Marketing Commentary from interlinkONE
Multi-channel marketing communications - all in one!
Christmas in July!
Posted by 
on Wednesday, July 28, 2010 
at 1:45 PM 
in Just like the title says it was Christmas in July for me today! I received a great surprise in the mail this morning while in a marketing meeting. It was a package from my favorite cookie company Cheryl & Co. (If you have never tried these cookies before definitely put it on your bucket list!)
The package contained a box of 6 of their cookies. Also, there was small card with a message from the salesperson that I did business with last year while ordering our company holiday gifts.
Why did I think this package was so great? Well, because for one thing I wasn’t expecting such a nice treat (Hint, hint to my boyfriend)! But I really thought this was a great marketing effort. I have ordered from them multiple times. Yes, they have a great product, but their customer service is absolutely excellent. This was another example of that.
This treat helped to put them back in my mind… Sure, it’s July. But before we know it, it will be time to order treats for our customers once again. Also, their package prompted me to go check out their website to see if they have any new items that I may not have seen yet.
So…. When it comes to your marketing efforts, are there any small things you can do today to get your customers thinking about you in a good way?
Tags Tell Me What You’ll Give Me
In today’s world, it is commonly accepted that most people are a bit more cautious before they purchase items. Sure, we are all prone to the occasional impulse buy – after all, we’re only human (“Wife = more concert tickets!?!?! Me = sorry, honey. It happened. Again.”)
But for the most part, we are all pausing and doing a bit more research before we actually put money down to acquire a product or a service.
For companies that are selling, it is vital to share as much compelling information as possible in regards to what you can provide.
I recently received a subscription renewal form from The New Yorker magazine. For a low-price of $39.95, I would receive the obvious: a one-year subscription. Now, I love that magazine. However, there are a lot of other magazines that I enjoy. I can’t buy them all. So, the question is — why should I pay for The New Yorker?
Well, I think they did a great job of trying to push me to reach for my wallet. They provided a list of additional benefits that I would receive as a subscriber, other than the obvious. Below is a picture of the list:
Image from New Yorker subscription form
If you are a service provider that is trying to sell print or other marketing-related services to your clients, this example may prove helpful. Perhaps you only sold the printed pieces in years past. But now, you are trying to sell a marketing campaign or solution.
If you simply sell it as “a postcard with a Personalized URL”, you may not be providing enough of an incentive.
For example, you could list out the following benefits:
- Direct Mail piece with multiple calls-to-action (Web, Phone, BRC)
- Hosted landing page that allows people to respond via the web
- Real-Time Access to Reporting Dashboards to see who is responding
- Ability to Instantly Route Leads to Multiple Sales Reps
- Lead Qualification based on Answers
- Automatic Fulfillment (Hardcopy and Electronic options)
- Viral Marketing plug-ins (“Tell an Associate” option)
- Integrate with Social Media (Ability to share the Response link on Facebook, Twitter, etc)
- Multi-Channel Approach (email sent out to non-responders of the direct mail piece)
These are just a few of the additional benefits that many service providers can offer their clients today. While listing those may not guarantee you sales, it certainly may help your prospects to truly visualize what they could receive by purchasing your services.
