy. Make sure that all your mail items are easy to read and interactive.

Develop a Response Mechanism

The most common response mechanisms are the use of trackable phone numbers. But, QR codes and pURLs have gained a lot of momentum recently.

That is because QR codes can help you take people to your website or other pages easily. All your recipients have to do is scan the codes and avail of their offers on visiting your website.

Try adding codes and links that are unique to your campaign. It makes tracking easy and fast.

Test and Modify

Before printing and sending out your mail items in bulk, it is essential to test their performance. Therefore, you should first send two or more items to different segments of your audience.

Record their reactions and note down the responses. It will tell you which items perform better than the others.

Run Your Campaign

Once you decide which is the best version of your direct mail items. you can finally run your campaign.

Australia Post can help you mail your items to your recipients. But, you need to write the correct mailing addresses on every item for smooth delivery.

PostGrid’s address verification API can help you standardize and verify addresses before mailing. Hence, it enables you to reduce wastage and induce fast deliveries.

Handle Responses

Once your direct mail items are delivered, you are going to start getting responses from the recipients. Therefore, companies need to be prepared to handle these responses and help the respondents move ahead in their customer journey.

Train your staff to handle calls, emails, and in-store visits well. For that, they should be aware of the campaign and its offers to properly assist the respondents.

Analyze Campaign Results

What is your direct mail marketing success rate? You can never know that unless you count your total responses and conversions.

PostGrid’s print and mail API can help you analyze your campaign performance. You can also access the insights and reports through your dashboard. These analytics can help you understand why your campaign worked or didn’t and what changes you should bring in next time.

Direct Mail Marketing Best Practices

Create Attention-Grabbing Messages

Choose words that are informative yet convincing. You should pay close attention to your marketing copy, especially the headlines.

Use bold and upfront headlines that can sum up the purpose of your mail.

Don’t spread your message into lengthy paragraphs. Instead, use short sentences and crisp bullet points to convey your point.

Integrate Direct Mail With Online Marketing

Direct mail works great as a standalone marketing strategy. But, it works even better when used in conjunction with other marketing forms.

If you want to increase your coverage and get more responses, combine direct mail and digital marketing.

You can run a direct mail campaign with simultaneous social media ads or conduct an email drip campaign immediately after a direct mail campaign.

Either way, the plan is to reinstate your message through several channels to increase awareness.

Make sure to keep your messaging and offers consistent across all channels.

Keep Your Mailing Lists Updated

Always keep your data fresh and updated. If you send items to an old mailing list, there are chances that many of your shipments will be returned.

It is because a lot of people move every year. Also, not all postal addresses in your mailing list are correct and standardized.

You can use the services of direct mail marketing specialists to verify your lists. PostGrid offers both on-demand and bulk address verification solutions to help you keep your database clean all the time.

Use Mail Personalisation

Sending generic marketing items can help you get responses to a certain extent. For example, suppose you are a local restaurant. In that case, you can send non-personalised postcards to all the people in your neighbourhood.

But, people like getting things with their names on them. So, they are more inclined towards reading and responding to mail that has their details printed on it.

Therefore, it is recommended to personalise your items. It can help you get more engagement and increase your ROI.

Do’s and Don’ts of Direct Mail Marketing

Find below some guidelines that can help you conduct better direct mail campaigns:

Do’s:

• Use a compelling call to action
• Pair your call to action with an exciting offer
• Add reviews and testimonials
• Test your market
• Segment your mailing lists
• Have clear mailing objectives

Don’ts:

• Print anything without proofreading
• Forget to ask your sales team to follow up
• Add too many details and words in your mail
• Forget to drive online traffic

Automating Direct Mail Marketing

Automated direct mail helps you get rid of the manual processes involved in direct mail marketing. For example, medical, real estate, educational, and insurance direct mail marketing can all become more manageable with automation.

You need not create, print, and mail items on your own. All you have to do is find an automated direct mail platform like PostGrid and let it handle everything.

Designing Items

Not all automated direct mail service providers offer design services. So, you should consider your needs before selecting the right vendor.

PostGrid has several pre-built templates to help you get your mail items designed in just a few minutes. This way, you can avoid hiring a designer and design your mail.

Printing Services

PostGrid has partnered up with several reputed printers across the country. Hence, you can get your items printed in high-quality at very reasonable rates.

By outsourcing your printing tasks, you can skip buying perishables like paper and ink. You also need not purchase a printer or let your employees spend days loading and unloading papers to print your marketing items.

Mailing Services

There is no longer the need to calculate postage, affix stamps on items, or carry them to the post office.

PostGrid takes care of all your mailing activities. We can help you presort and add barcodes to your mail helping you to track your items and avail of huge postal discounts.

PostGrid’s direct mail automation API can also help you:

• Track your mail items
• Get periodic campaign reports
• Integrate our API with your CRM for easy mailing

Direct Mail Vs. Digital Marketing

The direct mail vs. digital marketing debate has seen a lot of popularity in the past few years. Some companies claim that direct mail works the best for them, whereas others have solely committed to digital marketing.

As we said above, direct mail has a response rate of 9% and yet, digital marketing has a click-through rate of only 0.1%. Moreover, the average number of ads that a person sees every day is 5,000. So, in this scenario, it is easy for people to ignore emails and online display ads very quickly.

Talking about the ROI, direct mail gives an ROI of about 29%. On the other hand, digital marketing can generate an ROI of only 16%. It is because targeted digital marketing plans can cost a lot.

Also, there is a lot of flexibility for direct mail marketers. They can choose precisely whom to target, when to target, and how to target. But, things are way too complex with digital marketing as it does not offer a lot of flexibility.

Direct mail and email marketing can both be personalised. But, after receiving 100 emails per day, people tend to skip reading them and move them to the trash box.

Direct Mail Marketing FAQs

How Can Direct Mail Marketing Support My Business?

Direct mail marketing can help you reach your prospects and communicate about your brand. This way, you can generate more leads that can eventually convert into customers.

Do Personalised Direct Mail Items Work Better?

Yes, personalised direct mail items have a better shot at getting noticed. People like to be appreciated and special- making it essential to customize your items according to them. Moreover, it helps you convince them to buy from you.

What Are the Direct Mail Marketing Costs?

Direct mail marketing does not have to be expensive. You can start with a small campaign size and work your way up.

All costs depend on your campaign size, choice of mail items, type of mailing list, design, and copy.

Does PostGrid Offer All-In-One Direct Mail Services?

Yes, PostGrid can help you with all your direct mailing activities. From design and printing to mailing and tracking, you can use PostGrid for everything.

Also, we offer these services at competitive prices. There is no minimum pricing or commitment involved.

Want to conduct a productive direct mail marketing campaign at low costs? Try PostGrid’s print and mail API and platform to help you skip the manual effort and increase productivity.

The post Direct Mail Marketing appeared first on PostGrid.

source https://www.postgrid.com.au/direct-mail-marketing/