The format guide to decide

Selecting the right form factor for your direct mail depends on its goals.

            This story is part of our how-to series about creating direct mail that works. View other stories in the series or subscribe to Pop from Sappi today to receive an email when we post more.          

Folded? Pulled? Snapped? Or married?

With so many ways to get your message into a customer’s mailbox, how do you choose? The key to selecting a format is to make sure the direct mail’s presentation squares with your content. You’re not going to announce a one-day sale in a copious catalog—just as there’s no way a postcard is going to suffice when you want to show your new spring clothing line, unabridged. But either format can excel depending on your campaign objectives.

6.6%
Household response rate for oversized envelopes, the medium that received the greatest return results. Postcards and letter-size envelopes were second and third, respectively.
Source: DMA Response Rate Report 2017. Data & Marketing Association, 2017.
38%
Percentage of Millennials and Gen-Xers polled who reported that a catalog recently drove them to shop online.
Source: Millennials: An Emerging Consumer Powerhouse. Quad/Graphics, March 16, 2016.

Find the ideal design

To help you make a format selection for your direct mail campaign, here are the 10 most popular types of marketing mailpieces, organized by the outcome they’re best used to achieve.

Commitment Drivers

These formats work hard to get readers to the next level by conveying a lot of information and having space for unique calls to action. Their high-quality presentation reflects well on your brand.

Full Dress Package

Considered the highest form of direct mail. They usually are a USPS letter-sized envelope with up to six components: outer envelope, letter lift, letter, brochure, reply envelope and reply card.  Uses: Credit card, cable plan, subscriptions, offer to join an organization.

Catalogs

Drive customers to purchase online or in-store by providing detailed descriptions and photos of your products. Uses: Presenting a product line, explaining a product or service that begs for a lot of explanation, listings and conference lineups.

Frugal but Effective

These formats cost less to produce and are less involved than the commitment drivers, but they’re incredibly effective when you need to get a more specific job done.

Folded Self-Mailers

Offer a flexible format that has no envelope but can reveal a variety of content and include a business reply form. Uses: Sale coupons, contests that require a customer response, simple four-page double cards.

The Marriage Mailer

An envelope with various single-sheet inserts/buckslips that combines your marketing with other companies’ offers so you can save money (it’s 2-12 cents average spend per household) and easily track ROI. Uses: Coupons or advertisements.

Cards & Postcards

Single-sheet mailpieces that reach a large group of people, make the most of the recipient’s attention and convey information quickly. Uses: Grand opening or change of address announcements, time-sensitive deals, prospecting campaigns.

Brand Reinforcers

These formats help cross-sell a message. They’re also opportunities to create well-branded marketing materials that boost credibility and are easily shared.

Periodicals

Can be prepared as flats, letters or parcels and provide a lot of info in an easy-to-read and familiar format. Uses: Magazines, testimonials, technical or specialized products that need a lot of space and graphics to explain how and why they work.

Booklets & Bookalogs

Multi-page bound formats that look and feel like a book and can include content that’s too short for a catalog, too long for a folded self-mailer. Uses: Abridged versions of product catalogs or product information, brand promotional campaign or exciting company news.

Transpromo

Adds promotional materials and integrated marketing content to transactional mail. Uses: Integrating marketing with a bill or invoice, letter-sized sheets inserted into envelopes, additional services for current customers.

Privacy, Please

These formats are designed to provide the confidentiality some mailings require, while remaining flexible so branding can be worked into the layout or even the mail’s physical content.

Envelope Mailers

Include an envelope that protects the letter’s contents and information and allows for more enclosures than self-mailers or cards. Uses: Frequent flyer program offers, mail that requires a response, mail that includes customer data or a small gift, credit transfer from banks, bills, invoices.

The Snap Pack

A sealed letter with tear-off edges. They’re great for official-looking, confidential mail. Uses: Product recalls, warranty information, financing promotions, medical benefits information, time-sensitive or special offers.