Recently one of the direct mail marketing examples< I received stood out beyond the rest of my mail and I thought an analysis of this piece would be useful to you.

Let’s begin with this marketing examples envelope and why and how it got me to rip it open in the first place.

This marketing examples envelope is using two smart techniques for making sure I opened it.

The first technique is that I can see the “$233.00 Credit Adjustment” showing through the window. This even got me to stop and wonder why I would be receiving a “credit adjustment” from Automotive News. It gets me thinking I have money coming my way and there’s no way I am not going to open it to find out more.

The other technique is the use of a simulated bar code and DO NOT BEND note. This is designed to convey to the recipient that the contents of this envelope are important.

For those of you who do direct mail, start collecting marketing examples, because this example is a great study on the one of the primary jobs of an envelope, which is to get the recipient to open it.

Let’s move on into what was inside the envelope.

The first marketing example is the order form. Since they piqued my interest with the “credit adjustment” they continue the storyline and I now see that the “credit adjustment” is really a discount in disguise. It’s critically important that if you have some type of teaser on the outside of your envelope, you make sure the contents inside are congruent with the same message.

Personally, I like this credit adjustment grabber and think many folks looking at these marketing examples could figure out a way to do something similar.

Other important techniques illustrated in this marketing example:

- They’re making me an “Industry Insider” offer, which makes me feel special.

- They listed the out savings and benefits for easy reference and to attract any skimmers. They are also using their email newsletter as a bonus to the purchase.

- Dated call to action requires fast action (remember if there’s no deadline, there’s no offer).

- They’re offering an Unconditional Money Back Guarantee and I suggest you check out the copy… “Although we’ve made the cost relatively negligible for you, still if you are ever dissatisfied for any reason, you’ll get a full refund on all un-mailed issues with no questions asked.”

The other piece that was inside the envelope (besides the business reply envelope) was a “buck slip” that showed both bonus gifts I would receive, if I subscribed (smart strategy).

This piece is notable because:

- They’re offering not one, but two free gifts with an order.

- Personalized free offer that makes the reader feel good! The personalized mug will have YOUR name on it and it is made special for the customer. The note “Automotive Genius of the Year,” promotes the customer as a genius for purchasing a subscription

- Quantities are limited, so they create urgency to act fast before they run out

Of course the one thing they’re not doing is using CopyDoodles® for making certain parts of this marketing examples pieces stand out, but overall there are a number of smart strategies you can swipe for your next mailing!

If I’ve missed anything or you have any other suggestions on how to improve marketing examples pieces, leave a comment below!

The big lesson for today is understanding how to create marketing that crosses the goal line.  What I mean is, in many cases marketing will get somebody to a certain point in the process and then not create the final and necessary steps to score (a.k.a. get the prospect to take action).

Using a football metaphor, it’s similar to getting to the five yard line and then not being able to get a touchdown.  All the work to get them to a certain point has been done, but not the necessary final push to score.

In my pile of mail today, I received a direct mail advertisement that exemplifies this short-coming.  Let’s walk through both the letter and the envelope it came in. The blue notes are my notes to you to illustrate the good and bad points

When I received this direct mail advertisement envelope, it looked very personal (except for the indicia) which gave it away as business mail.  The direct mail advertisement was hand-written in real handwriting, taking it to the 5 yard line, but then the company used an indicia versus a live stamp, which prevented the score. Even though this was a mistake the marketer receives a B+ for effort.  Now let’s look at the letter.

This direct mail advertisement letter is a classic example of doing a few good things, but several really dumb things that negate all the good work.  First the good things:

• Personalization increases response and increases conversion.

• Hand-signed signature conveys a real “me to you” letter so it appears to be coming from a real person.

Unfortunately, that’s about it for good techniques.  Now for the bad…

• Logo at top of letter tells me right way this is not personal correspondence (I wonder why they can afford a color logo, but not “real” printing for the envelope?)

• Copy is very weak and is classic, corporate-style copy.  It’s all about them and not my pains and concerns.  When writing copy, always keep your prospect and his pains in mind.  Remember, your reader is always thinking W.I.I.F.M – “what’s in it for me?”

• This direct mail advertisement has no strong call to action.  No urgency.  All he is doing is warning me that he’s going to call.  It would have been much better if he gave me the opportunity to raise my hand and request information from him.

• Telling me to visit their Web site without giving me a reason to visit is worthless and a waste of prime copy real estate.

• Other side of the direct mail advertisement letter was completely blank and could have been used for testimonials, etc.

So there you have it.  A business to business direct mail advertisement letter that had the makings of a pretty decent direct mail package that fails to cross the goal line.

If you’re going to do the hard work of marketing your product or service, make sure you go follow through and create marketing that grabs attention and converts.

Remember, getting all the way to the five yard line, regardless of how you got there, doesn’t count for anything!

Click on the link to download a PDF of this direct mail advertisement envelope and letter example.