Let’s Hear it for Self-Mailers!
Mail is really cool, if you stop to think about it.
We could put a letter in a mailbox at the end of our street, and it can wind up in Hawaii. Or Turkey. Or Hong Kong. It’s a pretty crazy concept.
Of course, in most cases, for this scenario to work, you do have to place whatever you are mailing into an envelope or box of some kind. However, thanks to the beauty of self-mailers, this is not always the case.
Mail As You Are
Self-mailers are designed to be mailed just they way they are -- and without the help of additional packaging. The most basic type is probably your standard postcard. But self-mailers these days can include a lot more sophisticated stuff than your typical postcard does.
One of our favorite examples of a funky self-mailer is a Netflix envelope. These bad boys not only protect and mail a DVD once, but they allow the recipient to safely mail the DVD back – without involving a new envelope or additional postage. It’s genius. It’s fun. And if you could use something similar in your business, it’s something we’d love to set up for you.
That’s right. Whether you need a Netflixesque double duty mailer, a basic postcard with a fun twist, or something in between, we’d be totally into helping to design the right self-mailer for you. We can get you multiple-fold mailers with plenty of room for photos and copy or peel-apart mailers for extra security. Basically, no matter what your direct mail needs are, we can hook you up with a self-mailer that will work for your business.
Save Money, Save the Earth
By the way, besides being fun and versatile, self-mailers are often very cost effective. It makes sense – if you don’t have to buy an envelope, you’re probably going to pay less money. Plus, if you happen to be looking for a greener print alternative, self-mailers can help you out in that department too – they involve less packaging which often results in less waste.
So combine the awesomeness of mail with the endless possibilities of self-mailers and get your message out in a green, economical, and fun way.
Help Your Direct Mail Campaign Go for the Gold
We caught a little bit of curling during this year’s Olympic Games. And as those intriguing stones with handles sailed gracefully down the ice and headed straight for that icy bull’s-eye, they reminded us of something.
Many of our clients rely on us to put together printed mailers for direct mail campaigns. So we design some and print them up, and they’re always pretty awesome. When our masterpieces are complete, our clients mail them out and cross their fingers, hoping that their advertising efforts pay off.
And What Does This Have to Do With Curling?
Okay, so admittedly, we actually don’t know a lot about curling. But we do understand that ultimately, getting your little stone devices to stay in the rings on the ice is a good thing.
And how do the curling team members accomplish this? By zooming their curling stones down the ice in the direction of their ideal destination. Not once during our Olympic viewing did we see a member of any curling team lift up a stone and start hurling it haphazardly at members of the crowd or the other team. (Although that would have made the event a tad more exciting.) No, these athletes kept their eyes on the prize and sent their stones straight to the intended target.
So here’s where the fundamentals of curling meet the fundamentals of direct mail. Even if we’ve printed up a fantastic brochure for a client, it won’t be effective unless it is sent in the direction of ideal targets. If our clients send those fantastic brochures randomly in every direction, they may find very little return on their investment. But, if like an Olympic curling team, our clients make their brochures glide straight to the right places, they will be golden.
So How Can We Get Our Printed Materials on a Perfect Path?
It’s easy, really. Instead of sending your brochures to everyone in your neighborhood, you can just use a mailing list to send them to potentially interested parties. You won’t believe the types of specific mailing lists that exist these days. No matter what type of people you are trying to reach, someone has compiled a list of individuals who meet your criteria.
How Do I Get My Hands on One of These Lists?
We thought you’d never ask. At imPress, we can not only hook you up with awesome printed materials, but also with mailing lists to use when you send them out. Whether you are looking for a list of elderly Albany men, hospitals on the East Coast, middle aged women with high credit scores, or curling enthusiasts, we can find a list that will work for you.
So take home the medal for most efficient advertising. Use a mailing list to make your direct mail campaign a winner.
Why Matching Makes a Difference
All right, business owners. Here’s a hypothetical situation for ya. Let’s say that a man strolls into your office peddling printer cartridges. And let’s also say that this guy is wearing an expensive suit, classy shoes, and shiny cufflinks, but for underneath his jacket, he has chosen a tie-dye T-shirt.
Tell the truth. You’d think he was a little weird, right?
In fact, you might even see him as weirder in that outfit than you would if he just showed up in the tie-dye T-shirt, sneakers, and jeans. The weirdness is not so much in the casual T-shirt as it is in the fact that he’s mixing and matching his sophisticated business attire with a ratty weekend shirt. Either the informal look or the classy look would be a much better choice than a hybrid of the two.
The same concept applies to your printed materials. If you look at all of your print collateral as an outfit, it should match from head to toe. We’re talking about envelopes, brochures, leaflets, letterhead, business cards, folders, fliers, fact sheets, direct mail pieces, and anything else you happen to have in your printed materials toolbox. There should be a consistent look and feel throughout the entire body of marketing collateral.
Why should your printed materials match? Part of it goes back to the plight of the printer cartridge salesdude. With a mismatching outfit like that, the guy just wasn't looking his best and didn’t leave a great first impression. In the same way, a welcome folder full of mismatched printed materials is going to leave a weird vibe with its recipient. It may be a bigger deal to some people than others, but in any case, it’s not helping you put your best foot forward.
The other reason matching is so important has to do with branding. In addition to its lack of visual appeal, the printer cartridge man’s outfit would leave everyone with a lot of questions about what he is trying to communicate with his look. People who see him will think, What kind of fellow is this? Is he a hippie? A professional salesman? A guy who forgot to pick up his dry cleaning? If your printed materials don’t match, you could be leaving your customers with similar confusion. Every document generated by or for your company should be in line with your brand in an effort to present a consistent picture of who you are as a company.
So it might be time to do a closet cleanout and assess your printed materials. If there are a few printed pieces that don’t match the rest, replacing them can update your company’s image and effectively communicate your brand. Whether your printed pieces are more like parts of a tuxedo or a Halloween costume, you’ll be good to go as long as they all match to make one spectacular ensemble.
Is it Time for Your Logo to Retire?
Every once in a while, it’s time to upgrade.
Eventually, even the most stubborn folks among us relent and get something new. You can only have a rotary phone, a Walkman, and a 1985 Ford LTD for so long. Products like these were just dandy when they first came out, but as time goes by, the time comes to move on.
The same is true for logos. As time passes, the logo that you picked out years ago just starts to look dated. But some business owners are even more hesitant to give their old logos the boot than they would be to get rid of a beloved yet archaic piece of equipment. Why? People are motivated to get rid of obsolete technology and replace it because they know the replacement will show dramatic progress in terms of its functionality. That motivating factor isn’t really there for a logo upgrade, and often business owners are mostly wondering if it’s worth the hassle.
So…is it worth it?
It could be.
It’s possible that the logo you came up with in 1987 doesn’t do you any favors because it has that “80’s look.” Or it’s possible that you’ve recently worked on your branding a bit and have realized that you have something important to communicate in your logo that maybe you didn’t include last time around. If you have one of those scenarios going on, revamping the logo might be a good plan.
After all, even the enormous companies modernize their logos from time to time. Huge corporations like KFC, Toys R Us, Walmart, and Apple have all updated their look in the past few years. Often, the new logo just puts a new spin on the old one – like changing Apple’s amazing technicolor dream apple to a tamer, classier version of the apple. Big companies recognize the importance of branding and know that their logo has a big role to play in that, so they’re careful not to let old logos overstay their welcome.
Of course, making the decision to change your logo is a big step, and we wouldn’t ever want you to have to go it alone. If it’s something that’s been crossing your mind, feel free to talk to the friendly imPress team. We can take a look at your current logo and give you our two cents about what to do. Maybe it is time to trade in that 1985 Ford, or maybe the old bugger does have a few miles left in it. We'll give it to you straight so you can make the right decision for your business.
Does Anybody Else Want to Print Greener?
We have a hunch that you’ve done something lately to make your life a little more green. Maybe you toted your coffee in a reusable mug instead of getting a foam cup. Or maybe you really went for it and started cruising around in a new hybrid car. No matter what steps you’ve taken to help Mother Earth, we’re sure she’s pumped that you’re doing something to show that you care about her.
And we can help you do even more.
At imPress, we’re totally into finding earth-friendly printing solutions. And you won’t believe some of the awesome ways we can help you take your printing to the green side.
Print It Up Recycled Style
It’s no secret that the easiest way to make your printing more eco-friendly is to print on recycled paper. But recycled paper has really come a long way since it was first introduced. Nowadays, even if your project requires fancy schmancy glossy paper, we can hook you up with paper that’s 50% recycled. And for your everyday print jobs that don’t require paper with a coating? You can actually use paper that is 100% recycled. That’s 0% non-recycled. And that’s wicked green.
Paper You Can Plant in Your Garden – For Real!
We really dig our seeded paper. This product is completely biodegradable paper with real seeds embedded in it. We’re not kidding. If you plant this stuff and water it, flowers will grow. We’re talking about forget-me-nots and other lovely blossoms. We’ve used this paper for everything from bookmarks to invitations. And as a result, there is less trash cluttering the landfill and there are more pretty flowers in the world.
And Don’t Forget the Promo Items
We’ve been talking about some pretty cool eco-friendly paper innovations, but we can also help you out if you’re in the market for promotional items that make the earth happy. One super little product we can get for you is a promotional pen made from recycled cardboard. Order some of those babies, and you can sleep better at night knowing that your promo pen isn’t going to be taking up space in a landfill for the next millennium.
And that’s just the beginning. If green printing solutions and promotional items are a priority for you, give us a holla. We’ll schedule a little conference call between you, us, and good Mama Earth, and together we’ll make some decisions that work for all of us.
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Recent Posts
- Let’s Hear it for Self-Mailers!
- Help Your Direct Mail Campaign Go for the Gold
- Why Matching Makes a Difference
- Is it Time for Your Logo to Retire?
- Does Anybody Else Want to Print Greener?
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