Tactics Magazine, Volume 8, Issue 3 by Shawmut Communications Group

FEATURED

Dielines and Personalization It’s human nature to notice something that’s out of the ordinary. That’s why creative print and direct mail formats generate high response rates. Inside you’ll find a small gift that we created for you using a creative dieline. We shipped this piece flat so you could see how the dieline works. Once assembled, you’ll have a pencil holder with your name on it! But your name is not the only thing that makes this piece unique. If you have a colleague that gets Tactics, compare your pencil cups and notice that each design is different.

How Marketers Can Harness the Power of Automation with Web-to-Print Technology VOL. 8, ISSUE 3, MAY/JUNE 2018 Shawmut Communications Group | www.shawmutdelivers.com

We created thousands of versions in minutes using a variable data printing (VDP) technique known as dynamic personalization. It uses a vector PDF file (a “Seed file”) to transform the design randomly. This piece is a great example of how technology and print can work together. In one shot we delivered a unique format and a personal, interactive experience for each recipient. With VDP and resources like our ready-to-go dielines and templates you don’t have to sacrifice creativity to meet your timeline. Get in touch to talk about your next project or sign up to get our dieline of the month.

ON OUR ENVELOPE

Handwriting.io Did you notice the handwritten note on the envelope from your sales rep? We’ll let you in on a little secret, they didn’t write it themselves. We used Handwriting.io, a patented digital handwriting technology, not a font! This unique application mimics the natural variations of handwriting and is available in a variety of styles—making it authentic, scalable, and easy-to-use. As you can see Handwriting.io can also be used with VDP so every note you write can be unique and personal to the recipient. According to CMO Council, handwritten envelopes received a 17.2% response rate, so digital handwriting can give your next direct mail campaign a huge boost! Ready to try digital handwriting? Talk to your Shawmut rep.

FEATURED EXPERTS Patrick Barry

Congratulations to our 2018 PINE Award-Winning Clients! athenahealth

Events Specialist, Charles River Labs

Boston College

Marina Carlson

Boston Magazine

Campaign Planning Analyst, athenahealth

Charles River Labs

Christophe Jordan

Dartmouth College

Strategic Business Development Manager, Arjowiggins

Emerson College

Julie Loiselle

H.H. Brown

Customer Engagement Marketing, NHP

Manulife Asset Management

Daniel Rodriguez

Moors and Cabot Investments

Head of Revenue, Alyce

Reflex Lighting

www.shawmutdelivers.com/our-work Make your next project awardworthy! Get inspired by checking out samples of our work or reach out to discuss ways we can make your next print piece stand out.

WELCOME

More than Ink on Paper Print and technology. Some would argue that they don’t belong in the same sentence. Fortunately, we know better. I have witnessed the print industry undergo a dramatic transformation. In the old days, we’d take your file and print it, plain and simple. With the right equipment, anyone could do it. But those days are long gone. Today, we’re helping clients much earlier on in the process. And we’re doing more than putting ink on paper (or lots of other unique substrates)! Today’s printers are solving complex business challenges by making print more personal, connected, and easier to distribute.

and appreciate. And it should come as no surprise that marketers are using technologies like NFC to seamlessly connect customers to more information in seconds. All of these solutions combine print and technology in unique ways—but the goal is the same. With each new integration, we’re making it easier for marketers and designers to communicate their message. These advancements help improve the performance of the printed piece itself and automated workflows make it quick and easy for customers to launch new campaigns. In our shop, print and technology go hand-in-hand and together they offer a very bright future. I hope you enjoy this issue.

For those that still consider print to be an “oldschool” tactic, I urge you to read some of the stories in this issue. Using integrated print technologies, our customers are connecting sales teams around the globe to deliver a unified brand message—all with a few clicks. They’re also engaging with prospects on a deeper level by sending gifts people love

Michael Peluso President

Inside this Issue

Sending direct mail just got cooler. Using innovative NFC-enabled paper, recipients can tap their phones to connect to digital content. No sticker necessary!

The average marketer spends almost a third of their time completing repetitive tasks. Finding ways to automate workflows is critical and web-to-print technology can help.

People are more likely to respond to a marketing message when it feels like it was written for them. See how variable data can help your business.

New technology is making it easier than ever for marketers to reach customers through a marriage of print and digital techniques. Bridge the gap between print and digital with these five strategies. MAY/JUNE 2018 Shawmut 1

NFC-ENABLED PAPER: THE PERFECT MARRIAGE BETWEEN PRINT AND DIGITAL MARKETING

ARE YOU TALKING TO ME? WHY VARIABLE DATA PRINTING IS A MUST FOR YOUR BUSINESS

HOW MARKETERS CAN HARNESS THE POWER OF AUTOMATION WITH WEB-TO-PRINT TECHNOLOGY

5 TECHNOLOGIES THAT BRIDGE THE GAP BETWEEN PRINT AND DIGITAL

NFCEnabled Paper The Perfect Marriage Between Print and Digital Marketing

Sending direct mail just got cooler. Let’s say your company is hosting an event and you plan to invite customers by mailing an invitation. Except, the invitation you send is no ordinary, calligraphy-filled postcard. Your invitation is digitally interactive. Invitees can tap the invitation with their smartphone and RSVP to the event—no return postage necessary. As the event approaches, that same invitation can launch directions on the attendees’ phone via Google Maps. After the event, partygoers can zap the invite with their phone again to see a digital gallery of photos. How is this possible? The invitation was printed on paper that utilizes NFC, which can “talk” to smartphones. This innovative paper turns a traditional print or direct mail piece into a digital experience.

The tech behind the hi-tech paper NFC isn’t new. If you pay for your groceries by waving your phone in front of a scanner, you’re using NFC. Essentially, NFC (near field communication) is a wireless way to transfer data. When you pay for something using NFC, it enables your smartphone to send credit card information to a digital cash register, of sorts. In the case of the NFC-enabled invitations,

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a small, programmable chip is embedded inside the paper. This chip communicates with a smartphone, enabling it to provide digital information to a customer instantly. How does it work? The paper consists of three layers. The top and bottom layer are standard pieces of paper, but the middle layer is pre-printed with a programmable chip. The paper is sandwiched together and the final product can be handled like any other piece of paper.

“ This is the first application of NFC technology inside paper, which gives marketers a way to send digitally-savvy marketing materials that look crisp and clean.” When using NFC-enabled paper for any print or direct mail project, marketers also gain access to an online platform where they can easily program the chip.

can create artwork that links to digital content without having to work NFC stickers or QR codes into their design. Simply design and print, like any other project.

For example, the marketer sending the invitation that we discussed earlier logs on to the platform and enters the URL to an RSVP-capable site. Later, the marketer can use the same platform to change the URL to directions via Google Maps, and then again to the photo gallery. The chip can be programmed again and again and marketers get stats like number of scans and location of users.

The NFC-enabled paper, called PowerCoat Alive, not only offers a cleaner, sharper look, but the technology itself is also clean. The entire sheet of paper—with the embedded NFC tag—is recyclable, biodegradable and sustainable. “This product is a win-win for both marketers and the environment,” Jordan says.

A new, cleaner way to use NFC in marketing Arjowiggins, a leading producer of paper products, has patented this unique, first-of-its-kind application. “This is the first application of NFC inside paper, which gives marketers a way to send digitallysavvy marketing materials that look crisp and clean,” Christophe Jordan, Strategic Business Development Director for Arjowiggins Creative Papers, says. Current NFC applications require a sticker or plastic tags, which can take away from the overall look of a postcard, brochure, or packaging. Now graphic designers

How NFC-enabled paper is being used This hi-tech paper has a lot of possibilities. Companies can print business cards that take contacts to a company website with the wave of their smartphone. The direct mail and packaging applications are endless as well. A B2B company, for example, could send a postcard that connects prospects to a webinar or product demo registration. Loyalty programs are using the technology to award points, and

other companies are using it in packaging to assure authenticity or link to additional information.

The marriage of print and digital marketing methods NFC-enabled paper represents a union between print and digital. “So often the print world is fighting the digital world, but this technology shows that we’re stronger together,” Jordan says. Now that Apple has introduced its new operating system, iOS 11, the reach—and demand—for NFC is only expected to grow. Apple’s new operating system which launched in March allows consumers to use NFC for more than Apple Pay, but currently, it still requires an app. However, it’s only a matter of time before every iPhone becomes an automatic NFC-reader like their Android counterparts. “All of the pieces are in place for print and digital technologies to wow customers now and into the future,” Jordan says. “We’re excited to see how creative marketers can be with this innovative technology available.”

Christophe Jordan is the strategic business development manager at Arjowiggins, a leading producer of paper products. He works with global brands that leverage fine and creative paper solutions to elevate their brand identity. MAY/JUNE 2018

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

you can easily change your message and design based on variables such as a recipient’s age, gender, location, buying preferences, or shopping history.

Are You Talking to

Personalization Improves Response Rates The bottom line is that people are more likely to respond to a marketing message when it feels like it was written for them.

Me?

“I recently came across an article from Graphic Arts magazine that said response rates for direct mail can go up by 25%–30% with VDP,” says Paul Debreceni, Director of Variable Data Programming at Shawmut Communications Group. “That’s impressive, but it’s important to remember that there are many levels of personalization with variable data.”

Why Variable Data Printing is a Must for Your Business

Have you taken a good look at your mail lately? Perhaps you have noticed that you receive very little mail addressed to occupant or resident. Instead, your name is boldly printed on the front, often alongside other information or products of interest to you. Whole catalogs are now customized to highlight the items that you are likely to buy. Your dentist sends you a checkup reminder card and your favorite retailer sends a birthday card with coupon offers just for you.

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If this leaves you feeling a little special, you are not alone. Increasingly, businesses are using variable data printing (VDP) to customize materials and grab their audience’s attention. With VDP,

The most common variable used to personalize direct mail is the recipient’s name. Using someone’s first name in just a few key places adds a personal touch that can keep the reader interested. But marketers can achieve greater results by leveraging VDP for multiple audience segments and data points. A study conducted by Canon Solutions America compared response rates using various levels of VDP. It began with a static black and white piece and added various levels of personalization in subsequent tests. Here’s what the study revealed:

1. Adding a name only to the piece (a very basic level of personalization) increased response rates by 44%

2. Using full color increased response rates by 45%

3. Adding a name and full color increased response by 135%

4. Applying sophisticated

demographic or behavioral database information (such as buying habits or occupation) increased response rates by 500%

“More often than not there is a direct correlation between the extent of the customization and the effectiveness of the mailpiece,” adds Paul. “Our clients have seen a significant lift in response rates by using complex variable data logic that can swap out whole sections of content or images to fit the recipient.”

Better Data, Better Results One of the key requirements for a successful campaign is to start with good data. Debreceni emphasizes that even if you have great design and highly variable content, your message will miss its mark if the data isn’t accurate. “Without accurate data, it can be a big waste of time and money,” says Paul. “People seem to be paralyzed by their fear of acquiring and managing the data. And if they do have a good database, they may not know how to use it. We emphasize that it’s not a flip of the

switch; it takes time and practice to build great variable data campaigns. The key is to take the first step. Once you’ve grabbed their attention you can drive people to relevant offers and collect new data that will then make your next direct mail piece even more relevant and effective,” adds Paul.

Customer Retention Using VDP

Lead Nurturing with VDP In much the same way, marketing professionals are finding that VDP is a valuable tool for lead generation and nurturing. Using VDP in tandem with automation software, marketers can easily deliver custom content to prospects that is engaging and relevant—the proverbial right message to the right person at the right time.

One easy and effective way to get started with VDP is by leveraging Over time, the message and the your current customer data. In their content become more relevant as often quoted article in the Harvard marketers collect additional data Business Review, management while moving prospects through consultants Frederick Reichheld the sales pipeline. and Earl Sasser estimated that “companies can boost profits by “Lead nurturing is another way almost 100 percent by retaining companies can continue to build just five percent more of their their database. Each direct mail customers,” whether you are a small offer provides a chance to gather local company or a large enterprise. more data and start to build a profile of each customer that can But, according to a statistic be used with VDP,” explains Paul. from Totango, many businesses surveyed spent only 21 percent Personalization is Here to Stay of their marketing budget on Marketing using VDP and other existing customers, even though technology that digitally mimics they represent 61 percent of the the more personal way people company’s total revenue. did business 60 years ago is Marketers under pressure to reduce here to stay. “Most people budgets are finding that targeting appreciate direct mail that feels current and recent customers with like it’s designed just for them. It simple VDP campaigns can lead to makes them feel special, even if greater insight, increased customer temporarily,” says Paul.  loyalty, and ultimately more revenue.

pplying sophisticated demographic or behavioral A database information (such as buying habits or occupation) increased response rates by 500%. MAY/JUNE 2018

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How Marketers Can Harness the Power of Automation with Web-to-Print Technology According to a survey from HubSpot, the average marketer spends almost a third of their time completing repetitive tasks. That’s roughly 15 hours per week based on an average 45–50 hour workweek.

Among others, these tasks can include collecting, organizing and scrubbing data, responding to sales teams, and processing print orders. Although some routine work is unavoidable, marketers must find ways to automate wherever possible. Doing so allows marketing teams to spend more time on high-value creative work which benefits the entire organization. One area that holds big time-saving opportunities for marketers is print and collateral management. By leveraging web-to-print technology and convenient online collateral management platforms marketers can automate the way their organization handles print materials.

Web-to-Print Streamlines Distribution and Connects Global Sales Teams Patrick Barry is happy the days of managing the Charles River Labs “literature room” are behind him. Up until a few years ago, the organization which operates 80 facilities in 23 countries had a room filled with hundreds of brochures and sales materials. The company ordered what they thought they needed—without a good way to track what was used—and Patrick was tasked with distributing it to events and sales reps across the globe. “At that time all of our literature was managed out of that one room so it would take a long time for sales reps in Europe to get their materials,” said Patrick who is now an event specialist for Charles River Labs. “I remember our head of marketing at the time asking why the process wasn’t automated.” A great question that led Charles River to seek out a web-to-print solution from Shawmut. “When we launched the collateral management portal it was groundbreaking,” adds Patrick. “For the first time, everything was in one place and users could easily

Patrick Barry is an Events Specialist at Charles River with a passion for finding ways to work smarter and get things done faster in order to better help those around him.

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Marina Carlson is always ready for a challenge and blends her creativity and analytical skills to improve marketing operations for athenahealth. As campaign planning analyst she seeks out solutions that will help the marketing team operate efficiently and inline with the company’s values.

see what we offered, no matter where they were located. Salespeople from across the globe were seeing materials they didn’t know existed and now it’s helped accelerate their sales process.” Shawmut uses its web-to-print software to print and distribute orders based on the shipping location. For example, if a user from Charles River Labs in the United States places an order that is shipping to London, it will be produced in Europe. The same is true for inventoried items which are stored at Shawmut’s fulfillment center in Ireland. “Our software captures the printon-demand order, vets the file through our automated pre-flight tools, and routes the files to a partner in our global print network. The entire process is automated and happens within 24–48 hours— avoiding any bottlenecks or delays in customs and additional shipping expenses,” explains Michael Peluso, president of Shawmut Communications Group. Patrick says that automating this process saved him a ton of time. “Moving to this system actually played a big part in my ability to take on new responsibilities and be promoted to my current

role. But more importantly, the system automated a very cumbersome process.”

Improve Marketing Operations with Efficient Sales Enablement Tools When Marina Carlson, a campaign planning analyst for athenahealth, was tasked with improving their sales enablement function, she was surprised by what she found. “Our marketing ops team has been fulfilling every need as fast as possible to keep up with company growth,” explains Carlson. “We quickly realized there was no centralized person keeping an eye on the sales enablement processes. Our team was pumping out campaigns without developing a process to manage them. In the end, we ended up with multiple systems, redundant materials, and inconsistent messaging.” The mission of athenahealth’s campaign planning team is to streamline business processes and help the marketing team produce more efficiently. They also strive to ensure that everything athenahealth puts out into the marketplace accurately reflects their brand identity.

“Our previous collateral management process did not match our brand values,” says Carlson. “We need to practice what we preach, which is simplicity and innovation. Going with this technology from Shawmut allows us to stay true to those values.” Currently, athenahealth is working with Shawmut to create one centralized resource for all print and promotional materials— consolidating three external systems. In addition to providing one centralized access point, athenahealth is excited about the level of automation and relevance Shawmut’s solution will bring to the sales enablement process. Using a combination of print-ondemand and inventoried items, athenahealth plans to offer a number of self-service “follow-up kits” for their sales team. This will allow sales reps to create a custom package that feels relevant and personal for each prospect. And because all items will now be shipped from the same fulfillment center, orders will arrive faster keeping the athenahealth brand top of mind for prospects. “We’re excited about pulling all of our resources together and building out a very clean, userfriendly e-commerce site. It’s like our own company Amazon,” says Carlson. In addition to a simple user interface, Shawmut’s platform provides opportunities to

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“ We need to practice what we preach, which is simplicity and innovation. Going with this technology from Shawmut allows us to stay true to those values.”

easily replace content offers or “It was difficult to keep track of our automates the entire process.” promotional items. The team will summary of benefits docs and be reducing the number of items ensure we were re-ordering the right Every file is also assigned a unique code at the time of order, so there they keep in inventory in favor or file,” said Julie Loiselle, operations is no confusion or issues with file more print-on-demand templates specialist for NHP’s customer management. This makes it easier to ensure that all offers put into the engagement marketing division. for NHP to see usage trends and market are up-to-date and on-brand. “Now with the auto-order feature better prepare for busy enrollment we have with Shawmut, we’re able “Another feature that we are also seasons and other spikes in usage. to easily place re-orders without really excited about is the ability to worrying about version control.” “Shawmut’s solution has automated sort items by value,” says Carlson. The auto-order feature is a perfect what was once a very manual and “Its a really simple e-commerce solution for organizations that offer time-consuming process. They function but we didn’t have it before many print materials with similar took the time to understand our so it will be huge for sales. Since formats and specifications. It’s pain points and came up with a they have a limit on the amount particularly helpful for pieces that solution that makes our job easier they can spend per prospect they’ll are often reprinted. and helps keep our customers be able to sort from low to high or happy,” added Julie. high to low and pick items based on “We worked with NHP to create a what’s left in their budget.” program that made re-ordering What processes does your easy and automated the production organization have in place now process,” explains Michael Peluso. Add Efficiency and Save to manage print collateral and “Because we have set up the Time with Auto-Orders promotional items? How do specs for these jobs in advance, materials get distributed? Chances Neighborhood Health Plan NHP is able to use our auto-order are, the process could be simplified. uses hundreds of summary of feature to upload files which are See how web-to-print technology benefits documents and other sent directly to our digital press. It can help you automate repetitive printed materials to communicate eliminates the need to go back and tasks and save your marketing with health plan members and forth with quoting and proofs and team valuable time.  employers. Many of these tools are health plan specific and change often. Needless to say, managing Julie Loiselle is a marketing operations pro. On any this inventory and keeping up with given day she’s a project manager, business analyst, demand is a big undertaking for inventory manager, or SharePoint administrator. NHP’s marketing team. Her versatility enables her to support NHP’s evergrowing customer engagement marketing division.

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Technologies that Bridge the Gap Between Print and Digital

Digital advertising is a core component of modern marketing plans, but a growing number of marketers are also relying on print and direct mail to support their digital marketing efforts. New technology is making it easier than ever for marketers to reach customers through a marriage of print and digital techniques. Hereâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s a look at five technologies that are bridging the gap between print and digital:

which look similar to barcodes. Customers scan the code with a smartphone camera. Once scanned, the code can direct customers to a website, dial a phone number, send a text message, or launch Google mapsâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;just to name a few options. The QR code can be printed on a label, banner, direct mail piece or even on a clothing tag. Taco Bell teamed up with ESPN to run promotions during the Bowl Championship Series and added QR codes to drink cups and taco boxes. When scanned, the codes took customers to videos that promoted upcoming games.

1. NFC tags Consumers are hungry for instant information, which is why NFC tags are becoming increasingly popular. How does it work? NFC tags are placed in direct mail promotions, catalogs, store signage, and product labels. Customers scan the tag with their smartphone to get access to additional product information, branded content, or interactive experiences. Retailer Harvey Nichols used NFC tags to promote a new clothing line. The retailer placed tags on printed shelf displays and encouraged customers to scan them with their devices. Once scanned, the customers could see pricing, available sizes, and a photo gallery of people wearing that particular piece of clothing for different occasions.

2. QR Codes Another way to give consumers more information at their fingertips is through QR (quick response) codes,

The codes generated more than 225,000 scans, driving engagement for Taco Bell customers and ESPN fans.

3. Augmented reality Augmented reality (AR) is giving businesses the ability to hide hidden layers of digital media inside a printed piece. Compared to virtual reality, AR is less expensive way to give customers an immersive experience without wearing any headgear. All consumers need to access the layers of digital content is an app on their phone. An Australian wine company, 19 Crimes, used AR to bring their wine labels to life. The bottles feature British men and women who were arrested for 19 specific crimes in 1783. Rather than be sentenced to death, they were shipped to Australia where they built a colony.

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When customers download the 19 Crimes app, they can scan the label with their phone, and the character on the bottle comes to life and tells their story. Check it out: https://vimeo.com/227373042

4. Personalized URLs Between billboards, radio ads, pop-ups on your smartphone, and hundreds of labels you walk by in a grocery store, every consumer is exposed to thousands of marketing messages every day. In fact, the average consumer sees or hears 5,000 ads a day. To stand out, marketers rely on personalization techniques, like pURLs (personalized URLs) to capture attention and drive sales. A pURL adds a dynamic variable to your URL and usually includes the person’s name (e.g. SallyJohnson.YourCompany.com) When customers go to the link, they find a personalized landing page that highlights their preferences. It’s great for customers, but it’s also a great, trackable tool for marketers who can monitor how customers interact with the site. Here’s an example of a postcard with a pURL:

A growing number of marketers are sending direct mail pieces to customers and then following them up with a similar-looking ad on Facebook. The direct mail piece serves as a “primer,” or an introduction to a brand or product. The ads running on social media create another impression which reinforces the direct mail offer and leads to greater conversions. In fact, when combining direct mail with digital marketing efforts, marketers see 3x the ROI, according to Reach Dynamics. It’s important that two channels are planned simultaneously, and it’s easy to get started. Once you have a direct mail list you can upload it to Facebook to create a specifically designed audience to target. At the same time, you’ll create a Facebook ad that mirrors the creative message and offer of your direct mail piece. Finally, you’ll want to drive recipients to a landing page which will have one focus: to drive conversions.

Wrap up While digital advertising gets a lot of attention, traditional marketing methods like print are more viable and cost-effective than ever before thanks to new technology. When you’re ready to roll out a new campaign this year, consider adding a high-tech print component to drive more results.

5. Direct mail and social ad matching Marketers are combining print and digital strategies to make sure customers notice their brand, engage with it, and—hopefully—convert.

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Shawmut Communications Group can help you blend digital and print techniques. Contact us today! 

DID YOU KNOW?

Blending Print and Digital Yields Impressive Growth for Marketers

84%

ATTENTION

EMOTIONAL IMPACT

INTEGRATED

Integrated direct mail campaigns get 39% more attention and produce 5% more emotional impact and 10% higher brand recall than single-medium digital campaigns.1

SINGLE-MEDIUM

Check out some recent data that shows the benefit of blending print and digital:

SINGLE-MEDIUM

While print and direct mail have one of the highest response rates for any channel (approximately 5.3%

INTEGRATED

for a house list and 2.9% for a prospect list) the real opportunity for lift comes when marketers integrate digital strategies with print. Proven digital marketing strategies like retargeting and paid ads put print and direct mail on steroids!

SINGLE-MEDIUM

According to the 2018 DMA Statistical Factbook, direct marketers have seen a jaw-dropping year-over-year increase of 43 percent for print marketing response rates. That’s certainly impressive, but there’s more to this stat than meets the eye.

BRAND RECALL

84% of people reported that personalization made them more likely to open a direct mail piece.3

Campaigns combining print, email, social and mobile channels achieve an average of 9.5% response rates and 8.6% action rates.5

Sequence matters: Brand recall is 40% higher when direct mail follows email.2

90% of people visit a website first before calling and 96% leave without making a purchase, creating a perfect opportunity to use a pURL or add retargeting strategies with display and social media ads.4

40%

of a direct marketing campaign’s success is in the data. Use digital marketing strategies like IP targeting, lookalike audience modeling, and sophisticated segmentation to improve response rates.6 1 & 2: Canada Post, 3: InfoTrends, 4: Google Analytics, 5: InfoTrends, 6: Above the Fold Magazine

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ASK AN EXPERT

How to Sell More with Personalized Direct Mail There’s a saying that “people buy from people, not companies.” This is particularly true for B2B companies where the sales cycles are long and the stakes are high. Before the deal can close, buyers and sellers need to establish trust and develop a relationship. But sellers won’t get past the first date with an old-school, spray and pray sales approach.

Daniel Rodriguez, head of revenue at Alyce—a software company that helps B2B organizations break into target accounts with personalized gift programs— says “sellers need a thoughtful, recipient-focused approach.” We asked Daniel about the need for greater personalization and how it impacts sales. How has the sales landscape changed? Many sales teams have come to rely too much on marketing automation or other email platforms. Developing relationships requires real interactions between people, not machines. But getting that first meeting is going to take more effort than simply using personalization tokens in automated emails. Another trend we see is that many organizations have become overly obsessed with their business development metrics like the number of calls made and emails 12

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sent. They forgot that they need to build trust and invest more in reaching high-value accounts. What do your clients cite as some of their top challenges? Many of today’s B2B organizations, particularly those in the competitive technology market, have very aggressive growth goals—some as high as 50%. Fueling that type of growth requires a large and consistent pipeline of highvalue target accounts. Most of the organizations we talk to have trouble breaking into these accounts because prospects have tuned out their emails and generic direct mail tactics. How are sales teams using direct mail to reach high-value accounts? The strategy of sending gifts to high-value prospects isn’t new. Many organizations like the idea but they haven’t been able to fully reap the benefits. They are either using a one-off gift approach or old-school direct mail.

Using a one-off approach can be powerful because it is very personal, but there’s no way to scale it. For example, if a sales rep researches their prospect on Instagram and finds that they post a lot of images of dessert they could send a gift from a local cupcake shop. The prospect will probably respond because it’s thoughtful, but this level of research is not a viable solution for busy sales reps. On the other hand, many organizations are sending the same direct mail piece (with or without a gift) to large numbers of prospects. They may personalize it with the person’s name but for the most part, it’s still focused on their company’s products and services. It’s the “me, me, me” approach to direct mail, rather than focusing on the person they are trying to reach. I used to receive this stuff as a buyer and it was all the same. Many of the gifts I received had no relevance to me and I ended up tossing them in the trash. Why is personalization critical for today’s sales teams? Sales reps need to send things people actually want—and in a way that shows they care. When a prospect receives a gift that shows that you spent the time to get to know them, they’ll be flattered and more likely to take the meeting. Miro Kazakoff, a professor at MIT SLOAN, describes this as a natural

ASK AN EXPERT response to “unfakable signals.” When someone has done something “unfakable,” like sending a very personal gift, it generates a positive reaction. It creates an emotional connection which drives the majority of highend purchasing decisions. What advice would you have for companies looking to improve their sales outreach efforts? Experiment with things that don’t scale. It sounds counterintuitive, but if you want to build relationships faster, leave the automated approach behind. Take a small number of prospects and do some outreach using the “you, you, you” approach versus the “me, me, me” approach. Research each person and flatter them by sending gifts they’ll love and appreciate. If you have highvalue prospects it will be well worth the effort. How can brands create personalized sales programs without draining resources? People intuitively recognize that personalized gifting programs will have a high conversion rate (our clients average an 8-12% response rate), but executing these programs is challenging. So instead they blast everyone with a generic email in

A personalized gift sent with Alyce, featuring a branded belly band and notecard with digital handwriting.

the hopes that they are going to bite on the elevator pitch. But that doesn’t work very well. Our software eliminates many of the time-consuming tasks associated with sending highly personalized gifts. Artificial intelligence replaces manual social media research, and digital handwriting technology allows reps to send personal notes without having to write it themselves. Logistics run much smoother as well. Rather than buying gifts in

Daniel is the Head of Revenue at Alyce, where he is responsible for the marketing, sales and customer success efforts. Daniel’s previous experience includes five years as the VP of Marketing and member of the executive team at Seismic, which went from $1m to over $40m of revenue during his tenure.

bulk which requires inventory management and fulfillment, they are automatically sent from the Alyce marketplace. In the future, how will personalization strategies continue to impact sales? Buyers have less and less time so they are getting good at knowing how to block out what they consider to be “spammy.” The sales reps that use personalization in a way that shows they are thoughtful will win in the future. 

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Shawmut

Free resource:

DIELINES & TEMPLATES Weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re excited to announce a new resource on our website for graphic designers! Check out our collection of dielines and templates. Download the files to save yourself time on your next print design project, and donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t forget to check back often to see the new dielines we release each month!

www.shawmutdelivers.com/dielines

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facebook.com/ ShawmutCommunicationsGroup

@ShawmutDelivers

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