This week we’ll examine the different ways you can personalize a mail piece to make it stand out more to potential customers. This can range from a simple “Hello John!” on a postcard mailing to matching personalized inserts to the name on an outer envelope, or even using a personal URL to link your mailpiece to your website in a more striking way.

[Note: Any mail containing personal information specific to the addressee must be sent First Class or Express Mail, not Standard Mail]

Printing something as simple as the person’s first name in larger print separate from the address will often draw attention and make your mail piece stand out from the rest of the mail in the mailbox. This can be done on the inkjet after the postcard is already printed, or the whole thing can be printed together on a digital press to allow for more options of color and style.

Another common option for personalization is to fill out known fields on a form to make it easier for the recipient to respond. You can fill in their name and address, and then leave a spot for corrections in case something has changed. The easier it is for the person to respond, the better response rate you will get.

Lastly, personalized URLs can be placed on a piece to get more traffic to your website. A personalized URL allows you to link the person to a web page designed specifically for them: different demographics can get different offers or have web pages styled differently within the same mailing. This serves a variety of purposes: it shows that your company keeps up with new technology, it drives traffic to your website, it allows you to track how well your mailing is doing, and it allows you to track who has responded, which we’ll touch on more next week.

That wraps up this week, have a great New Year’s Eve!