Calling in the experts
Aims Direct is a well-established direct mail specialist based in the West Midlands. With a portfolio of around 60 regular clients and six key accounts, the company has 17 years of experience providing marketing support to a broad spectrum of clients, with mail fulfillment as one of its key areas of expertise.
‘We deal with quite big volumes,’ explains client services manager, Chris Richardson. ‘For some of our bigger customers we send out invoices, for example, which amount to runs of about 250,000. At the smaller end of the scale we do mailings of around 2,000-3,000.’
He adds, ‘We’ve always worked with Royal Mail and always received a good service. In recent years, they’ve been even more proactive, really engaging with us and helping to contribute to the success of our business.’
Free consultation
One way in which Royal Mail has engaged with Aims Direct is through Mailing Agents, an event hosted by Royal Mail to help build even better working relationships with its customers. It aimed to find out what issues its clients were facing and how it could improve the service it offered them.
It was at a related event that Chris Richardson learnt about marketing support for SMEs and took Royal Mail up on the offer to review the products they and their clients used.
‘Royal Mail also conducted a free catalogue review for a particularly big customer of ours. It helped them improve their direct mail, and helped us because we facilitated the consultation – basically anything that helps our customers, helps us,’ explains Richardson.
The customer concerned dealt in online retail, and Royal Mail was able to help with everything from page numbering and content layout to how to capture the customers’ attention and engage their emotions.
‘The consultation really helped improve their catalogue and the customer was pleased with the results,’ says Richardson.
‘We deal with quite big volumes,’ explains client services manager, Chris Richardson. ‘For some of our bigger customers we send out invoices, for example, which amount to runs of about 250,000. At the smaller end of the scale we do mailings of around 2,000-3,000.’
He adds, ‘We’ve always worked with Royal Mail and always received a good service. In recent years, they’ve been even more proactive, really engaging with us and helping to contribute to the success of our business.’
Free consultation
One way in which Royal Mail has engaged with Aims Direct is through Mailing Agents, an event hosted by Royal Mail to help build even better working relationships with its customers. It aimed to find out what issues its clients were facing and how it could improve the service it offered them.
It was at a related event that Chris Richardson learnt about marketing support for SMEs and took Royal Mail up on the offer to review the products they and their clients used.
‘Royal Mail also conducted a free catalogue review for a particularly big customer of ours. It helped them improve their direct mail, and helped us because we facilitated the consultation – basically anything that helps our customers, helps us,’ explains Richardson.
The customer concerned dealt in online retail, and Royal Mail was able to help with everything from page numbering and content layout to how to capture the customers’ attention and engage their emotions.
‘The consultation really helped improve their catalogue and the customer was pleased with the results,’ says Richardson.
Cutting costs
In addition to this Royal Mail also offered a range of standard mailing solutions to Aims Direct. ‘I think their mailing products are improving all the time,’ comments Richardson. ‘The account team has been brilliant at keeping us informed of product developments and making sure we’re using the products that best suit our needs.’
The company uses Mailsort® 120 for its bulk mailings. It’s ideal for large mailings in the UK as well as for making cost savings: if companies sort their own mail prior to collection and make sure at least 90% of the addresses have the correct postcode they can make savings of up to 30%.
Depending on the type of mail and the volume of traffic, Aims Direct also makes use of many other Royal Mail services such as Cleanmail® Advance, Automated Standard Tariff Large Letters [T/C] and Mailsort® Light.
Why Royal Mail?
‘The sheer range of services Royal Mail offers is staggering,’ says Richardson, ‘and the level of market support we’ve received has been fantastic. The company has set up a marketing support team specifically for mailing houses. They know exactly what we need and what issues we are facing.
‘With initiatives like these, we’re definitely seeing real quality of service from Royal Mail and I see no reason to move away from the benefits they bring to our business.’
In addition to this Royal Mail also offered a range of standard mailing solutions to Aims Direct. ‘I think their mailing products are improving all the time,’ comments Richardson. ‘The account team has been brilliant at keeping us informed of product developments and making sure we’re using the products that best suit our needs.’
The company uses Mailsort® 120 for its bulk mailings. It’s ideal for large mailings in the UK as well as for making cost savings: if companies sort their own mail prior to collection and make sure at least 90% of the addresses have the correct postcode they can make savings of up to 30%.
Depending on the type of mail and the volume of traffic, Aims Direct also makes use of many other Royal Mail services such as Cleanmail® Advance, Automated Standard Tariff Large Letters [T/C] and Mailsort® Light.
Why Royal Mail?
‘The sheer range of services Royal Mail offers is staggering,’ says Richardson, ‘and the level of market support we’ve received has been fantastic. The company has set up a marketing support team specifically for mailing houses. They know exactly what we need and what issues we are facing.
‘With initiatives like these, we’re definitely seeing real quality of service from Royal Mail and I see no reason to move away from the benefits they bring to our business.’
Top tips for cutting-edge catalogues
- Why not make use of Royal Mail’s Catalogue Critique tool? It will provide you with a systematic analysis of your direct marketing, which could influence customer ordering?
- Ease of use is key to a good catalogue. Can your customer navigate your catalogue easily? Consider everything from contents lists, to page turns, to straps at the top of the page to tell your customer where they are in the catalogue. What about colour coding or headed sections to break the contents into more manageable sections?
- Calls to action are crucial. Is it abundantly clear what your customer has to do next? How do they go about accessing more information or ordering?
- A catalogue is not just about influencing sales, it’s also an opportunity to build your brand. Think, for example, about the design, colour scheme or tone of voice you use and what they are communicating to your target audience?
- Once you’ve established a model for creating one successful catalogue, you can extend it to others. Seasonal catalogues, for example, or ones that target specific sectors of your customer base. In terms of the consistency it offers, this also has positive implications for your brand.
Relevant links
- Drive up your customer orders: Catalogue Critique is a free service that offers ways to enhance your catalogue design - for more information call us on 08457 950 950.
- Enjoy a discount of up to 30% when you sort your large mailings with Mailsort®
- Boost response by adding a teaser or reminder to advertising campaigns at advantageous prices with Mailsort® Light
- Use Cleanmail® to make your mail ready for automatic sorting and save up to 12%
