Exploiting Variable Data Print For Direct Mail

Variable data is a hot topic these days. Publicity on the subject is fuelled largely by the significantly increased response rates that can be achieved by personalised direct mail campaigns.

Variable data is a hot topic these days.

Publicity on the subject is fuelled largely by the significantly increased response rates that can be achieved by personalised direct mail campaigns.

And, according to Chris Hopwood, the managing director of Telekinesys Software, direct mail's results, because of variable data printing, are impressive, with claims of 10 per cent responses commonplace and 80 per cent, or more, have also been heard of.

However, Hopwood believes that personalised mail should be seen as just one piece of the jigsaw and in response to our editorial in the July 17 issue of Printingtalk's weekly email newsletter, he outlines variable data's potential,whilst examining some fundamental points for users of the technology to bear in mind.

"When a new technology attracts so much publicity, there is a tendency to see it as a 'magic bullet'.

However, those in marketing should not expect to simply buy some software, send out some personalised mailshots and wait for the money to roll in.

"The success of personalised mail should encourage them to examine how their other marketing activities, or indeed any type of interaction with their customers, could benefit from a personal approach, or be improved in other ways.

Personalised mailshots can then be planned as part of an overall marketing strategy designed to deliver a better overall customer and supplier experience.

"The success of personalised mail can be attributed to the age-old truism that everyone's favourite subject is themselves.

"With that in mind, the objective must be to use that fact to make the recipient feel that the supplier understands he or she and therefore, they can conclude that the product or service on offer is likely to meet their needs.

Variable data direct mail's success stories show that the principle works.

"However, the market need to view such success as being 'so far, so good'.

In practical terms, all that the personalised item really shows is that the supplier has some personal data about the recipient and has used it in a novel way, such as an image of the person's name on a car windscreen sun visor, or by a aeroplane sky-writing it.

"To maximise the benefits of personalised mail, all customer and supplier interactions need to be personalised and, much more than, personal detail data needs to be collected and used to enhance the relationship.

In reality, when someone receives a personalised mailer, they know they have not actually been singled out for personal attention, especially if it contains what is obviously the same reply paid card or phone number that everyone else gets.

"The mailer may promise to be the start of a beautiful friendship, but the recipient will still be sceptical until it is delivered.

The mailshot needs to lead to further personalised interaction for the promise of individual attention to be borne out in practice.

"For example, prospective customers can be offered an incentive, such as a free gift or product trial, to visit a website.

When they do, they are personally 'welcomed' and an interactive 'conversation' follows up the mailer with a few appropriate questions.

"The result is that as well as getting their incentive, the prospective customers can see that the supplier really does want to understand them and their needs.

The supplier gains very valuable information about the prospective customers and that can be used to generate relevant follow-up actions.

"For example, the prospects can be offered a genuinely personalised response, such as an instant personal quotation, a test drive of an appropriate car, or further information, such as a personalised brochure, which they could view on-line, download, or be sent by post.

Wherever possible, the personal relationship begun in this way should continue as the prospects become customers and, it is hoped, a repeat and then a lifetime customer.

"Of course, the attempt to achieve that needs to be supported by technology.

Personalisation products can provide an effective way to begin the relationship but other systems are needed to maintain the personal touch throughout the business transactions that ensue.

Such systems should be web-based, so that the customer and supplier can interact on-line whenever and wherever appropriate.

"Those systems also need the potential to function differently for each user, to reflect their personal preferences and they need to record a full history of the relationship, so that each transaction reflects all those that went before it.

"The success of personalised mail using variable data printing shows how well people respond to being treated like individuals.

It also highlights the inadequacies of other impersonal parts of the customer experience, such as call centres and voice mail systems.

"The challenge for marketing and IT departments is to provide systems that truly reflect what customers want, rather than the suppliers desire to save money." Telekinesys Software specialises in web-based systems for marketing campaign management and procurement.

Its flagship product is Equator, a database-driven workflow software suite that allows customers and suppliers to collaborate on-line.

the company said that Equator is used by household name customers including retailers, financial institutions and other organisations.

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