Web to Print Solutions

In the new now, companies are increasingly looking for ways to increase their productivity while decreasing their cost. One sure way to make this happen is to use an online digital catalog from your local marketing and print provider. The benefit of instituting this type of system are numerous, such as consistent look and feel of marketing collateral for remote sales associates, the ability to understand which marketing collateral pieces are being used by distributors and which marketing collateral pieces are not getting traction in the market place. Another great benefit of this type of solution for customers is to have a full service marketing and print provider handle all of the fulfillment and mailing services associated with your online order. This is cost effective as you do not have to worry about the time and cost associated with personnel working on projects that are not your core competencies.
One example of a customer that has taken full advantage of this solution is a major pharmaceutical company with well over 1000 sales representatives located throughout the eastern portion of the United States. They have placed over 20 different product brochures on their web site, with each brochure having a series of 10 product collateral flyers. Sales representatives have the ability to order any of the product brochures using the online tool which has shopping cart functionality, secure online ordering ability and automatic order review prior to order placement. At the end of the month the management team has the ability to review what each region has ordered, the cost of the product, cost of shipping and cost of fulfillment. This process saves the company several thousands of dollars each year in shipping and printing cost and ensures that the brand image is maintained.
If you would like to discuss how an online ordering site can benefit your company in terms of increasing productivity and decreasing operational cost, please contact Duane Hampton at AlphaGraphics Mason at 513-229-3600.

Charitable Donations Decline; Direct Mail Still Key to Fundraising

By Chantal Tode on June 9th, 2010

Overall charitable donations fell 3.6% in 2009 for a total of $303.75 billion while individual giving fell an estimated 0.4%, according to a new report from Giving USA Foundation.

Overall, the results were better than expected for a year beset by economic turmoil and predictions that non-profit organizations would be among those most hurt by the financial pinch.

Education, grant making foundations, arts and culture organizations and public-society benefit organizations all saw a decline in giving last year while donations were up for human services, health, international aid and environmental/animal-related charities, according to the report.

A separate report from Target Analytics reviews fundraising performance by channel. Direct mail was the channel of delivery for 68% of fundraising revenue in 2009, according to Target Analytics’ report on direct marketing fundraising. While the proportion of revenue coming in online has been growing steadily, it accounted for only 9% of fundraising revenue in 2009 while 3% came in through telemarketing.

Most new donors are acquired through the mail, according to the Target Analytics report, with 87% of all new donors acquired via direct mail. While the proportion of donors acquired online is growing rapidly, only 12% of new donors were acquired online in 2009.

For some interesting ideas on how non-profits are effectively using direct mail, check out this article on the Association of Fundraising Professionals Web site, which discusses the growing importance of mail-recruited monthly donors, using direct mail to get close to donors and how direct mail plays well with other channels.

At AlphaGraphics we have designed and implemented several direct mail campaigns. Examples include variable data programs, PURL campaigns and regular direct mail programs. If you are interested in increasing donations to your favorite charity then we need to have a conversation.

Duane Hampton, President of AlphaGraphics

Saving Dollars when the Budget is Tight

During the past several months printing and advertising budgets have fallen dramatically. To help minimize your printing costs, thePrintGuide.Com would like to offer these helpful tips to keep your printing project on budget.
The main objective when printing anything is efficiency. How efficient are you? How efficient is your printer? How can I get the printer to be sympathetic to my needs as a consumer? These are questions you must stop and ask yourself before starting your work or choosing a printer.
• Developing a relationship with your printer is the most important objective. You should feel confident asking your printer about optimizing efficiency. Here are a few tips to help you do so.
• Always ask the printer for recommendations. Whether it is paper type or the number of inks being used, a good printer will always be able to help you find what’s best and most efficient for your project.
• Always ask the printer about reducing paper waste. This is very important and can be quite expensive if not accomplished. In most cases, the paper or material cost is the largest part of the printers’ expense. Get the paper or material cost down and the price is sure to be lower.
• One color is always going to be least expensive to print. Keep your color designs to a minimum if possible. You’ll not only save money on ink but on the costs of the printing plates as well.
• Consider having your work printed on colored stock. This could save money if you were planning on a two colored print job.
• Print projects with bleeds typically cost more. Avoid a bleed if possible as this will help keep the amount of material lower (therefore lowering your costs).

At Alphagraphics Mason we have over 40 years of print and marketing experience. You can feel confident that we will combine the right look and feel to meet your budget constraints. Additionally, it is all about ROI at the end of the day. By working with Alphagraphics we will work with you to design a solution that will exceed your expectations. We have the ability to acquire a targeted customer list, graphically design the direct mail, implement the latest PURL campaign methodologies and follow up with your customers after the mailing.

Elements to Consider in Developing a Direct Marketing Plan

Posted On: MBDA website


What is the best way to reach my customers directly?

The four elements to consider in developing a direct marketing plan are goals, target customers, strategy of the offer, testing of the program and measuring success.

Goals

Generally speaking, a direct marketing program is used to secure sales directly from the producer of product or provider of service to the intended customer. A response rate of 2 percent is considered successful. This does not imply that 98% of the program was unsuccessful; just that those targeted customers were not ready to purchase at that particular time. The targeted customers certainly became more aware of the product or service and will be given the opportunity to buy again at a later date.

Other goals for a direct marketing approach can be assisting the sales process by identifying prospective customers or educating the targeted customers. Be clear about the goals of the program so that you can measure the program’s success.

Target Customers
Crucial to the success of any direct marketing program is the target market. The more qualified the customer, the more likely the sale. Qualifying issues can be age, gender, income, education level, geographic location, previous mail-order purchases, etc. For most start-up businesses, targeted customer lists can be obtained through groups such as the Chamber of Commerce, professional trade associations, etc.

Lists are available for sale with either some minimum dollar value or minimum number of prospects. Purchasing a list is a good way to supplement your target customer database, but external lists can have duplicate names, incomplete data, etc., so testing purchased lists is always a good idea.

Strategy of the Offer
It is necessary to develop an effective offer strategy that meets the target customer’s needs. Included for consideration are the product or service, the offer (reason to buy at this time), the medium and the distribution method.

Choose the product or service that is the most attractive to the targeted customers and create an offer that will move the customer to purchase. For example, if your business is carpet cleaning, your offer might be targeted for spring cleaning and include a discount of two rooms cleaned for the price of one. The more convenient and attractive the offer, the better results will be obtained.

Choice of medium is also important. Oversized postcards can be very effective, since there is no envelope to open and the offer can be stated boldly so the potential customer doesn’t miss the message. If your choice is included in an envelope, be sure something eye-catching is printed on the outside of the envelope; preferably printed in color. A telemarketing campaign might also be a good choice, depending on your budget and ability to launch an effective campaign. Telemarketers need a good script, practice and training to be successful. One advantage of a telemarketing campaign is the ability to obtain information about your product or service, whether or not the potential customer purchases the item offered.

Testing the Program
Each element of the program should be tested. Was the choice of product or service the appropriate item? Was the offer attractive enough? Was it offered to the right customer? Was the medium the best choice for reaching the customer? Follow up is necessary to determine that each element was the appropriate choice, and follow up should be directed to both customers who purchased the product or service and those who did not.

Measuring Success
Success of direct marketing programs can be measured in two ways: the tangible results of dollars spent versus revenues produced and the intangible results of information obtained about the market and customers.

On-and-Off Relationship

Pennsylvania college uses direct mail to court Facebook users

Targeting

Sometimes to connect with people online you must get their attention through an offline channel first — which is exactly what
Pennsylvania’s Rosemont College did when looking to increase traffic on its Facebook® page.

The private college sent 900 personalized postcards and a series of e-mails inviting recent graduates to a weeklong virtual party on Facebook aimed at reengaging alumni and encouraging future financial support.

The effort pitted graduating classes against one another to see which could contribute the most. It also boosted Rosemont’s
Facebook friends by a whopping 587 percent, says Christyn Moran, Rosemont’s vice president of college relations.

Moran adds that follow-up postcards with personalized URLs were sent to grads not in attendance so they could still connect with the college. — Christine Hansen,discover magazine, volume 6, issue 2, April 2010

Let me desgin a PURL campaign for you. Visit us at http://us123.alphagraphics.com

Scouting Donors

Multichannel approach helps ‘Support the Sash’

Multichannel

When faced with declining donations and the need for more volunteers, the Girl Scouts – Arizona Cactus-Pine
Council (GSACPC) launched a multichannel campaign that, ultimately, increased average donations from $50 to $250.

Its “Support the Sash” initiative employed direct mail, e-mail, personalized URLs (PURLs), social media and telemarketing to connect with 3,100 potential donors, most of whom were Girl Scout alumni.

The outreach effort began with postcards tailored to four age groups, creating an emotional connection to Girl Scouting and inviting recipients to visit a PURL. The result? A 5-percent individual response rate, with repeat PURL visits boosting total response to more than 8 percent, says Robin Telle, GSACPC communications manager.

“You need to reach out through a variety of channels to cut through the clutter,” Telle says. “We were successful because we gave people choices on how to engage with the council.” — Christine Hansen, deliver magazine, volume 6, issue 2, April 2010

We can help!! http://us123.alphagraphics.com

Saving Dollars when the Budget is Tight

During the past several months printing and advertising budgets have fallen dramatically. To help minimize your printing costs, thePrintGuide.Com would like to offer these helpful tips to keep your printing project on budget.
The main objective when printing anything is efficiency. How efficient are you? How efficient is your printer? How can I get the printer to be sympathetic to my needs as a consumer? These are questions you must stop and ask yourself before starting your work or choosing a printer.

• Developing a relationship with your printer is the most important objective. You should feel confident asking your printer about optimizing efficiency. Here are a few tips to help you do so.
• Always ask the printer for recommendations. Whether it is paper type or the number of inks being used, a good printer will always be able to help you find what’s best and most efficient for your project.
• Always ask the printer about reducing paper waste. This is very important and can be quite expensive if not accomplished. In most cases, the paper or material cost is the largest part of the printers’ expense. Get the paper or material cost down and the price is sure to be lower.
• Using one color is always going to be least expensive to print. Keep your color designs to a minimum if possible. You’ll not only save money on ink but on the costs of the printing plates as well.
• Consider having your work printed on colored stock. This could save money if you were planning on a two colored print job.
• Print projects with bleeds typically cost more. Avoid a bleed if possible as this will help keep the amount of material lower (therefore lowering your costs).

AlphaGraphics of Greater Cincinnati has skilled professionals on staff that have more than 30 years of experience in the printing industry. This level of experience will assist you with determining the right paper and the right ink at the right price. Since we have both offset and digital printing capabilities you can be assured that the best options will be used with our printing projects.

Once the project is complete, AlphaGraphics of Greater Cincinnati can also assist you with meeting the objective of the marketing collateral. If you need to make sure that the collateral is sent to a target audience, we can help you. If you want to leverage the collateral with other marketing media such as trade shows, social media or web sites we can help you.