How Directmail.io Adds a Voice to Direct Marketing
Direct mail has long been a pillar of marketing for companies across almost every industry. Voice technology offers a new dimension for direct mail, one that Directmail.io is bringing to clients who want to find new and better ways of connecting with their customers.
Vocal Connection for Direct Mail
Directmail.io combines direct mail campaigns with an Amazon Alexa or Google Assistant voice app. The voice app is built on voice software platform Twilio’s Autopilot software. Normally, direct mail campaigns might offer a website, phone number, or physical address where recipients can get more information or enter a competition sponsored by a company. Directmail.io adds the vocal option.
“I’ve been in the direct mail space for a long time, always in the lead generation part of it. It hit me about 16 months ago that this voice stuff is getting really, really hot right now,” Directmail.io CEO Shawn Burst told Voicebot in an interview. “At first I thought it might just be a good gimmick for direct mail because it’s fun to be first in anything, but now it’s really starting to show results.”
For instance, Directmail.io has signed up several car dealerships as clients. A recipient of an offer like the one pictured above can ask Alexa or Google Assistant to launch Direct Mail, then give the campaign ID and PIN included in the mailing. After a personalized greeting, they would be told the value of their vehicle, then sent a text confirmation and asked to make an appointment with the dealership. According to Burst, 65% of those who used the voice app set an appointment.
“One of our customers in West Virginia has seen more than 10% of their direct mail campaign leads come from Alexa skills since we started working with them,” Burst said. “Voice is complex but we’ve distilled it down to make it simpler for our customers. As we expand we will have templates so they can modify it themselves.”
Business and Political Communications
Directmail.io was founded in 2005 in Mandeville, Louisiana and as a platform includes marketing channels for mail, email, social media ads, and directly targeted text messages. Voice is still a relatively new option for a marketing channel, but one that Burst said he is convincing a growing number of clients to try out.
“Our primary customers have been automotive but we are just now branching out into home improvement, jewelry, and other ventures,” Burst said. “It’s worked out well so far, but we are by no means out of the weeds just yet. We are experimenting with a bunch of new ideas, including politics. We’ve had discussions with some political organizations about including the [voice component] in their mailings.”
Burst said that political mailings are always looking for new ways to connect with potential voters and stakeholders for debated issues. A voice app like Directmail.io provides may activate people that more traditional campaign attempts have missed. Ultimately, voice apps are just another facet of direct mail marketing, but one with a lot of untapped potential as the presence of voice assistants grows.
“Certain components are integral for success universally in direct mail. You always need a strong call to action to drive people to a landing page or a phone call or an inbound SMS and voice is no different,” Burst said. “Voice is a great way to show that you’re a modern company and it shows a new way to integrate with businesses and organizations.”
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