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August 31, 2021

Paper Companies Invest in Doing Good

There’s more to loving paper than what it does for your marketing. Did you know that many paper companies are regularly involved in sustainability and community initiatives that make a difference in the world around us?

Here are five examples of the types of initiatives paper companies are involved in every day.

1. International Paper, The Navigator Company, and Stora Enso support Forests Forward. These forward-thinking paper companies, along with other industry giants such as IKEA and Lowe’s, are working with the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) on an initiative called Forests Forward, whose mission is to deliver “science-driven strategies to benefit nature, the climate, and people.” Among Forest Forward’s goals are to stop deforestation and forest degradation and protect biodiversity while promoting sustainable livelihoods.

2. Domtar supports biodiversity. Domtar Paper is partnering with the American Forest Foundation (AFF) to support biodiversity conservation. AFF initiatives are designed to help protect at-risk or endangered wildlife, especially in the Southeastern United States. AFF’s biodiversity conservation program began with a pilot project in Alabama that focused on managing the longleaf pine, home to more than 800 plant and animal species.

3. Neenah Paper provides supplies to the homeless. Neenah is making a difference for the homeless in Fox Valley, GA. The papermaker recently donated 80 cases of toilet paper and paper towels to area crisis facilities.

4. WestRock donates land for environmental protection. WestRock has donated 64 acres of land to the Mohawk Hudson Land Conservancy (MHLC). This beautiful stretch of land situated just west of the Hudson River in the town of Bethlehem, NY, is described as “a rarity,” considering the development that has rapidly claimed many of the river valley’s natural spaces. WestRock’s generous donation will ensure that this tract of land will be protected for generations to come.

5. International Paper supports a local elementary school. When Richland Upper Elementary School (Richland, MS) struggled to ensure that all of its students had enough school supplies, International Paper’s Jackson, MS box plant stepped in to ensure that they had everything from paper to pencils. Not only did the students benefit, but so did the teachers, who otherwise would have had to buy those supplies with money from their own pockets.

Just a few more reasons to love paper! Need help? Talk to us about our services 713.956.8555

August 28, 2021

Do Self-Mailers Have Benefits Over Direct Mail Envelopes? You Bet!

Do Self-Mailers Have Benefits Over Direct Mail Envelopes? You Bet!

For many businesses, direct mail letters are their “go-to.” They are inexpensive to produce, can include BREs and other inserts, and depending on the design, can seem more personal than self-mailers. Still, the popularity of self mailers is growing. They, too, are inexpensive and have many benefits.

Self-mailers are created when a single piece of paper is folded to create a self-contained mailing format. Depending on the size of the sheet, self-mailers can be folded into two or more panels. They can be sealed using glue lines, wafer seals, or glue spots along the edge. SEO tools

Let’s take a look at some of their benefits:

Because they require no envelope, self-mailers have no envelope or inserting costs. This makes them a great option for tight budgets.
When unfolded, self-mailers provide lots of real estate for graphics and messaging.
Even on digital presses, self mailers can be printed on a wide variety of substrates, including heavier substrates.
While we tend to think of self-mailers as simple, folded formats, their substrate flexibility allows them to include pockets and interior panels into which you can insert gift cards, reply cards, or small samples.
Because self-mailers can be digitally printed, they can be fully personalized like any other mailer.

Self-mailers are readily identifiable as marketing mail, so they can have lower response rates. For this reason, some businesses use them for mailing to people with whom they already have a relationship—loyal customers who will open them simply because of their relationship with the brand. Others use them for campaigns in which people want promotional mail. Examples include promotions around clearance sales, new store openings with discounts, and free samples. We see them heavily used around college recruiting, as well.

In the end, choosing the correct format depends on your target audience and the goals of the campaign. Testing will be critical in helping you identify when and where each format will work best for you.

August 20, 2021

Customer Retention Ideas That Don’t Involve Price

Since the start of the coronavirus pandemic, businesses have faced challenges due to the growing instability in brand relationships. Especially during the early days of the pandemic, buyers often switched brands due to changes in availability, logistics, and their own economic situations. This quickly challenged businesses’ assumptions about their customers’ loyalty and spotlighted their customer retention efforts.

While “Customer Retention” often brings to mind discounts and deals, this doesn’t always have to be the case. In fact, you want to retain your customers based on more than price alone.

Here are five suggestions for keeping customers engaged that don’t involve the cost.

1. Be mission-minded. Increasingly, consumers, especially younger ones like GenX and Millennials, want to be good global citizens. Feature content about where and how your company invests in things they care about, such as community service, social justice, and environmental initiatives.

2. Offer an exclusive. Sure, customers love discounts, but they love having exclusive access, too. Engage customers in new product development. Give them virtual tours of how you make your products. Give top customers exclusive gifts that make them feel valued and special.

3. Go the extra mile. Have you ever received a card in the mail that you didn’t expect? A special gift “just because”? It makes you feel good and want to continue to engage with the company or person who sent it to you. Do the same for your customers! Create a special mailing (maybe with one of those awesome three-dimensional pop-up cards) with the message: “We just wanted to say thank you for being a great customer. Visit us within the next 10 days and get a free gift—just because.”

4. Teach them something. Come up with a newsletter, webinar, or mobile video teaching customers how to do something related to your company or brand. For example, if you sell crafting supplies, send them a personalized invitation to an in-store crafting class. If you make kitchen gadgets, offer an online tutorial on preparing gourmet meals… using your products, of course.

5. Ask their opinion. Everyone loves to be heard. So ask your customers’ opinions! Send a high-quality direct mail piece with a reply card, an email link, or a personalized URL. Ask their opinion on everything from their favorite products to your in-store displays to how they are treated by your customer service reps. Follow up to let them know how you implemented what you learned. This feedback is meaningful and lets them know you are listening. When they feel you are listening, this translates into deeper customer loyalty and, ultimately, higher sales.

Want more ideas? Let’s talk!

May 24, 2021

Do Your Customers Feel Valued?

All customers can be fickle. Even if you do everything right, they can defect to a competitor. One survey found that, even though 72% of consumers were highly satisfied with the products or services received from the companies they did business with, 88% said that they were willing to switch providers “for any reason”!

Just like you, many of your competitors offer a quality product and service at reasonable prices. How do you keep customers loyal to you? It’s very simple, PAY ATTENTION TO THEM! All things being equal, your customers will naturally go where they consistently feel appreciated and treated well.

Direct mail

You care about your clients, so it’s important to show it. This requires more than offering quality service and good prices. It requires ongoing attentiveness and creativity in your communications. Direct mail is often viewed as a way of winning new customers, but it is a highly effective customer loyalty tool, too. Because print has a tangible cost, sending direct mail (especially personalized mail) says to your customers, “You are worth the effort.”

Make them feel Appreciated

Consider setting up a series of regular mailers throughout the year. Make it a continuous contact program that demonstrates at regular, pre-planned intervals that you are grateful for their business and care about their relationship with you. Some of these may be direct sales solicitations. Others may not. Mix it up!

Send a variety of “thank you for your business” cards, birthday wishes, and recognitions of customer anniversaries.
Mail out customer surveys, showing that you care about what they think and value their opinion.
Offer valuable tips, and send newsletters, press releases, case studies, company brochures, and timely incentives that remind clients of your commitment to service, value, quality, innovation, and loyalty.

Direct mail isn’t just for customer acquisition marketing anymore. It is a critical part of effective customer retention efforts, too. Signature Aspen has delivered over a quarter billion pieces of direct mail, and COUNTING! We have delivered for political, commercial, and retail customers. Be sure to Contact Us or visit our website!

March 8, 2021

5 Tips to Market Like a Leader, During Times of Uncertainty

Marketing is KEY

In today’s “new normal” created by the COVID-19 pandemic, it can be challenging to know how to strike the right balance when it comes to marketing. Many brands are keeping a low profile, waiting for a surge in consumer confidence before restarting their direct mail and email campaigns. However, it should be the opposite! You should instead Market like a leader!

The answer to this is a resounding NO! Your customers want to hear from you, and they need to hear from you. When everything around them is changing, they need to know that you are still there and that they can trust you. 81% of consumers say that their trust that a brand will do what’s right is a deciding factor in their buying decisions (Edelman, 2020).

5 Tips to market like a leader

In today’s uncertain world, marketing is more important than ever, even if it looks a little different than it used to. When crafting your next campaign, here are FIVE TIPS for setting the right tone.

Lead the way. During difficult times, people flock to leaders who exude confidence. Brands can inspire, motivate, and make people feel that everything is going to be okay. Continue to reach out using the theme, “We’re here to help.”
Do good. Consumers like to align with brands that are involved in socially responsible initiatives. Promote outreach programs to your local communities or your giving to national initiatives. For example, a SheerID study found that, during the pandemic, 68% of respondents want brands to donate to programs that provide direct support for medical workers.
Offer to help. For many, this is a time of struggle. Offer deferred payments, ideas for lowering expenses, and so on. Even if your customers don’t need the help themselves, this kind of care and consideration builds brand equity that pays off in the long run.
Be an expert. This is a great time to share expertise that is meaningful to your customers. Think “Top 5 Ways to Save on Lawn Care” or “3 Plumbing Fixes You Can Do Yourself.”
Make life easier. The average consumer is juggling a lot of uncertainty. Will the kids be going back to school? What if I lose my job? Position the benefits of your products in terms of how they can help your customers weather this storm. “Let us help you save 10% on your home electric bill,” or, “We’re offering FREE delivery of pool chemicals all summer long. Stay safe and stay home!”

Brands like Signature Aspen can play a positive role in helping their customers through tough times. We have many things that help protect you from COVID-19 and more! During these times is where our Expert Team gets to work and gets what you want efficiently and in timely manner!

Being willing to change up your messaging tells your customers that you are paying attention… and that you care. At Signature Aspen we always will care and pay attention to the needs of our customers.

Be Sure to Contact Us

March 8, 2021

QR Codes and 9 Amazing Statistics About Them in a COVID-19 World

QR Codes

Indeed, in today’s world social distancing and extra health precautions have become part of everyday life, consumers are embracing touch-less options for interacting with their favorite brands. Moreover, it is no surprise, then, that QR Codes are on the rise.

What are QR Codes

QR Codes are those checkerboard-looking boxes you see in places like direct mail, packaging, and posters that, when scanned using the camera on a mobile phone, take buyers directly to mobile-optimized content. According to a poll conducted by MobileIron, more than half of respondents (54%) have seen an increase in QR Code usage since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, and more than two-thirds (67%) agree that QR Codes “make life easier in a touch-less world.”

In brief, many marketers know that QR Codes can take buyers to an online video or mobile landing page. However, many simply don’t realize that they can do much more. Here are NINE things you may not know what QR Codes can do!

9 QR Code Statistics

Add a contact listing. Simply by scanning the QR Code, you can add someone’s full contact information directly into your phone. Great for business cards.
Make a phone call. Scan the code and the phone dials for you. Perfect for direct mail, catalogs, and product literature.
Send a text. QR Codes can make text-back marketing easy. Use for nonprofit fundraising, sign-ups (“Text MORNINGS123 for today’s coffee specials”), and sweepstakes entries.
Write an email. Want people to email comments, suggestions, and questions? Use a QR Code to launch the email and pre-fill the address. Try on employee or customer feedback posters.
Make a payment. Use secure QR Codes to allow customers to make contactless payments. Scan the code and the phone does the rest.
Open a webpage. Send people directly to landing pages designed specifically for that campaign.
Create a calendar event. Add your seminar, lunch-and-learn, or presentation directly to prospects’ calendars.
Follow social media accounts. Make it easy for people to connect with you on social media simply by scanning the code.
Add a preferred Wi-Fi network. Great for hotels, cafes, and other places where you want to improve customer experience (CX) and make people feel welcome.

How many of these uses would benefit your marketing right now? Let’s try them!

At Signature Aspen, we can help with QR Coding in different ways whether it be for your restaurant, building, or home, through post card, piece of mail, business cards, etc. that provide different kinds of DISCOUNTS. Also, be sure to visit our website, where you will be able to see many things we have to offer.

Be sure to Contact Us!

February 26, 2021

Content Marketing Best Practices

You’ve heard people talk about the value of content marketing. It’s one of the most important ways that people find you. If you are delivering content via digital channels, prospects can immediately click through to learn more. If your content is being provided in print (offset & digital), this is often what drives them to check you out online in the first place.

Content marketing is not just for increasing visibility. It’s for establishing trust and credibility with your target audience, too. If buyers trust your content, they will trust your products.

5 Best Practices for content marketing

How do you get it right? Here are five best practices from the CMO Council, an online resource for chief marketing officers:

Partner with credible + trusted sources. Unless you are an ad agency, writing direct mail, email, and other content likely isn’t your specialty. Stick to what you do best—your products and services—and work with specialists to create the content that will put you in the best light.
Present authoritative, newsworthy, and enriched content. When it comes to creating thought leadership, “any old” content won’t do. It has to be accurate, relevant, and current.
Produce compelling strategic insights. Don’t rehash information your audience can get elsewhere. Create fresh content that reflects your expertise.
Add customer-contributed views + validation. Social proof is key to credibility. Add customer reviews, testimonials, and UGC (user generated-content) whenever possible.
Engage qualified, verified, and predisposed audiences. The key to conversion is targeting the right content to the audience most likely to be in a buying mood. If you are selling home furnishings, for example, not everyone will need a new living room or dining set. Find the right targets—say, new movers or recently marrieds—and then put the right information in front of them. Your conversion rate will go way up.
Be sure to tailor your content to the right channel, as well. The type of content you use in a direct mail piece will be different from the content you use in an email. Know your channels and how best to use them.

Are you using content to draw potential buyers into your sales funnel and convert them to happy customers? If not, how can we help you get started?

Contenting is an incredibly important weapon here at Signature ASPEN. We make sure to set our goals and speak to our targeted audience and engage with them for the best service! For more information, please visit our website signatureaspen.com

Be sure to Contact Us!

February 26, 2021

Direct-Mail Top 11 Eye-Popping Stats

11 Direct-Mail Eye-Popping Stats

When it comes to ROI, some channels are just more effective than others. Knowing the effectiveness of each channel puts you in control. For example, did you know that one channel has an open/read rate of 42%? Or that recipients of content sent via this channel purchase 28% more items and spend 28% more than those who do not? Which channel is this? It’s direct-mail. Surprised? You shouldn’t be. Here are nine more statistics about direct-mail that you should know.

41% of direct mail recipients look forward to checking their mailboxes each day. (Source: Gallup)

73% of American consumers say they prefer being contacted by brands via direct-mail because they can read it whenever they want. (Source: Epsilon)

Direct-mail offers a 29% return on investment. (Source: Marketing Charts)

Consumers aged 45-54 are the demographic group most likely to respond to direct-mail pieces. (Source: Data & Marketing Association)

80–90% of direct mail gets opened, while only 20–30% of email does. (Source: United States Postal Service)

Only 44% of people can recall a brand immediately after seeing a digital ad compared to 75% of those who receive direct mail. (Source: Marketing Profs)

Direct mail requires 21% less cognitive effort to process than email. (Source: Ipsos/Canada Post)

Brand recall is 70% higher for consumers exposed to direct mail ads than to digital ads. (Source: Ipsos/Canada Post)

30% of Millennials say that direct mail is more effective at getting them to take action compared to 24% who say the same of email. (Source: Direct Marketing News)

Think direct-mail is a marketing rock star? We do, too! Talk to us about creating your next direct mail campaign.

Editor’s note: Thanks to Small Business Genius for compiling many of the stats cited here. https://www.smallbizgenius.net/by-the-numbers/direct-mail-statistics/#gref

Signature ASPEN is one of the best commercial printing companies in the city of Houston. We provide Direct-Mail services to its targeted areas. Furthermore, we offer top quality services to our clients by offering competitive rates on direct-mail. Signature ASPEN are very confident in offering top quality service and are willing to help in anyway to accomplish the needs of our targeted areas.

Be sure to Contact Us on our Website!

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