Recent Blogs from Richardson Group

Direct Mail Marketing and Promotional Products

5/3/2012 8:47:56 AM

In our last blog post, we discussed how to create positive impressions by using promotional products. Today, we are going to continue that theme and talk about Direct Marketing and Promotional Products. Incentives/promotional products work in all multi media channels, but they are especially effective when combined with direct mail marketing.

First, we need to realize that there are two kinds of promotional products: Advertising Specialties and Premiums. Each is used to achieve different results.

Advertising Specialties are used prior to getting business, or for lead generation. Premiums are a bit more costly, more personalized through messaging communication, and used to cement a relationship and support a sale.

Why are advertising specialties and premiums so effective? Because advertising specialties and premiums relate personally to us... they are things that we can see, touch, taste, smell, and hear. They are useful and continue to stay "top of mind."

Furthermore, every day, we are bombarded with hundreds of messages; to the tune of 500+ messages a day! We generally see about 80 of those, remember 12 of them and have strong opinions about only 3. With that being said — offering something that will be recognized, remembered and that has longevity is a winning formula. Advertising specialty and premium items do just that.

When developing and implementing a direct mail marketing campaign, it is key to identify the correct target audience, use the right content to message and lastly, make sure your customer base knows exactly what's in it for them.

For example, a standard, mass market direct mail campaign — even when using the correct target audience and content messaging — normally receives about a 1-2% response rate… could be less, as low as zero, when the wrong target and/or content is used. However, you could see double digit response rates when you have nailed the target and the content. Now, if you were to incorporate personalization to the individual target and an advertising specialty or premium as your offer, you can increase your response rate by 35%, 50% or more.

Because advertising specialties and premiums have such a long life, they get multiple exposures which will continue to allow them to reach the right audience with a message and to do it over and over and over again. They offer direct "personal" touch, which in turn makes the direct mail marketing campaign a success, long after the initial communication piece has been discarded or forgotten.

Contact your Richardson Communications Group representative today for further information regarding the added value in incorporating advertising specialty and premium items into your next direct mail marketing campaign. Or, you can contact our Resident Promotional Products Expert, Linda Orrick, by email or at 816-421-2100.

Dawn K Stewart

Marketing and Business Development Specialist

Sources: National Mail Order Association

A Sure Fire Way to Create Positive Impressions

4/20/2012 9:30:10 AM

You probably use at least one every day; I my self have used 5 already and it is not even noon yet. What is it that I'm talking about? Back in the day, they used to be called “advertising specialties” and were limited to household or personal staples. However, today they are “promotional products” and the industry has grown to offer just about any kind of product, for any application.>

So what promotional products did I use today? I am wearing a logoed Arkansas Razorback sweatshirt, I am drinking from a branded coffee mug, I have used two different branded pens and a logoed calendar to help keep my schedule straight.

Promotional products, they are all over! And they work… we can prove it. Today, marketing is all about personalization, customization, and branding. Promotional products vastly support each of these characteristics. Oh, and did I mention, at a very low impression rate. The impression rate is calculated by multiplying the number of times an item is used by the number of people that see the item. In the U.S., the cost-per-impression of a promotional product is half a cent, ($0.005) yes that has two zeros in it. Jeff Scult, CEO of Golden Goods states: “The beauty of promotional products is that it’s active branding vs. passive branding. You are actually interacting with the brand…”

In today’s economy, everyone is looking for ways to get their return on investment (ROI). The excellent impression rate that you get with Promotional Products converts to high ROI for a small independent company as well as large corporations.

You need proof, so here it is:

83% of people surveyed in the U.S. indicated they could identify the advertiser on a promotional item they owned.
60% of the U.S. respondents indicated they have done business with the advertiser after receiving an item.
41% of the U.S. respondents indicated their opinion of an advertiser was more favorable after receiving a promotional product.
And let’s not forget about the “pass-along” rate. Where there is an item that the recipient doesn’t plan to keep, 62% of the respondents in the U.S. indicated that they would give the item to someone else.

So, as you can see, promotional products are a very efficient and effective initiative to add to your marketing strategy.

Look for our next blog post, where we will tell you how to incorporate promotional products with direct mailings to vastly increase your response and conversion rate.

Contact your Richardson Communications Group representative today for further information regarding the success of incorporating promotional products into your advertising. Or, you can contact our “resident promotional products expert,” Linda Orrick, by email or at 816-421-2100.

Dawn K Stewart
Marketing and Business Development Specialist

Sources: Advantages: Promo Products Rule ROI, February 2011

Using variable QR codes is just the beginning

3/19/2012 4:27:12 PM

Cursory cliches or generic reports just do not work in today's world. Sales campaigns must be measured by something concrete, as in baseball we measure hits, runs and RBIs, in campaigns we should be measuring ROI, response rates, conversion rate and retention rates, etc. There are several measurement tools available – QR codes, landing pages, pURLs, Facebook likes, Tweets, trackable phone numbers, and Google analytics but yet a number of us are still falling short from the utilization of these tools.

So let’s talk about QR codes. What are they? QR Codes (Quick Response Codes) are barcodes used to allow smartphone users the ability to get more information on products and services, just by taking a picture. The QR code will usually take the user to a web page with more information and functions.

QR codes add dimension to interaction and are a very in expensive form of technology. They are really the link between printed messages and online communications. Instead of spreading a generic message like peanut butter you can now make it incredibly personalized to your client or prospect…you will be able to speak to them in a conversational format.

The barcodes can be designed with VDP (Variable/Personal Data) that will drive the specific user to a highly personalized microsite, shopping cart functions, automated social networking…and much, much more.

Personalized QR codes offer a highly interactive and personal way to communicate with your target because they give the recipient the “power to decide” if they want to engage or not.

Use personalized QR codes to help reach customers through:

Personalized urls (pURLs)
Links to Members of Sales Team
Tracking
Coupons
Video Access
Contest Entries
Surveys
Contact Information
Online Shopping
Direction/Maps
Marketing Promotions
Travel Sites
Events
And much, much more…

Using variable QR codes is just the beginning. Personalizing your site or landing page is next if you want to drive real results. Let’s review options you can use in your next sales campaign:

Pre-populate your landing page forms to improve user experience and completion rate
Deliver targeted offers, track promotional codes and redemption rates
Push customized contact information
Make it easy for recipients to save contact information to their mobile device
Engage customers on new level through polls, e-newsletters, blogs, video, etc.
Make purchasing faster and easier by simple routing and personalization
Go viral by providing links to share on social networks

By applying segmentation, profiling and other targeting tools to your campaign, you can tailor the initial experience and the online event to improve engagement and the connection between you and your target.

**Information for this blog was developed through various postings in Direct Marketing

Who is Dominant in the Social Media World?

2/15/2012 10:10:16 AM

Surviving Social Media, Part 2

In our last blog post, we established that YES social media is right for you. Excellent. Now, who is dominant in the social media world?

Even through there has been some negativity in the past several months regarding Facebook, the fact remains that it is one of the most dominant players in the social media game. True, changes have been made to the social media giant and change is not always accepted well, however, we will see that these changes will only prove to enhance the social media system for individual users, but more so for the business minded user.

A staggering 58% of all adults online visit Facebook monthly. Further, it is reported that 65% of all visits to Social Networking and Forums-classified Websites is accounted by Facebook.

Percent of online adults visiting Facebook.com in the last 30 days

We are visiting Facebook and the visits are lasting longer than those to other social media sites. An average Facebook visit lasts 5 times longer than a Google+ visit. It is estimated that we spend 20 minutes and 46 seconds every time we visit Facebook.

Are you maximizing social media outlets especially one as dominant at Facebook? If not, you should. You can bet your competition is.

Experian.com. (2011). The 2011 Social Media Consumer Trend and Benchmark Report. Retrieved October 31, 2011, http://www.experian.com/assets/simmons-research/brochures/2011-social-media-consumer-report.pdf

Still Wondering If Social Media is Right for You?

2/1/2012 9:36:16 AM

Surviving Social Media, Part 1

Are you still apprehensive if social media is right for you and your company? With today's focus on Integrated Marketing Communications social media plays a key role in the success of any campaign.

Frigyes Karinthy, a Hungarian of the early 20th century founded the concept that any two individuals on Earth could be connected through at most 5 acquaintances. Through the growth of social media and increased digital connections, the number today of introductions required to link any two souls may now be even fewer.

But, still you ask, is social media right for my company? And the answer is a resounding YES! Social media is doing so much more than just connecting individuals. It virtually provides consumers with a personalized way to connect to companies, brands and the media.

Experian has created a great social media analysis that helps to prove this point, read the full report here.

Percent of Online Adults Using Social Media* Monthly, by Age

*Social media includes visiting photo and video sharing websites, social and professional networking sites, online forums or message boards and social tagging and bookmarking.

In a given month there are 129 million individuals or 91% of adults online today are using social media. And that is not to say all are America's young adults. The greatest growth sector is among older Americans. Those 65-plus using social media grew 49% in the past two years alone. 3 in 4 online seniors use social media in a typical month and at the same time 82% of those seniors are ages 55 to 64. Clearly, social media is a key element in successfully engaging with your consumers and promoting your brand.

Dawn K. Stewart
Marketing and Business Development Specialist

This Just in from USPS - Postage Increase Includes Good News

1/10/2012 3:32:30 PM

Did you know that the postage increase, which is set to go into effect on January 22, 2012, actually contains some good news?

Starting the 22nd - on letter size mail only, not "flats" - when you mail at the PRESORTED FIRST CLASS rate (which must be a minimum of 500 presorted pieces), there will not be an additional charge for the 2nd ounce of weight. Pieces weighing up to 2 ounces will mail for the up to 1 ounce rate!

This is for PRESORTED FIRST CLASS, minimum of 500 count letter size pieces only, not single piece mail.

Previous additional weight offers had restrictions tied to business reply mail but this one does not. Advertising pieces are allowed, or even just normal additional pages of letter copy.

So what does all this mean for you? It's a savings of $ 0.125 per piece. When you're mailing 10,000 pieces, that's a savings of $ 1,250. Now let's take a minute to consider how much fun you could have with $1,250...

That's about 25 tanks of gas.
Maybe you prefer pizza, you could order 125 of them from Pizza Hut, don't forget to tip the delivery guy.
Have you been thinking about an iPad? You can get 2 of those and have enough left over to pick up an iPhone.

Now, back to reality and more importantly, what will that extra cash will do for your budget?

Again, this is not effective until January 22, 2012 and only applies to LETTER size mail, presorted, minimum 500 count. It's not often that the USPS gives us gifts, but we'll certainly take this one!

Jim Cox
Mailing Specialist

How do you like us now?

12/30/2011 2:56:42 PM

Welcome to Richardson Communications Group, formerly known as Richardson Printing. We've spent months researching, designing and polishing to come up with what we feel best represents the sum of all of our parts. And we're still growing. We have lots of information to add to this website, including this blog, that we hope will become a valued source of industry information for our clients. Today, we are so much more than just printing...

Creative Services
Richardson is unique in the fact that we offer full-service graphic design and creative services under the direction of an agency-trained creative director. In addition, Richardson offers complete photography services, from simple still shots to on-location photo shoots.

Print
Richardson is one of the leading commercial sheet-fed printers in the Mid-West. Our broad range of offset printing services allows clients to print a full spectrum of products, from single color manuals to complex, multi-color signage. We're also a full service digital printer offering targeted direct mail campaigns, print-on-demand services and personalized media directives. And our finishing department has both the experienced staff and quality equipment to finish and bind your print jobs, ensuring a polished, professional look every time.

Personalized Media
The age of 24/7 information access has forced businesses to adopt aggressive marketing plans while at the same time stretching marketing budgets as far as they will go. Spreading our branding messages in mass is simply not going to cut it any more. We must personalize our communications through multiple touch points, on a continuous basis, all the while gathering and compiling data for segmentation that will allow for very specific conversations with specific consumers, thus strengthening those relationships. Let us assist you on a social media or email marketing campaign!

Promotional Products
Promotional items imprinted with your company logo are great for building awareness, loyalty or promoting a cause. They make wonderful event, sales or tradeshow giveaways as well as corporate gifts and more. You have access to a wide selection of these customizable promotional products through the Promotional Products Division at Richardson, a team certified by the Advertising Specialty Institute.

Packaging
When it comes to packaging, Richardson not only provides superior graphic quality and unique finishing, but our creative team can expertly develop and engineer effective designs that support your branding efforts.

Point-of-Purchase
Richardson is extremely experienced in the retail environment. From signage programs to temporary and semi-permanent displays, our knowledge of substrates and store compliance regulations makes us key partners in your retail initiatives. Not only do we offer structural engineering and prototyping, but our strategic alliances with partner facilities allow us to offer turnkey solutions. And we'll manage your programs through the entire process, including assembly and pack-out services on-site at our facility.

Fulfillment
Keeping this integral part of the production process in-house at Richardson allows for greater quality control and ownership of each project. This translates to higher execution rates, greater cost efficiencies, and increased ROI for our valued clients! We can handle inventoried programs, customized kitting, and handwork all under one roof.

Mailing
In-house mailing has arrived at Richardson! High postage costs can threaten the profitability of your marketing or promotional campaign, and a mailing campaign’s largest cost is the money spent on postage. Our experienced professionals can guide you in the design and structure of your piece to make sure you are getting the most bang for your postage-buck. From software technicians who are experts on postal regulations to physical machinery for ink jetting, inserting, sealing and bundling – Richardson is your turnkey mailing provider.

We've got it all, let us put it to work for you. Contact your account representative or drop us a line and let's get started on your next success story today!

Richardson Communications Group
Experience. Service. Innovation.

Michelle Ferguson
Creative Director