It's no secret that the USPS is suffering financially, politically and every other which way.  As usual, it is all very complicated and there are no easy answers.

What we do know is that First Class Mail finances the Direct Marketing industry.  So let's start to use First Class Mail.

Get back to sending hand-written cards and letters.  Reduce your Federal Express bills and your carbon foot-print by sending 1- and 2-Day packages via the USPS.

Use the USPS to ship your parcels to your customers.

We can help turn the tides for the USPS but we have to be involved and support it personally and professionally and urge those around us to do the same.  If we don't, it won't be the USPS we lose, but businesses and money due to higher Standard Class Rates.

As the saying goes "Use it or lose it."

It is tough knowing you need more sales but not knowing how to go about it.  You started your business with passion and drive and now you need infrastructure and a plan for growth.

Believe it or not, you are in good company.  Most small businesses are started with a dream, but all too few take the time to do market research, write a complete business plan (including the marketing plan and corresponding budget) and invest some of the precious start-up funds in making informed decisions. Most likely it is done like many businesses--on a wing and a prayer.

But don't despair, it is never too late to implement plans and infrastructure.  If you've been in business a while, you'll want to start with a SWOT analysis (Analyzing your Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats).  That will lay the groundwork for your plan and future growth.

There are a lot of tools on the web to get you started, but if you lack time, energy and know-how, give us a call.  We can help.

Have you heard yourself or someone else you know say:

It’s just a website.

It’s only one color.

We simply need sales.

#1--Right from the start, there is nothing easy about websites. Be prepared to invest time, money and brain power to finding a developer, what language the site should be built in, buying URL’s, transferring URL’s, making decisions on details you never knew existed (or even mattered) and spending more time and money than you had imagined.

#2--Even if it prints in black and white there are still details and processes. They cost money. And the primary cost of any ink-on-paper is the paper. If you like things on paper, you’ll need to pay for the paper.

#3--Needing sales means more customers. More customers mean more income. And, we all know that you have to give something to get something. If you want more customers, you need to engage those people (marketing) OR provide AMAZING products or services, or both. Either way, you need to spend money to get the word out and to continue supplying those amazing products or services, but you’ll be creating value either way and that brings in sales.

The point being that although the effort or solution sounds easy, scratch the surface and there is a need for more planning and resources—time, brain-power, man-power, money, commitment and conviction—to make the effort The Solution you hoped it would be.

Watch those pennies and the dollars take care of themselves...

I've been involved in ink-on-paper-and-into-the-mail for over 20 years and I've learned that very few companies take print buying seriously.  I guess the thought is that as long as the award goes to the lowest price or longest-tenured vendor that everything is as it should be.  Knowing the direct mail/printing industry as intimately as I do (and the costs associated with it), I'm dismayed by the lack of concern.

What if your print purchasing agent is bidding a small run of a small postcard with three vendors with giant presses rather than placing it with a vendor with smaller equipment and an inside lettershop (saving money in freight, production and postage)?  You're spending money you don't need to spend.

Has your purchasing group vetted up to 6 catalog vendors, including drop ship freight, paper grades/weights and comail/cobind opportunities and savings with every contract renewal?  If not, you could be spending way more than you need to on that catalog.

My point is that there is a broad range of equipment sizes and capability nuances that most purchasing groups don't know about or have time to research and manage.  These groups are entrusted with hundreds of thousands and into the millions of dollars for print and postage.

Are you sure they are watching the pennies?

Contact us if you want to be certain.

I'm just returning from the always fabulous, educational, motivational and engaging Direct Xchange/NEMOA Conference.  Many thank you's to everyone I met and spoke with for sharing your experiences and wealth of knowledge with me.  I am most grateful.

I had a number of hours to sit and ponder the over-arching theme of conversations on my drive home last night.  It is clear we are all in survival mode, with a recession, consumer confidence being down, the state of the USPS and now the taxation and privacy laws that Hamilton Davison of the ACMA was so kind to impart (some might say "scare us to death with" but I wanted to be kind to dear Hamilton).

But I see this situation as Survival Mode in a war, which is much different than foraging for food as a traditional survivor would.  In a war you have to be brave, take chances, fall down and try again.  You have to be shrewd and calculating and willing to take some losses.  In a war, those who don't learn and adapt perish.  In a war you can't count on someone else to save your butt, YOU have to do it AND try to save others in the process.

BUT, one of the many downsides of war is that war is costs money.  It takes time, manpower and LOTS of willpower and money to stay the course and see it through to success.

In relation to my Direct Marketing comrades and the struggles they are going through I say this: "DO NOT BE AFRAID."  You must put on your helmet and motivate your troops.  You're not going down without a fight.  Sure money is tight, but to win you must spend it to make it and direct marketing costs time and money, as we all know.

You must start doing something DIFFERENT.  Test, measure, test, and do it again.  But do it now.  Get back to DM basics and don't be motivated by fear of losing (money, time, opportunity or face).  Learn from your failures, tweak your plan and move on.

The good news is that it is only money.  if something goes wrong "They" won't show up and chop off fingers or take your kids.  I promise.  If you try, your troops will be motivated and you and your organization will be fine, and in most cases, better than fine.

Those that know me or read my blog know that I am smart, curious and insightful and not afraid to ask questions or try new things. I'd love an opportunity to get in the trenches with you and your troops, brainstorm and figure a way out of this bunker, but only if you are willing to try.

I once got a fortune that said "some see a challenge as a mountain, you experience it as a better view."

One of the most important lesson about business, customer service, and sales is that every challenge is an opportunity.  It has been true every time.  The difference is in your perception.

Flip the internal dialogue on it's head and be part of the change and recovery.  Be happy and confident and those around you will be too.  Being positive isn't always easy, but it is definitely rewarding when those challenges you've turned into opportunity flourish.

Go get 'em!

I am dedicated to the growth of small and large businesses.  What I think a lot of people don't realize is that growth requires a Plan.  A Plan that includes vision and commitment--a commitment of resources (time, money and talent) and a commitment to follow The Plan and stay on course, regardless of the overwhelming distractions presented to us on a daily basis.

I liken the commitment to The Plan to trying to lose weight.  It's all about choices.  There will always be temptations to veer off course that, maybe done once in a while, won't have long-term implications to your business (or waistline).  But, once you choose that path, it is so easy to rationalize doing it again and again until, before you know it, you're off course and further away from achieving your vision and goals (and your pants are still tight).

It isn't always easy to stay committed, but it is absolutely rewarding.  And, the more you do it and reach your benchmarks, the easier it gets (and the better your pants fit).  The most important thing is to keep trying!

Every business seeks someone they can count on.

The same is true of the prospects and customers you seek to serve:

• An expert to lend a hand when you’re not sure where to go next or how to get it all done.
• A trusted advisor to give it to you straight.
• A strategist who is as vested in your missions and objectives as you are.
• A partner who won’t take advantage of you.

These are the tenets of every rock-solid, not-gonna-let-you-down relationship.

Management and execution of your direct marketing program—or any other multi-party project—can be challenging.  Most of these projects involve marketing, IT, accounting, merchandising, upper management, creative, copy writing, list selection and other vendors. Just trying to synthesize the RFQ’s and massage numbers in order to get an “apples to apples” comparison is a tremendous task unto itself.

Did you know that many successful direct marketing campaigns start with the copywriter, and in many cases, that person serves as the creative director?  Our copywriters will review the strategic objective for your initiative, conduct market and other research in order to tailor your message and develop direct marketing concepts.  This information is then communicated to our talented designers for translation of the concepts and message into a visual representation.

But we know that not every assignment warrants a full-blown redesign. We can help improve the copy in your catalog, on your web site, or provide a complete overhaul of either.  From simple tweaks—to total re-branding and messaging—we can help.

Check out some of our work on the Portfolio page.