Direct Mail Part 4:

Last week we discussed how to successfully design your mailshot so this week we will make the natural progression onto production and despatch.

There are a few things you have to decide when producing your mailshot mainly whether it will be a standard letter or a fully designed mailer. PrintMatters can do both for you.

The important thing is that you maintain your database to assist mailshot production. Accuracy of information is key as an up-to-date database;

•  Increases response rates
• Reduces production and postage costs
• Helps ensure compliance with data protection regulations

So what about responses?

You really need to sort out your response method before you send out your direct mail. If you have not planned your response then a warm prospect can quickly turn to a cold shoulder.

Don’t fall into the trap of swamping yourself in responses.

Start off with smaller mailshots initially to gain an idea of the feedback you will receive, and then slowly increase the volume until you are comfortable.

There is no point in performing a large mailshot then not being able to handle the responses. This would not only result in a lost order, it will be a lost prospect that will be reluctant to do business with you again.

Next week I will give you the final part in our Direct Mail series.

Flexible and Functional

We are now well into 2010 and we find a lot of our customers gearing up and going on a push. Many have now switched focus from the standard business stationery to promotional print.

As a digital printer PrintMatters is incredibly flexible. As we manage a lot of our customer’s professional communications they are returning to us asking;

“Can you do this?”

“This sounds weird but can you...?”

“bear with me on this one but I want to....?”

The answer to all of the questions above has been and will continue to be yes. We have the capability to print standard business stationery and the machinery to provide all manner of promotional print and large format advertising signage whether for buildings, exhibitions or vehicles.

As well as that weird and wonderful item that you know will stand out from the crowd and get your company noticed.

It’s the season of events, exhibitions and shows so everyone should be geared up commercially.

So if you want to go “on a bit of a push” we have our roll up banners on offer for £99 apiece and the essential accompaniment of the obligatory A5 flyers from £89 per thousand. That’s more than enough for a season of exhibitions or to send out with your invoices and statements promoting your wares.

Is the question “Can i afford this” or is it “Can I afford not to do this”.

For all your promotional print speak to PrintMatters.

Award winners!

On Wednesday night Bill and Sandra our illustrious leaders were guests of Dundee College at the Business to College Awards ceremony in Edinburgh.

We have been working closely with Dundee College for about 9 months now and they have been instrumental in training and developing our workforce through knowledge transfer schemes and training courses.

One of which, you will all be amused to hear, Bill is on called Leadership for Growth.

Based on the work undertaken with PrintMatters and the results achieved in the project, both Dundee College and PrintMatters were successful in winning the award for Impact in the private sector and the College went on to win College of the year 2010.

Through all the training we have been receiving our workforce has increased production capacity and it also means we can offer our extended services such as design and marketing to our normal print customers.

For your print requirement, no matter how large or small, give us a call on 01356 625033 where our only limit is your imagination.

Business printing are you compliant?

Print is not something that is interesting to talk about or has any special black magic to it like our other two sectors (motorsport and canine). It’s just a case of printing.

What we provide to our customers is a reliable, efficient, friendly and cost effective service. If you call us, email us or in this day and age facebook us then we can turn your job around within 5 working days from proof of artwork.

Business cards; the best networking tool around and we can provide runs of 250 cards from £34

Compliment Slips, it pays to be polite, 1/3 A4 size full colour on one side again 250 of them only £33. For the more polite among you we can do 1,500 for £85.

Letterheads have legal requirements. Limited companies must include the company registration number and place of registration. Requirements also extend to partnerships, sole traders and charities among others. Contact us to make sure you are compliant. We can print 500 for £61 going to 2,000 for £199 and beyond.

Leaflets are perhaps the best way to promote your company locally, to your existing customers through deliveries and monthly statements or just to read at your premises. 5,000 A5 leaflets full colour double sided only £149. If you would like PrintMatters to design them for you there will be a small surcharge.

For any enquiries about printing or the legal requirements of letterheads please call us on 01356 625 033 or email enquiries@printmatters.info.

Marketing partner

PrintMatters are more than just a print company. Over the past 18 months we have been strengthening our workforce which has enabled us to widen our skillset. This has allowed us to increase our own business but crucially allowed us the opportunity to work closely with our customers to enable them to grow their own business. After all the stronger our customers business is the stronger our business is.

By investing in Marketing personnel PrintMatters can now not only print and design your future communications but we can also work with you to gain more from your exisitng customers and generate new customers. Every business has a customer base and means of contacting them but very few actually use the database to alert customers to special offers, new services or products and even just wishing them a happy new year. The only time the majority of companies will actually contact customers is when they are moving premises which is a forced communication.

You are now probably thinking that contacting all your customers is going to cost an absolute fortune. Traditional mail outs can be costly due to the postage, but how often do you contact your customers through day to day business?

By starting with the basics each company can make every outbound communication a valued one. How many emails do you send to your customers or prospective customers, how many invoices and statements do you send, how many deliveries do you post out?

Simple questions of which only you will know the answer but why should an invoice which is costing you a stamp to send out anyway not also be used to communicate your latest special deal. Email footers can be easily changed to carry a promotional message and deliveries can have a leaflet or letter of thanks in them. Each communication you send out only needs a slight amendment to convey your message of the month.

Did you know it takes one person 5 individual views of an advert before they will actually acknowledge or take notice?

Marketing need not cost the earth it is about considered communications with your existing customer base. It is far more cost effective to grow business with an existing customer than it is to attract a new one.

fraser@printmatters.info. 01356 625 033