Are You Ready?

As I got ready for a run this morning, I was reminded how prepared you have to be each time you head out the door. Since I was getting up early, I even laid out my running gear last night, so I could quickly get ready and be on my way without delay. Shoes: check. Running attire: check. Hat: check. Windbreaker: check. iPhone case for arm: check. Water: check. Running buddy: check. Even though I use the same type of gear every time I run, there have been improvements in gear, shoes, and even technology with all the super-cool running apps out there to track your run with maps, time, calories, etc.

As a marketer, are you ready to help your company grow its sales? BPI Media Group has the "gear" to help you get out the door and capture those sales. If you need the help of a "buddy," BPI would gladly help. We can help you choose the gear that you need whether it's deciding if print on demand with digital printing could help you save cost and provide an efficient solution for your distribution channels or aid in creating design or even just templates for personalized options. Our technology with Kodak Insite proofing system can help you shave time off your production schedule, and our cross media campaigns (including purls, sms text, email, direct mail and QR codes) can help you track the results of your campaign in real time.

So as you plan your next marketing campaign, let us help you with get prepared. Working together, we can help you have a better campaign or project to execute and assist your company in boosting sales.

Until next time...Elizabeth

Merging of the Minds

27. That's how many times just today that I used my smartphone to do something other than make a phone call. Wow! If you're not using mobile technology as part of your marketing mix, think of the sales opportunities you're missing.

Some of those 27 tasks included emailing, texting, checking facebook and twitter, looking up an address on Google maps, and checking the store hours of a local shop.

How often do you use your smartphone to access the web to make plans or shop? While it may not be as often as me (I'm addicted to my phone), I bet you'd reach for it all day long if I took it away from you. So, reason would have it that if you and I are using our smartphones this much, aren't our customers and prospects? What do we do about that and how do we engage them in mobile marketing?

While most people still think that the internet will be the death of print, we at BPI Media Group beg to differ. We embrace the web and simply incorporate it into print and that's what smart marketers do as well. Here are four ways we encourage you to merge mobile marketing into your print campaigns:

• QR Codes. They're easy, they're quick and they're catching on.
• Short Codes. Great for promotions. Great for gaining phone #'s for future campaigns.
• Text Alerts. It's the best thing to happen to customer service for many places (think of your pharmacy or for dining out).
• Mobile Landing Pages. Use them for campaigns or promotions. Have a mobile-friendly version of your website & folks will be more likely to use it while on the go.

These are just a few simple ways to include mobile marketing and how to incorporate it into your print messages. Read more about ways to combine print with mobile in our next issue of BPI's Graphic Advisor. Want to subscribe to our quarterly newsletter? We'd love to add you to our mailing list!

Until next time...Elizabeth

Loud & Clear Call to Action

Wondering why you may not be getting the ROI you anticipated from your latest campaign? As you can imagine, we at BPI Media Group see a wide variety of campaigns and direct mailers. While many of these pieces are aesthetically phenomenal, many are missing a key component: a clear call to action.

A lack luster call to action can leave your ROI falling flat, so avoid this common mistake by giving your customers and prospects more than one way to respond. Don't bury your phone number or website in tiny print at the bottom, instead make it very clear how one can get in touch with you or find you online (website and social media outlets). The best way to make your call to action clear, is for all of your communications pieces to be engaging. Another suggestion is to use multiple channels to reach your customers, each with multiple ways to respond. Sometimes, we all get so set in our ways that we forget to break out of the rut and do something different! Don't be afraid to try something different--especially if what you've been doing isn't yielding the results you want and need.

Here are a few reminders of ways to enhance your call to action:/

• Pair direct mail with email marketing campaigns.
• Include personalization with variable data (a simple way to lift response rates).
• Offer an incentive such as a coupon or reward in exchange for their inquiry or purchase.
• Make the offer relevant.
• Allow customers and prospects to respond online (it's so much easier!).
• Try using a sms text message campaign.
• Drive responders to a PURL (aka, personalized landing page) where you can gather useful information and follow up.
• Provide a QR code for those tech-savvy responders and when it's appropriate for the audience.

While there's no sure-fire way to guarantee a 100% response rate, mixing up your communications with integrated campaigns, 1:1 marketing messages and a variety of channels and ways to respond will offer you more opportunities for your target audience to answer the call to action. Just make sure that CTA (call to action) is loud and clear.

If you'd like to learn more about ways to improve your call to action, these are some great reads:

• 12 Ways to Strengthen Your Call to Action
• Ballantine Corporation Explains How To Enhance the Power of Direct Mail
• Not-for-Profits Raise Response Rates With More Relevant Solicitations

Until next time...Elizabeth

I'm new to twitter, so please check it out & follow along if you'd like.

BPI's FAQ's

The most common question I hear is "Can you do this?" "This" is always something specific, so I wanted to give you a run-down of the things that BPI Media Group can do. We'll call this the question and answer portion of the blog. While we like to consider ourselves a one-stop-shop, if there's a project that is well outside the scope of our capabilities, we have a network of partners and vendors that we can refer you to in order help make your project come to fruition. As you can imagine, over the past eleven years at BPI, I've been asked "Can you...?" more times than I admit because then I start telling my age.

BPI's Can-Do List

• Provide customer service from your project's start to finish.
• Design and layout a brochure, book, magazine, etc.
• Design a website
• Assist with SEO on your website
• Print up to 28 x 40 sheet size
• Print with variable data (personalized messaging)
• Varnish, aqueous, uv coat or laminate
• Print short-runs (yes, thanks to our Kodak Nexpress digital press, we can do one-offs as easy as we can do a few hundred copies)
• Print boxes or other custom packaging and signs
• Offer a fast, online proofing system (ours is called insite & it's awesome!)
• Help with promotional items
• Address and mail (and yes, with intelligent mail barcoding)
• Purchase demographic-specific mail lists
• Saddlestitch, perfect bind, coil bind
• 3-hole drill, shrink wrap, round corner
• Diecut for a unique size/shape
• Ship to your distribution list
• Set up an online storefront for ordering of collateral, stationery, promo items, etc.
• Manage and store inventory of items you don't have room to store at your location
• Process online orders through our fulfillment system
• Provide case studies, white papers and training on new products/services
• Provide order history and tracking for orders through our storefront/fulfillment system
• Manage integrated campaigns (included sms text messaging, email blasts, QR codes, and landing pages-personalized and standard).
• Provide ROI calculator for integrated campaigns and online dashboard for lead generation/tracking.

While this isn't the be-all, end-all of BPI's ever-changing capabilities, this should answer some of the FAQ's I get. If there's anything you want to know if we can do, just ask. I'll be more than happy to help, and if we cannot do it, I'll work dilligently to help find a trusted partner who can help you. For more details about BPI's services, click here.

Until next time...Elizabeth

I'm new to twitter, so please check it out & follow along if you'd like.

12 Marketing Ideas to Consider in 2012

As we kick of 2012, I thought I'd suggest 12 ways you can complement your marketing plans this year with BPI Media Group.

12. Mail! It's proven, and it works. It's also making a come back. Click here to learn more about the power of direct mail.

11. Email too. Don't just email, but pair it with your direct mail campaign. You'll boost your response rate and give those who prefer email to mail a chance to see and reply (i.e., resulting in increased sales activity).

10. Go digital. No, I don't mean forego print, just use digital printing when it's a better fit than conventional printing. This can help you eliminate waste from excess or obsolete printed materials as well as take advantage of variable data (see # 9 below), dimensional coating and print on demand (see # 2 below). Click here to learn more about digital printing and how it can benefit your marketing plan.

9.Use Variable Data. Personalize your message to get a lift in response rates and create a 1:1 message with your customers and prospects. Variable data is so much more than just adding the recipient's name...ask me for examples and details of how to take variable messaging to the next level.

8.Add a QR code. Give your customers and prospects a way to view your message or offer on their smart phone or tablet. Adding a QR code is easy and can be tracked if you tie it to a landing page (see # 7 below).

7.Include an integrated campaign. In your call to action, send your respondents to a landing page (personalized or generic) to ask key questions, get feedback and gather the golden data you desire to be able to drill down and market to them more specifically. This is also a great way to fill the sales funnel with qualified prospects for your sales team and for this, they will L-O-V-E you. Learn how an integrated campaign works here.

6.Be Social. Include calls to action via your social media outlets (facebook, twitter, etc.) to promote special offers, membership reward or loyalty programs, and entice prospects to join your group or following. You can also get tremendous feedback through social media.

5.Consider an iPaper or page-turn document to complement your hard-copy catalog or publication. iPapers are a great way to take your printed material (brochures, catalogs or other collateral) and turn it into a socially-sharable online document.

4. Don't forget the SWAG! (stuff we all get) If you do tradeshows or customer/prospect acquisition and retention campaigns, then you know how useful these items can be to promote your brand. Let BPI help you choose items that are useful and can be part of an overall campaign instead of just a novelty item that will go in someone's drawer of other "swag." Click here to browse our online store of specialty products.

3.Amp up your website. While your website may "look" good, but is it highly functional? Are you using SEO to its maximum potential? Don't fret...BPI's website review offer is still on the table, but only for a little while longer. It expires Feb 29 (it's leap year, so we get an extra day!). Ask me for details about this offer and how we can help with website optimization.

2. Take advantage of Print on Demand. With BPI's digital press technology (Kodak Nexpress, see #10 above). There are so many options with digital printing and printing "on the fly" to send out custom messages to individual prospects and customers. You don't have to print thousands, you can just print what you need, when you need it without giving up all your budget.

1. Set up an online storefront. BPI can help you assess your marketing asset management needs and determine the best print and fulfillment channels for your company's needs.

I hope this list will be helpful to generate some new ideas for your marketing campaigns in 2012. I'm available to meet and discuss ideas with you, just drop me a note, or look me up on twitter (see below) or on LinkedIn. Here's to making 2012 the best year of sales for you and your company!

Until next time...Elizabeth

I'm new to twitter, so please check it out & follow along if you'd like.

Accessorize Your Print!

As we're all busy decorating our homes and adorning our trees for the holidays, it occurred to me that accessorizing is the underrated.

We accessorize with jewelry, handbags and don't forget the SHOES! The accessories are what tie a package together, literally. When you receive a gift, it is carefully wrapped in festive paper and tied neatly with a nice bow. It's all in the presentation (not just the present). The same thought process can and should be applied to your marketing messages. If you're scratching your head wondering what in the world I'm talking about, I'll elaborate and hope you'll turn to BPI Media Group for all your marketing accessories.

Doing a direct mail piece is a perfect example of ways to "dress up" a printed piece. You start off with your typical direct mailer or postcard. Sure, you've got a nice color image on the front, but do you have a call to action? That should be the #1 accessory to your direct mailer. Get the customer or prospect involved. How?

Accessorize with Call to Action (Get them to DO something!)

• A great way to get interaction, feedback, information from your recipient is to include a landing page on your direct mailer. This could be a CURL (campaign url, which is the same landing page for everyone) or a PURL (personalized url). Either way, you're sending the respondent to a microsite where you have the opportunity to ask them a few, short questions and gather their information. By asking relevant questions, you'll be able to market more specifically to each prospect which will result in a higher ROI.
  
  
• Another great way to engage the recipient is to add a QR code to the direct mailer. This allows the respondent to scan the code using their smartphone and learn more information, take a survey, receive a coupon, link to a video, etc. (whatever you decide for your direct mail campaign).
• One more way you can enhance your direct mailer is to drive the traffic to your company's social media pages on facebook, twitter, LinkedIn, etc. This is a great way to get feedback and interaction from your customer or prospect. Social media is a great outlet for surveys and contests, so use them!

One key thing to remember when using a call to action is to make sure to make the message relevant and offer some type of incentive. Otherwise, why would the recipient take time to do the survey or scan the QR code? Just make it worth their while.

Accessorize with Variable Data

You've already got a mailing database, so why not use it for more than just addressing? You can add personal messaging to your direct mail piece using BPI's digital press technology. Create 1:1 messaging using variable data and you'll find that this "smart marketing" really pays off with higher ROI. (See the postcard banking example above.)To learn more about variable printing, read more about Which Digital Printing Level is Right for You?

Accessorize with Dimensional Coating

If you're looking to add a unique look and feel to your next direct mailer, consider dimensional coating. I encourage you to try it when you have an amazing image that could use a little extra pop. Add Some Depth to Your Print! You'll see how this small accessory can really take the direct mailer up a notch.

Of course BPI can also do several other coating techniques for a variety of finishes including: varnish, aqueous, uv and laminate.

Accessorize with Design

If you don't have a full-time designer on staff or need a fresh design, BPI's creative team would be happy to assist you with layout and design of your next print project. Our designers know how to design for print and have the tools and experience to create some really fantastic designs. Check out BPI by Design. Of course, if you're needing web design also, BPI's team can handle that too.

No matter how you choose to accessorize your print, give me a call to set up a time to talk more about which of these accessories would work best with your message and for your company and target audience. Too many accessories piled on together are typically overkill, so we can pick and choose the right accessorize to help create the perfect look for your printed materials. My boss, Alan Davis, said his accessories are flies used for fishing, and to me, it's shoes and jewelry. It's all about finding what works best for you and suites your needs best. Either way, BPI would be happy to help.

Merry Christmas and until next time...Elizabeth

I'm new to twitter, so please check it out & follow along if you'd like.