The death of email...

Isn't it funny how things seem to come full circle?

In the recent past we have seen a decline in the success of Electronic Direct Mail (EDM). People have become almost numb to any form of email marketing, no matter how compelling the headline or wake up call.

When we first started doing email marketing in around 1995 it was almost a guaranteed read - people were excited by the idea of mail delivered in this way. In fact even less than compelling message would get through. We used to create all kinds of funky animated mailers (with dragons breathing fire and dogs with savage jaws etc etc!) People were genuinely impressed and the mailers were a great success.

Thus began the decline of the printed mailer. Everyone began to jump on the email marketing bandwagon - with 'experts' springing up all over the place. And for a while it worked and it worked well. But technology and legislation have a way of catching up pretty quickly and we started to see new laws and new technology beginning to get in the way of EDM.

Spam filters began to show up in larger companies on their mail servers - and some mail was 'rejected'. Clients wanted to know why their mail was not getting through. New legislation governing non-solicitation began to stifle legitimate mail. And worst of all thousands of spam engines began to spit out mail after mail bombarding us with, well, to put it bluntly, crap.

Not only that but we saw the rise of malware - these vicious little virus programs attach themselves to emails and infected networks, some really evil ones could render an entire network dead in seconds...It was becoming clear that email had to be policed.

And so it was, that with a combination of policing, legislation, scale and sheer volume, people began to look for ways to reduce mail, to filter it and to protect their networks. All this progress has virtually rendered email marketing as we know it, relatively ineffective.

Help me Obi Wan Kenobi, you're my only hope...

There is a way to engage clients and prospects. And it does not cost the earth if you want a genuine return on your investment. Try this for an idea...send them a mailer. Not an email, but a genuine printed or written mailer. You may spend more money on it but you will see a much better return. Of course you can follow this up with an EDM piece and no doubt your prospect will have become more attuned to your message by this time...

Direct mail works - its proven and it delivers. Yes its more expensive (after all you have to post the damn things) but for the right kind of product or service it cannot be beaten for ROI.

At Parkhouse Evans we think that an integrated approach is best. With a combination of traditional mail, EDM and a good old call out is STILL one of the best ways to reach your market. Couple this with an up to date database and you should see some great results. Get on to the traditional DM bandwagon now and be first to market with the 'brand new' medium!

You may surprise your sales department and your MD...

Give us a call now on 01332 291141 to find out how an integrated mail campaign can help your business and we'll show you how.