Local Saturation Direct Mail: What is it and Why It Works

Local saturation direct mail, also known as EDDM or Every Door Direct Mail is a service offered by the U.S. Postal Service where mail carriers deliver direct mail pieces to each household based on pre-selected targeted postal carrier routes. It requires very little in the way of preparation, is perfect for locally focused companies, and always cost less than first-class mail.

You’re probably thinking: great, “another generic postcard mailing,” but not true with EDDM. Qualifying EDDM specs include multi-page booklets, tri-fold/bi-folds, and a variety of oversized and unique size postcards. So not only can your customers get coupons into each household, but also menus, event schedules, and other “sticky” items for super-cheap rates. There’s no need to purchase mailing lists because campaigns are based on postal carrier routes and delivered to every resident on the route. USPS has an online carrier route selection tool, making it simple to saturate a local market by demographics, radius around a location or any other criteria desired. Best of all EDDM guarantees 100% deliverability. Because EDDM is delivered by the postal carrier, no envelope is necessary; the piece is delivered already opened removing a huge obstacle for any direct mail campaign.

Benefits of the EDDM Program for Printers and Direct Mail Resellers

1. Includes Direct Mail Options that were Cost-Prohibitive in the Past: Qualifying direct mail specs include multi-page booklets, tri-fold/bi-folds, and many very large and unique size postcards. Your clients probably have no idea they can mail booklets for less than a stamp – suggest EDDM and be the hero!
2. No Mailing Lists to Purchase: Campaigns are targeted based on postal carrier routes and are delivered to every resident on the route. With the USPS easy on-line carrier route selection tool, it’s super simple to saturate the local markets desired.
3. EDDM Campaigns Always Mail for Less Than First Class: Offer EDDM service for your DM clients, charge for services rendered, and add a new revenue stream to your bottom line with very little extra work. Launch a profitable new revenue source and make your customers happy. Now that’s what we call a win-win.
4. All Back-End Processing is Handled for You: At Three Dog Logistics we’ll handle all the back-end work for you including addressing the pieces to “Postal Customer” for the USPS to deliver.
5. Powerful Targeted Local Campaigns: The EDDM program targets local regions via postal carrier route allowing your clients to segment the buyers they desire in a very cost-effective way.
6. 100% Deliverability Guarantee: Because EDDM is delivered by the postal carrier, no envelope is necessary; the piece is delivered already opened increasing the chance for engagement.
7. We Track and Measure Campaign Results for You: At Three Dog Logistics, our sophisticated software tracks and measures campaign performance allowing you to deliver regular reports to your client. Metrics are a terrific way to show campaign success and encourage their next order.
8. Repetition Matters to Direct Mail ROI: As you know, repetition is key to any marketing campaign, and direct mail is no exception to this rule. Because EDDM is incredibly cost-effective your customers are more likely to schedule repeat campaigns, thereby increasing their ROI, which means more business for you.
9. National Distribution Network across the Country: The national distribution network at Three Dog Logistics means your company can offer EDDM to local and national clientele. We deliver anywhere, anytime, and for less than first class mail.

Spring Fever Marketing Hacks to Suggest

Restaurants: Promote new spring menu and local ingredients, multi-course chef’s menu with wine pairing dinners or other unique events, distribute carry-out menus to keep at home, and give back to the community nights.

Lawn/Tree Care: Sign-up now for spring lawn care contracts, winter yard clean-up and planting deals just in time for spring, and tree care/pruning offers provided by local experts.

Health Clubs: Summer is coming – now is the time to get in swimsuit shape. Weight-loss challenges with exclusive offers, health and well-being classes, and sign-up for outdoor boot camp classes once the weather is nice.

Auto Service and Dealers: New 2018 model year sales, tax rebates are the perfect time to buy a new car, get your car ready for summer specials, car wash/detailing coupons, and community give back efforts.

Spas/Hair & Nail Salons: New Spring season = new haircut and color for you, pamper yourself with facial/massage/nail care as the season changes, tanning specials, and girl’s night out parties.

Non-Profits: Tell your story and ask for support by recruiting for volunteers, promoting upcoming fundraising events, or simply just asking for donations.

Now is the perfect time to suggest an EDDM campaign to your clients. Lots of direct mail options, speedy delivery, low cost, and powerful targeting all add up to a winner for your clients and a healthier bottom line for you. Your customers will think you’re a genius and it means more business for you, so what are you waiting for?

Ready to give EDDM a whirl? Set-up is a snap and we offer dedicated support every step of the way. Remember, at Three Dog Logistics we take the bite out of postage and freight. Contact us at threedoglogistics.com or call 410-284-5494 ext. 250 to schedule a complimentary consultation today.

The post Grow Customers with Every Door Direct Mail Marketing first appeared on Three Dog Logistics.

The New Trucking Laws and Why They Were Implemented

In December of 2015, the new electronic logging device (ELD) rule was passed as part of the congressionally mandated MAP-21 Act. The rule states that all drivers must convert to the use of an electronic logging device (ELD) to create a safer work environment for drivers and make it easier and faster to track, manage, and share driving and total time on the road records. ELDs synchronize with a vehicle engine to automatically record driving time, making this chore easier and more accurate for drivers and trucking companies. The deadline to implement ELDs was December 18, 2017, unless you use an automatic on-board recording device (AOBRD) which grants an extension through December of 2019.

The old way of managing drive time was based on manual paper logs and the honor system. There are hours-of-service limits for every truck driver stating they can only drive 11 hours during any 14-hour time window; after 11 hours they must be off a minimum of 10 hours to rest before driving again. Furthermore, truckers can only drive 60 hours total in any 7-day consecutive shift or 70 hours total in any 8-day consecutive shift. Obviously, these rules are in place to prevent driver fatigue which can result in dangerous conditions on our highways.

Unfortunately, even though limits are in place they’re not always adhered to, mainly because of low wages and incentives which encourage drivers to work as much as they can regardless of the guidelines. The fact that truckers are willing to work more makes the industry extremely cost-effective which is passed down to customers in the form of competitive pricing. The switch to ELDs to improve safety rule compliance, while the right thing to do, will result in higher freight/shipping prices for every industry.

The State of the Industry and Predicted Outcomes

Currently, the trucking industry runs at 95-100% capacity almost every day meaning there’s absolutely no cushion. In the event of a disruption, the delays and impact will be widespread and difficult to quickly recover from. The three main causes for reduced supply in the transportation sector are:

1. According to the American Trucking Association, staff shortages are projected at 50,000 less than needed to meet demand. Low pay rates are cited as the most common reason.
2. Truck drivers are aging out, and due to the low rate of pay, younger workers aren’t interested in the profession.
3. FEMA is paying a higher rate to haul equipment and goods to disaster sites which reduces the number of trucks available for regular rate hauls.

In Economics 101, we all learned the law of supply and demand which is exactly what’s at play here. The demand for trucking services is up, the supply or number of drivers and trucks is down. Unfortunately, the new ELD law will most likely further reduce the supply due to perceived reduced earning opportunities.

So why should you care? The average contracted trucking rates are forecasted to increase by 2-10% in 2018, while non-contracted rates start at a 10% increase and will climb even higher as demand grows. Limited capacity means trucking firms have the upper hand when it comes to negotiating freight rates.

The Impact for Businesses and Consumers

The new ELD law requires truckers to log hours which is forcing compliance and thereby shortening the run duration per project. Shorter runs lead to increased costs in labor, fuel, and logistics management. Get ready. The increased cost of freight projected will pass down in the form of higher prices for business and consumers. Whether it be for paper, office supplies, cereal, chicken, or frozen food, transportation keeps our economy humming. Rate spikes in the trucking world will hurt. The U.S. Department of Labor recently reported that underlying consumer prices increased 0.2% in February following a 0.3% increase in January 2018, proof this trend is already having a significant impact.

How to Protect Your Business

For those businesses who rely heavily on shipping and freight services, the best plan is to engage an experienced logistics firm with a wide network of carriers who understands the details, paperwork, and scheduling requirements necessary to be successful in this high-demand industry. This is not the time to attempt shipping logistics on your own, it could prove an expensive mistake that’s hard to recover from.

We’re ready to advise your company on the best shipping and freight logistics plan to ensure on-time deliverability and prevent sky-high rate hikes. Remember, at Three Dog Logistics we take the bite out of postage and freight. Contact us at threedoglogistics.com or call 410-284-5494 ext. 250 to schedule a complimentary consultation today.

The post New Trucking Laws Impact Every Business first appeared on Three Dog Logistics.

When your campaign depends on the exact delivery date for a big sale, an election, a government mandate, or just to manage your call center and order processing workflow, OBBAgistics is the answer.

What does OBBA mean?

Your mail can be delivered On a specific date, Before a specific date, Between 2 dates, or After a specific date.

What is OBBAgistics?

OBBAgistics combines 2 popular Three Dog services.

OBBAship uses the same technology platform as MailRover.  The power to schedule your own pickups is at your fingertips and you can track your campaign’s delivery into the postal stream as you drop ship across the country.

OBBAtrack takes your tracking to the next level and you can watch your deliveries within the postal stream light up a map of the country.

Click here to watch our video and learn how it works.

Why bother?

Imagine, if you knew when your mail was being delivered.

• Staff your call center or store based on real-time data.  Why waste money having staff sitting around waiting for the phone to ring?
• Plan B  implementation when weather or other challenges cause delays in part of the country. Perhaps spark a social media blitz, targeted email, telemarketing campaign or even a local radio ad in just those areas that are impacted.
• Stronger response rate measurement.  So you were expecting responses by day 10 but you didn’t know that most of the campaign was held up for 2 days in a storm so you shouldn’t start measuring until 2 days later.

For mail shops, agencies and printers, this is another value-add you can offer your clients not to mention an added revenue stream for you.

These are just a few reasons our clients choose OBBAgistics on their important campaigns.

Contact us today to get your account set up and start tracking tomorrow.  Need help explaining this opportunity to your sales team, we can help with that too.  Just call us at 410-284-5494 ext 250.

The post Use OBBAgistics for Time Sensitive Mail Campaigns first appeared on Three Dog Logistics.

Save Money

Find me a company that doesn’t want to save money, and I’ll find you a dog who doesn’t love his bone. A box that is even a few centimeters too big can make for increased shipping costs, and for companies who send a lot of direct mail, extraordinary packaging costs add up quickly! Boxes which are too large also mean a need for more packaging materials, further increasing costs. Shipping and packaging goods in the appropriate boxes or envelopes could mean big savings for you and your company!

Products Get to Their Destination Safely

Choosing the wrong packaging for your items can also mean increased costs in other ways. Think about it: shipping your items in the wrong packaging could leave them vulnerable to major wear and tear as they make their way to their destination. Whether an item that a customer has ordered, or a direct mailer intended to entice new clients, mail which arrives broken, bent or otherwise destroyed means unhappy customers! This can negatively impact your bottom line in a big way, whether through the expense of reshipping a new item, or through the loss of potential customers. Either way, you want your mailed pieces to arrive safe, sound and beautiful—and the right packaging and shipping materials can do just that!

A More Pleasant Unpacking Experience

Sometimes, it’s the little things that make the greatest impact. Poorly designed or ill-conceived packaging leaves customers underwhelmed, frustrated and disinterested. Don’t run that risk! Make people smile when they receive your mailed items. A package or other mail that is designed with customer satisfaction in mind does just that—satisfy the customer—leaving you with repeat clients and increased profits!

Reduce Waste

Going green is something every company should strive for wherever possible. Packaging and shipping material creates huge amounts of waste every year. But, this doesn’t mean you have to give up on mailing and shipping goods in any way: reduce your company’s carbon footprint by using appropriately- sized boxes, proper shipping materials and efficient procedures.

How Three Dog Can Help

Does the thought of packing your own products get you a little nervous or overwhelmed? Want to overhaul your packaging and shipping strategy, but not sure how to get started? Leave it to the dogs—Three Dog, that is! Our dedicated packing and shipping experts can share insights to all the tricks of the trade, ensuring your products reach their destination safe and sound. Plus, our low rates and efficient procedures means faster ship times and lower prices—what’s not to like? Packaging is an art and a science! For more information, or to get started now, contact us today!

The post Boxing and Packaging Tips first appeared on Three Dog Logistics.

The holidays are not far, and that means it’s time for holiday marketing campaigns to entice and excite shoppers. Direct mail is a wonderful way to personally deliver information about your newest products and services right into the hands of your target audience. And now, with the help of drop shipping, you can get your campaigns to them faster and more efficiently, all at a competitive rate.  

Delivery Time is Shortened

With drop shipping, delivery time of your direct mail is drastically reduced. Drop shipping bypasses multiple postal facilities, allowing mail to go straight from you to a postal facility much closer to your target consumers. Depending on the distance traveled, mail could arrive at the consumer’s door days faster than traditional postal methods! While other businesses are sending their campaigns via slower mailing routes, your marketing material will already be in the hands of your target audience—the early dog gets the bone!

Saves Business Money

If saving time isn’t exciting enough, saving money should be even more thrilling—and drop shipping does just that. Drop shipping is inherently money-saving because mailers spend less time in transit, and are collected together efficiently for specific regional areas. Companies (like ours) that presort, use bar-coding and transport mail as close to the intended destination as possible will receive the largest postal discounts. Delivery to the destination bulk mail center or sectional center facility can save $33-42 per thousand pieces, respectively.

Reduces Chances of Error and Damage

The more hands your mail goes through, the more chances of it being bent, torn, lost or ruined entirely. With drop shipping, your direct mail marketing spends less time in the hands of the post office, and more time in the hands of your target audience—in the way you meant for them to receive it. First impressions count, so make sure your marketing campaign arrives looking as good as the day you sent it out!

Better Predict Arrival Times

Having a last-minute holiday sale? Want your target audience to receive your marketing mailer before your promotion has begun, but not too soon before so it’s still fresh in their minds? With drop shipping, delivery and arrival times are easier to predict, making it easier for you to ensure your target audience receives your mailer right when you wish them to. Of course, no mailing system can get mail exactly where you want it at the exact time you want it, but drop shipping comes pretty close.

Special Benefits for Non-Profits

The perks of drop shipping direct mail are obvious for businesses, but for non-profits, they’re even more enticing. Non-profits need to keep costs low, get their campaign out to a massive array of people and meet their goals in a timely manner. Drop shipping allows all of this to happen, and the large audience of non-profits will accrue even larger savings for non-profits as well: the more mail you drop ship, the bigger the discount!

How Three Dog Logistics Can Help

At Three Dog, we understand how critical the holidays are for businesses: getting your direct mail out quickly, efficiently and at a great rate will help your holiday season be a fruitful one. That’s why we use all the tricks in the business to ensure you get fast delivery times, great rates and overall postal optimization. Drop shipping is all about the details, and the details are where Three Dog shines—for more information about how we can help you with your drop shipping and other postal needs, contact us today!

The post How Drop Shipping Can Improve Direct Mail Holiday Campaigns first appeared on Three Dog Logistics.

If you just read this and think I’m crazy, good. I’ll take this opportunity to share why direct mail has a leg up on email and other digital forms of marketing. Better yet, the use of direct mail as part of an integrated digital campaign consistently delivers higher ROI and response rates than digital efforts alone. If all your eggs are currently in the digital marketing basket, I’d strongly encourage you to reconsider the seemingly odd partnership of direct mail and digital that together produce significantly better results.

Direct mail campaign goals have changed a whole lot over the years. It used to be that a direct purchase was the only successful outcome, now success is measured by driving traffic to your web site or store front using multiple medias and various touch points. This transition makes direct mail so effective when paired with digital, it acts as a catalyst for action that’s difficult to drive using digital mediums. What’s the primary reason digital outlet response rates are lower than direct mail? The consumer doesn’t see or interact with the message. Keep reading to learn why direct mail should be a regular tool in your marketing arsenal.

Why Direct Mail is More Effective than Digital

Junk Email Boxes and Spam

While email had its day, now people ignore them or they’re re-routed straight to a junk folder. Almost everyone I know has two email accounts, one for promos/email sign-ups and the one they actually read. Efficient yes, but it means they probably NEVER see your email unless they go in search of something they don’t know they received – pretty sure that’s not the case. Add in spam and other reasons email is rejected, the odds increase for non-deliverability making it tough to respond to a message never received. On the other hand, direct mail is trackable, delivered every day, and sits on your counter staring at you.

Our Multi-Tasking World

So, I’m not a doctor, but I feel comfortable diagnosing consumers with electronic-induced ADD, a condition that makes it virtually impossible to capture attention for more than a few seconds. Checking email is a multi-tasking battle, between social media pop-ups, web ads, texts, and other distractions that cross our devices, most people only read the email subject line, and that’s if you’re lucky. The mailbox at your home only has one purpose, mail. This lack of competition for attention helps direct mail stand out with almost no effort on the recipient’s part. 79% of consumer’s act on direct mail immediately vs, 45% of email recipients, these statistics suggest the recipient is paying attention and actively engaged.

Out of Sight, Out of Mind

Let’s face it we all take the path of least resistance, it’s inherently human. Which means if we must open, read, and print out an email it feels like too much work. If the email was received three days ago forget about it, another sad victim of the giant inbox vortex. Out of sight, out of mind, right? Compare this to direct mail, which if a postcard, doesn’t require opening and then lays around till action is taken. QR codes on printed matter increase the likelihood for action using a mobile device without having to take any extra steps, genius.

Hackers and Suspicion of Online Media

Thanks to hackers, trust in electronic communication is quickly eroding. Links are now a way strangers can see what you’re doing, capture your passwords, and harvest personal information to sell to even more bad guys. Email attachments are even worse, only download if you like computer viruses.  Since people are now wary and careful in the online world emails are suspect and links to act seen as a threat. Obviously not good for email response rates which currently stand at a paltry .012%. Printed matter is in no way affiliated with danger, even if the call to action is online, typing URLs directly into a web browser is considered safe.

Response Rates and ROI

A recent study by Royal Mail found that response rates and ROI for direct mail is far superior to email and that 92% of recipients are driven to online or digital activity. The direct mail response rate of 4.4% stands in stark comparison to the .012% of email. When it comes to financial results, integrated campaigns with direct mail deliver a 57% ROI against 45% for digital only efforts. If money is important to your organization, and frankly I don’t know many who would say it’s not, then direct mail is the obvious choice.

Personal and Emotional Connection

Since childhood, mail is built into our memory bank and has a special place in our psyche. Holiday packages, birthday cards, even exciting direct mail. By its nature, DM is more personal than email making it a great vehicle for your message as part of an integrated campaign. Mail also integrates more senses than just sight including touch, encouraging the recipient to engage with the message on a deeper level.

Variety Required to Capture Attention

Even with new formatting tools, emails pretty much all look the same. Simply put, the canvas is limited making it easy for readers to gloss over the message. Going back to the consumers with ADD, variation and the ability to shake things up regularly is crucial to get their attention. Mail options are only limited by your imagination. From postcards to letters, “lumpy mail,” booklets, or parcels, changing the WOW factor including size, shape, and look grabs attention and increases response rates.

Now that you know how effective direct mail can be, why not give it a try? Remember the role of direct mail now is to be the enticing messenger, not the pushy salesperson. This is where the “new direct mail” looks nothing like its old self, strictly designed to work as a cog in the integrated machine instead of the solo selling technique. Be bold and creative, your customers will show their appreciation with impressive results.

Ready to develop an integrated marketing campaign that includes direct mail? At Three Dog Logistics, our consultants will help develop a plan that delivers client solutions at the lowest cost and fastest delivery speed possible. Remember, we take the bite out of postage and freight. Visit www.threedoglogistics.com or call 410-284-5494 extension 220 to schedule a complimentary consultation today.

The post How Direct Mail Succeeds Where Digital Doesn’t first appeared on Three Dog Logistics.