mStoner

Winning the Mailbox War:

Direct Mail for Higher Ed

April 2015

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Takeaways

THE STATE OF DIRECT MAIL IS PEOPLE LIKE MAIL. YOUR ENVELOPE IS A MESSAGING VEHICLE.

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THE STATE OF DIRECT MAIL IS PEOPLE LIKE MAIL.

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State of the Industry

70% of Americans say mail is more personal than the internet.

(Source)

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State of the Industry

55% “look forward” to discovering the mail they receive.

(Source)

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State of the Industry

56% say receiving mail is a “real pleasure.”

(Source)

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State of the Industry

72% of consumers bring in their mail–as soon as possible–on the day it is delivered.

(Source)

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State of the Industry

Mail is usually sorted by the head of household. In 90% of cases, s/he determines which items are kept for review.

(Source)

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What is the Mail Moment? The Mail Moment defines the highly interactive daily ritual that consumers devote to bringing in their mail and discovering what it offers. The Mail Moment provides marketers with the unique opportunity to get their messages noticed and their offers considered.

(Source)

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Student Reactions

The sheer volume of college mail creates different emotions.

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Student Reactions

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Student ReactionsNovel

Ordinary

InformedConfused

Am I being

recruited by the

Ivy League?

Why am I getting

all of this mail?

How did they get

my name?

I love seeing my

name in print! Look

at this beautiful

campus!

I can’t believe the testing

companies sell student

names. I’m throwing

everything away.

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YOUR ENVELOPE IS A MESSAGING VEHICLE

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Proximity

Scale & color

Personalization

Messaging

Tactile Qualities

ENTRY POINTS

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Entry Points

Entry points into your design attract visitors to the first place you want them to look.

“Without an entry point, viewers will have to work harder to find their way into your design. They’ll have to pause and think where to look first and think about what’s truly important on the page. A lack of entry point will increase the cognitive load on visitors.”

(Source)

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Scale & color

What did you see?

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Scale & color

What did you see?

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Scale & color

14” x 9”

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Scale & color

6 3/4” x 4 1/2”

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Scale & color

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Personalization

(Source)

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Personalization

(Source)

Made possible by variable data printing

Variable data printing enables the mass customization of documents, as opposed to the mass-production of a single document.

Instead of producing 10,000 copies of a single document, delivering a single message to 10,000 customers, variable data printing could print 10,000 unique documents with customized messages for each customer.

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Personalization

(Source)

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Personalization

Less of this…

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Personalization

More of this…

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Personalization

More of this…

mPerson designed by Juan Pablo Bravo from the Noun Project

Personalization

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Messaging

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Messaging

What’s your offer?

Direct marketing is about presenting a value proposition and a call-to-action right away.

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Messaging

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Messaging

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Messaging

http://www.commarts.com/SearchOn.aspx?colpg=0&col=1223&inum=400

Worth a test…

Mail the same offer via both a simple envelope and branded envelope.

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Messaging

mStoner

mStoner green

client colors

JHU

Messaging

mStoner

mStoner green

client colors

JHU

Messaging

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Tactile Qualities

Studies show that as we read, our brains comprehend text by correlating the message with the physical landscape of the tactile piece. When we see a message in print (versus a screen), our brains create a lasting memory response because the message’s landscape is tangible. Physical attributes of the tactile piece, such as thickness, shape, texture, and the material’s surface, folds, and corners, help the brain form a mental map of the message.

Create a physical landscape

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Tactile Qualities

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Tactile Qualities

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Tactile Qualities

By asking your reader to imagine something associated with the involvement device, by asking them to fold or pull it, you’re getting them involved and you’re helping them really relate to the benefits of what you’re selling so there’s a much better chance they’ll act upon your message.

Involvement Devices

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Tactile Qualities

Involvement devices

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Tactile Qualities

Involvement devices

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Tactile Qualities

Involvement devices

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Tactile Qualities

Involvement devices

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Tactile Qualities

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Takeaways

THE STATE OF DIRECT MAIL IS PEOPLE LIKE MAIL. YOUR ENVELOPE IS A MESSAGING VEHICLE.

mStoner

Winning the Mailbox War:

Direct Mail for Higher Ed

April 2015