The recent talk of postcards and brochures got me to thinking of direct mail envelopes. I've noticed a trend recently that many companies are going with "important looking" envelopes. One recent one came in one of those "envelopes" where you have to tear the top off, then tear the sides off before you can get it open. You know, the kind the bank usually sends your pin number in. It was a pain in the rear to open, and inside I was rewarded with a credit card application. Other envelopes are hand written on the front like you're getting a letter from a friend and then you open it up and it's all about how you should refinance your mortgage.

When I open these, I often make some sort of grumbling noise and toss them in the trash. I usually feel like a buffoon for being tricked into opening them. On the other hand, if it ended up being something I really wanted, then perhaps I would still buy.

My question is: How does everyone else feel about these? I'm looking for the consumer perspective. Do you think "Oh, clever idea", or do you grumble like I do? I'm very curious to see how people answer.

My feeling is that I have little respect for company that tricks me into opening their envelope. If someone is really interested in your biz, having a good tagline would be enough to convince them to open and read it.
I have on occassions kept ads or letters that I had interest in.

Anyone else agree with me?

I use simple white envelopes with hand written address and a real stamp where possible.

It's not that I am trying to trick anyone into opening a letter. More that I want them to feel the letter is personal.

It goes without saying that each letter is sent to an individual by name.

Personally I have not done any testing of envelope design, teaser copy, graphics or the like. As a consultant it may be something I should have tested but I really prefer the personal approach.

And before anyone says it is impractical to hand write many thousands of envelopes, how about trying some of the handwriting fonts freely available. At first glance many of them look pretty convincing.

The biggest trends in direct mail envelopes are to make them look personal and then to make them bumpy. AT&T just sent out a marketing piece which was a pillow envelope. Inside was a piece of styrofoam to hold the pillow and a magnet with the marketing info. Well the styrofoam was lame (or laime?) but my wife could not resist opening it. A friend of mine sends a letter telling about his company and what his product can do for you with a nice ($5 or better). Or at least he would send you the outside of the pen. In the letter he would tell you that he would drop by to give you the other half.

Of course, all of these ideas are to a very targetted list.

The top tips on envelopes for successful direct mail campaigns are:

- Use blue font that resembles handwriting (as someone else mentioned)
- Use a stamp, not a postage meter (as the same person also mentioned)
- Put an attention-getting statement on the envelope that'll make the recipient WANT to open the envelope.

The most memorable/powerful statement I've seen on a junk mail envelope was a testimonial from the actor Willem Dafoe saying whatever magazine this was for "...is one of the only magazines that I actually read cover to cover."

Postcards are still the best way to get a person's attention since you can't help but look at them even if you do throw them out. The message was still received. And having an oversized, great-looking postcard die-cut in a cool shape will definitely get someone's attention and NOT get lost in the pile of mail. I discovered these -- http://www.shipshapes.com/ -- and plan to use them in a future direct mail campaign. (No, I am not an affiliate)

Thanks for the shipshapes website. I was looking for something like this where I can get the whole process done. Didn't have too much info on their website as far as their portfolilo. Have you done work w/ them before?

I'm interested in other resources like this as well.

No, I haven't yet but they came highly recommended by one of the top marketing gurus. Once I get a designer to create a logo I have in mind, I'm going to have them create the cards in it's shape. Bet that'll be a huge boon to my marketing efforts!

I heard the post office does postcards too. You design them (pick their photos or upload yours), address them (export the info), and pay for them on their site -- http://www.premiumpostcard.com/php/uspsstart.php3 -- and they send them out. I think it's just a few cents more than the postage on each card. I don't know if there's any quantity requirements. But I don't think they offer those cool shapes like http://www.ShipShapes.com does.

The die cut postcards are a great idea as far as standing out, but so far none of our clients have been interested because the postage is so much higher than a regular postcard. I've heard the response rates are increased by as much as 30% when using the die cuts, but when we checked with our local mailing house, the postage was triple that of a regular postcard.

Let me just say that if you're considering the direct mail route...postcards are definately the way to go.

Over the past six months, I have sent out 150 different mailers (yes, I'm a small business)

50 letters, 50 brochures, and 50 postcards.

Each one contained a different discount proposal to existing clients, and also gave them additional discounts for any clients referred.

Of the 50 letters and 50 brochures, I received 4 phone calls back. Of the 50 postcards; 12 calls. I feel they definately carried my message much better. Clients also liked the 3-d renders I had put on the front of the post cards.

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