Whether it’s in print, email, or online, customers expect a personalized marketing experience. According to InfoTrends, 60% of Boomers and beyond (ages 55+) want a personalized experience. Among Millennials (ages 13-34) and Gen-Xers (ages 35-54), this rises to 67%.

But while “personalization” can carry the connotation of complex and expensive, it doesn’t have to be. Even with a basic customer list, a few simple steps can help you deliver a more relevant, targeted experience.

1. Use their name creatively.

Don’t just use the customer’s name in the opening text. Use it creatively in images or sprinkle it in unexpected places throughout the document. Add the couple’s name to the place card on the table. Emblazon it across the mailbox in front of an image of a home for sale. Integrate it into the design in unexpected, eye-catching ways.

2. Target by a single, simple variable.

Will it help to target the mailing by gender? How about by ZIP code? Would it help to add a map? (This works great for new businesses or new branches or locations.) This is data you already have. Use it!

3. Append the database.

Still think you don’t have any variables you can use? Do what’s called a database “append” in which you purchase simple variables like home ownership or household income for the names you already have. Appends are not expensive and can boost your marketing effectiveness exponentially.

Talk to us about how you can put your existing data to use to create a more personal relationship with your customers. You probably already have more information than you think!

We all know the value of color images in your marketing mix, but what about the messaging? Study after study shows that when messages are in color, they have a powerful impact on your bottom line. Among the benefits:

• Helping readers find information more easily (great for insurance policies, contracts, and other lengthy documents)
• Reducing errors (highlight instructions or account information so people get it right the first time)
• Slashing payment time (highlight the amount owed and the due date and watch your invoices get paid faster)
• Increasing the ability of readers to understand and retain information (great for sales presentations)
• Increased recall of the marketing message (great for everything)

Next time you want to draw your readers’ attention to a specific area of text, consider using color. Make phone numbers or payment information stand out. Highlight discounts in brightly colored starbursts. Use arrows or colored bullets to focus attention on key points in brochures.

Take the example of the State of California Franchise Tax Board (FTB). The FTB used to send out plain tax notices, but the documents were confusing and the FTB consistently experienced slow payments and high volumes to its call centers. So it added highlight color and personalized messaging. Key information was displayed in blue, guiding taxpayers through the document and providing specific instructions. The result? Faster payments and fewer mistakes. This translated into millions in additional interest income and, at an average cost of $15 per call to the call center, significant savings from reduced call volume.

Color matters—not just in your graphics, but in your messaging. Let us help you use color to make you money and save you money, too!

Data mining. The very phrase strikes fear into the hearts of many marketers. The ability to connect the dots to reveal buying habits and other customer behaviors is often seen as complex, expensive, and within the purvey of only the largest companies. But basic data mining is well within the grasp of any sized marketer.

There are three steps to data mining:

• Know what data is available.
• Ask questions about that data.
• Look for useful relationships.

The first step is to understand the field headings in your database. What data are you capturing? Most databases have basic information, such as name, address and purchase history. Are you also capturing information such as age, gender and home ownership? If so, this tells you the types of queries you can run.

Running queries simply means asking questions of the data. If you are a retailer, you might ask, “Which customers purchased hardwood flooring last month?” If you know that these customers are also likely to purchase area rugs and hardwood conditioning products, this gives you a great start.

Run a variety of sorts. Is there a relationship between hardwood flooring and gender? How about income? You might find that data you once thought irrelevant, such as the date of purchase, has more relevance than you think.

Even basic software, such as Microsoft Excel or Microsoft Access, provides data mining capabilities that allow you to run sorts yourself. You can also purchase add-on data mining modules or third-party software. There are plenty of outsource providers that specialize in this process, too. Many will use the moniker “business intelligence” or ETL (extract, transform, load) companies. Costs can be very reasonable.

So get curious. Take a few hours to run a variety of sorts just to see what you can find. That curiosity could make a big difference to the bottom line.

Need help? Just ask!

Personalized print marketing gets results, but what if you’re a newcomer to the game? How do you get started? If you want to begin sending your customers relevant, personalized messages, here are three questions that will get you off to a great start.

1. What are your goals?  

What are the goals of your campaign? Be specific. “To increase sales” isn’t sufficient. If you’re an auto dealership, your goal might be to get customers to schedule their 50,000-mile scheduled maintenance. For a bookstore, it might be to get customers to attend a book signing by a local author. Identify the specific action you want the customer to take.

2. What data do you have?  

Do you have a customer database? If so, what’s in it? Do you have names and addresses only? Email addresses, past purchase history, or other demographics? Or do you need to start from scratch? If you need help understanding what data you have and how to use it, let us take a look. Once we understand what you’ve got, we will know whether you’re ready to start designing your personalized campaign, and if not, we can advise you in purchasing lists or appending your data to give you more fields to work with.

3. Who’s your audience?

Know your target audience. If you are selling women’s spa treatments, you don’t want the message to go to the men in your database unless you are prompting them to buy gifts for their wives. Likewise, you aren’t going to say “thanks for being a valued customer” to someone who hasn’t purchased from you in two years. You need to decide what cut of your database (or your target list) is going to receive your message.

Once you know how all the elements come together, you can begin crafting a personalization strategy that will reap big results. Need help? Give us a call. That’s why we’re here.

What does it take to create customer loyalty, the kind of loyalty that makes customers stick with you, even when your competitors become more aggressive and price competition intensifies? Here are some tips from the experts.

1. Profile your customers. Customer bases are not homogenous. They are made up of different demographics, with different needs and different motivators for shopping with you. Creating customer profiles tells you what your key customer groups “look” like. The more you understand these profiles, or the demographic make-up of your customer groups, the more you will be able to create a plan to keep them.
2. Make it personal. Shift from generic communications to 1:1 print communications. This should go beyond “Dear <<name>>” and include content driven by demographics, demonstrated preferences or past purchase history. The goal is not just to let your customers know that you know their names, but to increase the relevance of your communications.
3. Create a personal point of contact. Some companies assign each customer their own individual CSR or sales consultant. This creates a special relationship between your customers and the rep that further personalizes the relationship with your company and can be invaluable in keeping their business.
4. Increase the frequency. Communicate your customers on a regular basis, not just when you have a special promotion or event. This is the idea behind monthly newsletters and “tips and tricks” postcards, especially those personalized to the recipient’s individual needs.
5. Reward loyalty. When customers are loyal, let them know that you appreciate it. Send them a thank you once in awhile. Send them “loyal customer” discounts, personalized to their unique habits and preferences.

Retaining customers takes planning. It requires an intentional, focused effort to keep those customers you’ve worked so hard to have. What’s your plan?

Have you ever wondered what goes into an award-winning marketing campaign? Sometimes it’s crackerjack copy. Sometimes it’s stunning images. Increasingly, however, it’s the smart integration of multiple elements, from creative to media selection. Let’s look at five components of award-winning campaigns here.

1. Multiple media, including print. Marketing campaigns using multiple media channels, including print, in strategic, integrated ways are the most successful. Award winners understand which channels are most effective for each element of the campaign, then use the best of each to accomplish the goal.
2. Unusual spins on traditional media. Print is exploding with options in innovation. Think unusual folds, die-cuts, and dimensional inks and coatings. One award-winner used a vertical gatefold tipped onto the cover of a magazine to catch attention. Imagine using personalized teasers in your marketing to get recipients to open a tip-on, then exposing them to a personalized message underneath!
3. Reader interaction through personalization. If you can encourage people to interact with (and, better yet, create) their marketing pieces, they are more likely to act on them. “Create your own” (personalized) brochures on everything from home décor to travel itineraries are great examples accessible even to small and mid-sized businesses.
4. Knowing your audience. Award-winning marketers know their audiences. They match the message, the channel, and the response mechanisms to the preferences and habits of the people receiving them. Are recipients most likely to respond using the phone? Personalized URLs? General URLs? QR Codes? Know your audience and design your campaigns to them.
5. Tracking and measuring goals and results. Award winners carefully track and monitor their results. When you know what works, you can build on what’s effective and ditch what isn’t. This gives you the freedom to innovate and maximize your profits!

Need help designing a marketing campaign worthy of attention and that gets results? Let us help!