Direct Mail Copywriting: Crafting Persuasive Messages

Creating a highly effective direct mail advertising piece involves many factors. The printing needs to be professional. Images must be sharp and vibrant. Plus, the design needs to be engaging and eye-catching. But what about the message written inside?

You must give the same time, attention, and effort to the copywriting as you do the design, image selection, or printing. A persuasive message, written with compelling language and strategically conveyed, can differentiate between a successful and a failed campaign.

Yet, how do you craft a persuasive message? Consider the following tips our team at Troi Mailing Services recommends following:

1. Know Your Audience

First and foremost, you need to know your audience. You need to identify your target audience, gather demographic data, segment them based on demographics, and understand what drives their behaviours and what messaging type resonates with them. That last part is vital. After all, if you don’t understand your audience, it’s almost impossible to craft a persuasive message.

Tailoring your written content (and overall marketing strategy) to the people you are trying to reach is essential. After all, this is the best way to engage and convert your audience.

Trying to write a compelling message without an understanding of your audience is like trying to throw darts in the dark. It’s highly ineffective and, more often than not, you miss. When you begin with a rigorous understanding of your audience, you can craft messages that truly resonate.

2. Identify Customer Pain Points

Effective marketing focuses on solving a problem. The principle is simple: your customers have a pain point (or many pain points), and your company has the solution. It differentiates your marketing material from “spam” and makes you stand out from your competitors. 

You thoroughly understand your customer’s experience (thanks to the market research you did during the “know your audience” stage). As a result, you can offer a relevant and helpful solution.

Customers will engage with your message if it speaks to their experience. Of course, this makes perfect sense. Why would someone bother to read, keep, or remember content that feels irrelevant to their life? 

Consequently, an essential part of persuasive messaging speaks to customer’s pain points. Identify their problem, empathize with their struggle, and then offer a relevant solution.

3. Use Proven Copywriting Formulas

There is no need to reinvent the wheel. Copywriting is a well-studied craft. It has undergone a lot of research and testing. We already have a thorough grasp on what works, what doesn’t, and, more importantly, why what works works.

You can implement one of these tested copywriting formulas in your messaging. Think of this as a shortcut to persuasive content.

Here are a few options:

• Before – After – Bridge: This formula builds a story. It starts with their world now, “before” being introduced to your product or service. The “after” highlights how your product improves their life. Finally, the “bridge” includes your pitch, which explains how they can get from “before” to “after.”
• Problem – Agitate – Solve: This is one of the oldest copywriting formulas available. It’s highly effective. You start with the problem, highlight how bad their situation will become if not dealt with, and then offer the solution.
• Attention – Interest – Desire – Action: Abbreviated to AIDA, this is the most popular copywriting formula in the world. You grab the reader’s attention with a compelling headline and then keep their interest by providing compelling information. Next is desire–the benefits of your service. The final step is action, like buying your product.

4. Personalize, Personalize, Personalize

In the world of direct mail advertising, personalization is becoming a requirement. Consequently, at Troi Mailing Services, we speak at length about the importance of personalization in direct mail strategy. We also have processes to help you implement personalization in your next campaign. For example, we offer digital variable data imaging services. It is a highly effective solution for personalization.

Just as demonstrating that you understand your customer’s pain points generates results, the same principle applies to personalization. When you customize your message to the recipient, you receive improved engagement and conversion. After all, recipients are more likely to respond to messages tailored specifically to them.

You can personalize the copywriting on your next direct mail campaign, including personal details like the recipient’s name, previous interactions with your company, and any requests they made.

5. Communicate Benefits, Not Features

At first glance, benefits and features sound like the same thing. However, these terms refer to separate things. You must understand the distinction between features and benefits, as this impacts how your message is written and conveyed.

Features are the characteristics of the product or service. Benefits, conversely, explain how those features directly impact the consumer. Think of features as the “what,” whereas benefits are the “why.”

Consumers make purchases because of what a product or service does for them. Consequently, you must focus on how your offering improves your customer’s lives to convert sales. Once again, it comes back to pain points. A description of what your product does won’t sway customers. Yet, if you describe how it can alleviate their pain points, you will have a more significant impact.

6. Craft a Clear CTA (Call to Action)

The call to action is a vital part of persuasive copy. It pushes the recipient towards the desired action that you want them to take. Even if the rest of your copy is engaging and relevant, conversion may slip through your fingers if you neglect to include a compelling CTA.

A CTA is the bridge between your message and the desired response. It’s instructional, telling recipients what they should do next. Consequently, it needs to be crystal clear and straightforward. Use action-oriented language with verbs that prompt immediate engagement. You can also highlight the benefits of taking action by letting the audience know what’s in it for them.

And don’t forget to make the CTA stand out visually.

Mail Advertising with Troi Mailing Services

Direct mail advertising is a powerful way to reach existing customers and convert new ones. However, your campaign can fall short of expectations if the copywriting is substandard. A persuasive message engages audiences, conveys the benefits of your product or service, and converts customers.

To learn more about direct mail advertising in Toronto, call Troi Mailing Services at 1-866-486-9350 or contact us online.