A lift letter or note is a second, small communication inserted into a direct-mail package along with a multi-page sales letter

Your outer mailing envelope can’t say too little, and it can’t say too much, either, writes New York direct-marketing expert David R. Yale.

Whenever sales slacken and profits head south, most companies start to beat the bushes in search of new customers.

Nationally respected marketing consultant Robert W. Bly offers pointers on creating high response envelopes:

Changing your outer envelope, without touching any other part of your mailing, can punch up response by 100% or more

he late, great Bill Jayme defined the direct-mail envelope as “your headline.” Other mailing practitioners shy away from such candor

There are two basic envelope styles, writes Ernest W. Nicastro of the Positive Response company, that aim to impel a mail recipient to open

High Readership Almost everyone reads postcards. Your customers take in your message as soon as your card reaches their hands. Double-card mailings of subscription offers have beaten much costlier long-copy letter packages. Economy Postcard mailings cost little to produce and mail. A single card involves no folding or inserting charges, and can be cheaper to mail first class than at bulk third-class rates. Even when you mail to very few sales prospects and so can't receive bu

Why are postcards a good marketing choice? Your customer, prospects and suspects like to receive information from you. 98 percent of consumers bring in their mail the day it’s delivered, and of these, 72 percent bring it in as soon as possible according to the Mail Moment study, conducted on behalf of the U.S. Postal Service. Postcards are... Impactful — because your message is seen right away as the mail is being sorted. Informative — explaining how your company can help c

With money tight these days, many direct-mail advertisers are turning to inexpensive media like postcards – especially for new business lead generation. A great advantage of using a postcard is that 87% of mail recipients claim to at least scan postcards that they receive. Here are 10 pointers from Portland marketer Wilson Zehr on making postcards work: Use postcards appropriately. Nobody – despite what some postcard companies claim – expects postcard mailings to close many s

Involve your reader Gain your recipient’s attention by making him or her a participant in your mail advertising—not just a passive set of eyeballs gazing at a TV screen. For instance, urge your reader to use involvement devices such as a sticker, with enticing instructions to scratch it off to reveal a freebie. Keep your message relevant Every potential customer silently asks, “What’s in it for me?” Your promotion had better answer that question fast and strongly. To do that,

Marketing consultant Kevin Nunley writes that long letters of up to 12 pages are increasingly popular with advertisers who want to make sales—and for good reason. Long sales letters do best when they wind up in the hands of genuinely interested prospects (hence, list selection is even more important than your offer and how you articulate it). Reason: The person most likely to be ready to buy from you wants all the information he or she can get to bolster the decision to purch

Sell benefits, not features Your reader doesn't care how many teeth are on your machine's gears. He only cares that your machine will grind his rocks into cement. Sell, don't tell Your reader doesn't have the time to peruse the history of your company. If you feel compelled to tell your company’s story, couch it in terms of a reader benefit. Make your copy conversational A good rule of thumb is to write your copy like you'd say it, then go back and take out the cuss words. Ge

Structure your copy Bob Stone, who wrote the classic book, “Successful Direct Marketing Methods,” says that this architecture makes for an effective letter to power up your direct mail: First Paragraph: Identify your product and present its main benefit for the reader Second Paragraph: Expand on the main product benefit Third Section: Detail the product’s features Fourth Section: Present testimonials Fifth Section: Call to action End with a P.S. that sets a time limit f

Individual Americans now give more than $100 billion a year to nonprofit organizations. Most of their donations come from letters they receive in the mail, the Association of Direct Response Fundraising Counsel reports. However, the Association observes, many nonprofits are unrealistic about the results direct mailings can generate for them.“If their mailing doesn’t make a profit, or doesn’t make at least a 1% return (as they have always heard a mailing should), they conclude

One direct-marketing “expert,” unnamed here in order to protect the guilty, recently advised mail advertisers that letters and reply...

Choose laser-compatible paper stocks Uncoated offset stocks from 50 pound to 9 point usually work well. — If using a coated stock, use a...

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Forty percent of the success of any direct mail package is dependent upon the quality of the mailing list. The post office delivers an average of 6.7 pieces of mail to your household every day. Which ones go into the trash and which are set aside for possible opening at a later date? The mail pieces you set aside share several characteristics: They are from companies or organizations with which you have had a previous relationship. The information on the envelope hints at a p

Choose a good list Your mailing list can generate more than 40% of your total responses to a mailing, according to the Direct Marketing Association. The best offer in the world—if not aimed at the right people—will fail. To find the best type of list to rent, look at the characteristics of the customers who make up your own in-house mailing file— and build outside lists accordingly. Test various offers The second most influential factor in determining your success in direct m