1:1 direct mail marketing provides messages that are highly relevant to the recipient.
Variable data printing has been around for years. Traditionally used in transactional printing, such as on phone bills and credit card statements, VDP is now accessible to any business as the software technology that drives it no longer requires sophisticated coding of individual pages. Today, VDP systems are intuitive and easy for digital printers to implement, helping marketers go from a dismal average 2% response rate for static communication to a 10 to 15% response rate when VDP is brought into the direct mail equation.
There are three basic types of VDP — promotional, transactional and publications. From a promotional perspective, VDP allows marketers to builder better relationships with customers by communicating directly with them as individuals. Transactional applications go back to the early days of VDP and can be usually found on bills, statements and invoices. Publications, including guides, manuals and catalogs, can be personalized to an individual’s unique likes and interests, making them much more relevant to the reader.
“VDP can dynamically assemble four-color images, charts, text, logos and other objects to create attractive, highly personalized communications,” said Jim O’Brien, co-owner of Tampa-based ThinkShapes Mail. “The more you target your reader’s interests, the more likely they are to read it, remember it, and respond to it.”
Another good use of VDP is to stay in front of existing customers in a highly personal way. Studies by Info Trends show that 80% of new business comes from existing customers, and adding a marketing message to a monthly statement can have a huge effect. A whopping 98% of users read their statements once, and 85% read them twice. Messages included in statements and other customer communications have a much higher impact than traditional stuffers that are often discarded.
“Marketers can track results with VDP to a degree that’s impractical or impossible with mass communications,” said O’Brien. “Plus, it allows them to improve their return on their marketing investment through content that is customized to motivate their target audience – one audience member at a time.”
