How are you using your envelopes? It is no surprise business is the #1 user of envelopes, next to households. They use them to send bills, statements, checks, and communications with customers. However, business is discovering a more productive use for envelopes, direct mail marketing. If you have been the buyer of envelopes or the seller of envelopes, you may have heard the saying “a good envelope is not born but converted.” Custom converted envelopes get opened at a higher rate than regular #10 envelopes.
Why mess with or spend the money for a custom envelope? Your envelope has one job, to get opened. To help the envelope do its job and stand out you need to use specific design tools, such as design, the information printed on it, size, touch, or, how about making it lumpy. You must grab your prospect or customer’s attention with one or more of these design tactics.
Another important requirement is to, meet USPS thickness requirements enabling the envelope to run through their machines for processing not just stamping. In specific situations, you can put an actual stamp on an envelope for certain effects, and this may be well worth the loss of postage discounts, but you still must meet USPS requirements. When hand stamping a mail piece you must look at your target market and what goals have been set for the project.
Some specific ideas to consider: Put “teaser copy” on your envelope. Make it short to the point and don’t give away the offer that is inside. Remember the envelope’s job is to get opened. Consider the color of the paper which will affect the color of the ink you use. White can work when used with eye-catching graphics or bold statements. Consider an unusual color, however, check with the post office for restrictions. Try “lumpy mail,” a mail piece that has something in it like a pen, or an envelope opener. “Lumpy mail” gets opened at the highest rate of all other envelopes. Also, consider a custom-sized window to give a peek into the offer inside or a custom die-cut envelope with unusual ways to open the envelope. Tease the end-user to get them to open the envelope to see what is inside.
Always, make sure your envelopes are approved by USPS if that is how you are going to mail your piece. One more quick thought. Did you know you can put your marketing piece in a FedEx envelope and mail it through regular mail? What are the chances that envelope got a raise? (It did its job and got opened.)
Looking for ideas and options to improve the open rate for your envelopes?
What tools have you used to help your envelope do its job?
