Once upon a time, direct mail went something like this: Create a single marketing message, slap it on a postcard with your business’s phone number, and send it to as many addresses as the budget allows. Then wait and see if you get a bump in calls. Those are probably conversions, right?
The good news is, it’s 2015. We’ve learned a lot about marketing in the twenty-first century, thanks in large part to the explosion of online tools. Now Lob is bringing that same innovation to direct mail. The trackability of email. The A/B testing of banner ads. The easy setup of social media. You can get it all with print.
2. Old School vs. New School
Once upon a time, direct mail went something like this: Create a single marketing
message, slap it on a postcard with your business’s phone number, and send it to as
many addresses as the budget allows. Then wait and see if you get a bump in calls.
Those are probably conversions, right?
Lob is changing all that with a print and mail API for sending Direct Mail.
3. On-Demand Mailing
OLD SCHOOL: Print minimum: hundreds (if you're willing to pay a premium for
small runs, that is).
NEW SCHOOL: Print one or one million—it's your campaign! Instantly send us your
job, on demand. There's no monthly fee or volume commitment. Or, with Lob’s reserve
pricing, enjoy savings based on what you print per month or year, regardless of
individual job size.
4. Event-Driven Triggers
OLD SCHOOL: It’s the end of the month—time to pull lists and send out those
welcome letters/thank you postcards/etc.
NEW SCHOOL: If someone signs up on the first, do you want to wait more than a
month to welcome them? Lob’s API allows for total automation, so you can trigger
physical mail based on user actions, events, or anniversaries. Customers don’t come in
batches, and now you don’t have to treat them like they do.
5. Dynamic Content
OLD SCHOOL: Take your best guess about what will pique customers’ interest, then
hope you’re right. Want to try multiple versions? You'll have to send the printer a new
file for each one.
NEW SCHOOL: When it comes to customization, the sky’s the limit. Craft content
that will captivate—you can even personalize it for each recipient (see also: no print
minimums!). Just create a single HTML/CSS template, and we'll generate multiple
versions in no time.
6. A/B Testing
OLD SCHOOL: One headline. One CTA. Zero insight.
NEW SCHOOL: You wouldn’t send out an email without A/B testing subject lines—
and you don’t need to send print mail untested, either. Send as many versions of your
job as you’d like. With HTML/CSS templates, it's fast and easy to create tests. And Lob’
s API lets you make changes to your creative instantly, so you can apply what you
learn in real time.
7. Integrated Technology
OLD SCHOOL: Build your CSV file, clean it up, upload it to the FTP, and, after
dozens of calls and emails to your third-party vendors, you should be ready to go.
NEW SCHOOL: Lob’s cutting-edge API technology quickly integrates with any
internal application. Set it up once, and you’re ready to manage all your jobs in-house.
Simply send us a template and an address, and we’ll take care of printing and mailing
on demand.
8. Intelligent Tracking
OLD SCHOOL: The job’s at the printer. That should put it in mailboxes…soonish?
NEW SCHOOL: This is your investment; you should know where it stands. With Lob’s
intelligent mail tracking, you can follow each piece through the mailstream so you’ll
know when it lands (and better understand your customer’s response).
9. Next Steps
Sign up for a free account to see first hand how Lob is making this old format new
again by eliminating print minimums, empowering total customization, and
automating every step of the process with simple APIs.
