Wondering if you’re getting the best bang for your buck at your current mailhouse? Well, you should be. Choosing the right mailhouse can make a huge difference in how successful your direct mail campaign is. And while most will offer quality services for your marketing needs, there are some baseline services you should expect from your fulfillment center and insist upon if not offered. Knowing what those are is crucial, but not always obvious, especially to new businesses. Below are three best-in-class services your mailhouse should be providing to boost the success and efficiency of your direct mail campaigns – and to save you some money too.
Strong Customer Service Relationships
Is customer service not a service? When it comes to fulfillment centers especially, it certainly is. If direct mail is a steady part of your marketing efforts, choosing a mailhouse is like choosing a business partner. You’re not paying them to work for you, but to work with you. They should be reliable and friendly because you’ll be depending on them frequently. Additionally, a mailhouse that has a good relationship with their local USPS can leverage that to provide you with services that others cannot. This includes getting your mail delivered efficiently, at discounted postal rates, priority access to promotions, and more! Find a mailer that is pleasant to work with and that has a strong connection to the USPS. As simple as it sounds, this is one of the best services a mailhouse can provide.
Direct Mail Commingling
Direct mail marketing can be almost as expensive as it is effective. If you ever want to save money on your campaign – which is practically always – make sure your mailhouse offers commingling as an option. Commingling, in short, is a service that consolidates your mail with other mail pieces to meet USPS discount minimums, you gain the benefit of these bulk mailing rates – saving you a lot of money. Another benefit of commingling is reduced delivery time by up to 10 days due to skipping your local post office entirely and delivering directly to the destination USPS facility. Most mailing companies offer this service, however, you do want to confirm that they have a strong relationship with a commingling firm with an established track record. Still, sourcing a mailhouse that commingles effectively is well worth your time.
Mail Tracking Software and Services
The number one thing your mailhouse must have is a way to track the mail they send. How else would you be able to measure your results and ROI? Knowing when and to whom your mail has been delivered allows you to keep track of the responsive prospects and the effectiveness of your direct mail campaign. After mixing and matching offers, and testing to see which incentives align best with which demographics, you learn which combinations give the best return. Mail tracking software is a simple but powerful tool that improves the efficiency of both your mailhouse and your marketing. SnailWorks is a mail management service that any mailhouse can acquire, passing on these benefits and peace of mind to you. By placing trackable IMb codes on each piece, you can track them as they travel, powerful reports can be scheduled to deliver automatically to you on a daily basis. It’s just like tracking a package from Amazon, except this package is going to your valuable prospects. If your mailhouse isn’t providing any of these services, tell them to contact us, or simply find a mailhouse that does.
For more information on SnailWorks Mail Management Software, please reach out to us at:
Email: info@snailworks.com
Phone: 855-697-6245