Blog

By Laura Phillips
Director, Demand Generation,
Printing for Less

Just recently, we published a list of the Top 10 most-read blogs in 2024. You can read all about it here. But blogs aren’t the only kind of content we produce for you at P F L/Printing for Less. In fact, we have a Resource Center fully loaded with webinar replays, Idea Books, guides, even a Revenue Calculator. And plenty of e-books.

P F L

So, we thought we’d take a look at were the most downloaded e-books in 2024. First, let’s look at P F L:

• Leveraging Direct Mail Throughout the Customer Lifecycle

With modern, automated direct mail, you can make every connection during the customer journey count. This e-book explains how direct mail is a versatile, engaging, and dynamic force in modern marketing, one that can serve as a powerful tool across every stage of the lifecycle.

• Creating Powerful Direct Mail Moments Across the Customer Lifecycle

When businesses get personal across a product or service lifecycle, the resultscan prove transformative. In this e-book, you’ll learn how to connect with prospects and customers more through practical tactics you can try immediately to create powerful moments and increase engagement.

• P F L’s Top 14 ‘Greatest Hits’

This e-book is a collection of case studies that showcases the transformative impact of direct mail on diverse industries, from healthcare and nonprofit organizations to global corporations. Effective marketing is not just about reaching your audience but engaging with them—a tune played expertly by direct mail.  

Printing for Less

Printing for Less, P F L‘s sister e-commerce and direct mail printing company, has its share of great content in the form or e-books, too. Here’s what its readers were interested in in 2024:

• Direct Mail Marketing: An Idea Book for Realtors

Did you know that direct mail boasts an impressive 90 percent open rate, compared with just 21 percent for email? Direct mail helps make a lasting impression on both current customers and potential clients. This Idea Book is packed with innovative yet tried-and-true strategies to help realtors capture attention and grow the business.  

• 2025 Essential Guide to Direct Mail

Direct mail remains a powerful marketing tool because it creates a tangible connection. So, whether you’re looking to boost sales, increase engagement, or build lasting relationships with customers, here’s a look at how to harness its power and integrate it into broader marketing strategies for optimal results.

• 2024 Holiday Cheer Lookbook

This latest “2024 Holiday Cheer Lookbook” delivers exactly that: Cheer. No matter the holiday or the business, our “Lookbook” is designed to offer creative and thoughtful gift ideas that leave a lasting impression. And even though the holidays are over, these suggestions can be adopted all year round.

We welcome in 2025 with a look back at 2024 to see what content most interested P F L’s readers. But let’s get this out of the way first: That perennial favorite, The Little Tale of Sister’s Irish Soda Bread, continues to move up the charts—4^th place in 2022 and 3^rd place in 2023, and it moved into second position in 2024. While many of our blogs are “have to reads,” this one is clearly a “want to read,” and we’re happy it remains a favorite. Will it make Number 1 next year?  

Now back to business.  

#1 The Power of the Catalog: 10 Real-world Examples
Leading the pack is this roundup of catalogs from renowned companies that have used direct mail to the max. These examples demonstrate how direct mail catalogs can be a powerful marketing tool. You have probably received—and ordered from—at least a few of these. Seeing how others—especially global brands—do it is always worth a read.  

# 2 The Little Tale of Sister’s Irish Soda Bread
See above.  

#3 McKinsey Report: Top-notch Customer Service Ensures Success for Insurers
McKinsey & Co. surveyed more than 8,500 insurance customers and reported the results in “Elevating customer experience: A win–win for insurers and customers.” Among the main insights gleaned: Delivering a winning customer experience (CX) is a strong predictor and driver of successful financial and organizational outcomes in the insurance world.  

#4 10 Real-world Examples of Holiday Campaign Excellence
Another roundup of what the best of the best have done in direct mail marketing. While we all don’t have the resources to reach these levels, there is no shortage of creativity and innovation in many businesses today—such as yours—to do some great marketing work for the holidays. Here, then, are 10 the most successful and memorable winter holiday campaigns from the last decade that might serve as an inspiration.  

#5 How to Elevate Your Direct Mail to Be ‘More Than Mail’
When direct mail is elevated, it becomes more than just mail. It can be more than a postcard or a routine letter, or a coupon you receive, or a monthly bank statement, or the note your insurance company sends on your birthday. Direct mail can be the bridge that connects your brand to your audience, driving engagement across the customer journey.  

#6 Introducing P F L ‘2024 Spring Lookbook’
As the Spring of 2024 arrived, P F L introduced our latest collection of trend-setting products, reflecting our commitment to sustainability. It is all showcased in the P F L 2024 Spring Lookbook. This thoughtfully curated selection of seasonally relevant products both mirrors current trends and signifies our commitment to responsibility and sustainability.  

#7 Part 1: The Power of Direct Mail—5 Types & Tips
Direct mail marketing remains one of the most effective ways to reach your audience. Despite the ubiquity of digital marketing, physical mail can capture attention and drive engagement in ways no other medium can. Personalized direct mail delivers high engagement and brand recall. Here’s a sampling of some of the main types of direct mail and few tips for what you can do to make each of them successful.

#8 SAP Concur Uses the Personal Touch to Reengage with Customers
The SAP Concur marketing team realized they were out of touch—with some customers, that is. They noticed that some people who had not engaged with marketing activities within a certain timeframe were becoming inactive. Marketing management decided something had to be done and hit on the idea that, to reengage with them quickly, the team would add a personal touch.    

#9 Lost in the Sea of Emails? Dive into the Direct Mail Pool!
We at P F L have been preaching for quite some time that people, today, are bombarded with digital content, pop-up ads, and, yes, emails—we call this “the sea of sameness.” Which, in many cases, means “the sea of emails.” So, the next time you find yourself drowning in the sea of emails, take a plunge into the direct-mail waters and watch your message perform swimmingly.  

#10 Direct Mail: The Holiday Gift that Keeps on Giving
Marketing with direct mail for the holidays takes a bit more imagination and innovation than normal. If you want to surprise and delight customers and prospects with a thoughtful card or slick catalog, you have to stand out. Our gift is these tips to help you create unforgettable seasonal direct mail campaigns.  

The Second 10
As a lagniappe for the new year, here’s the list of the second ten articles that P F L readers found interesting in 2024.  

Pitt CTSI Finds Optimized Direct Mail to Be a Marketing Shot in the Arm

Happy (Re)new Year! Direct Mail Solutions that Deliver

The Right Audience-Engagement Strategy: It’s A Gift

Why Every Company Should Be a Data Company

When You Wish Upon a… Catalog?

Roundtable Part 1: How To Level Up Your Mailbox Mojo

Be Very Afraid…It’s Direct Mail—Not!

P F L’s 2024 ‘Holiday Cheer Lookbook’!

Core Values: Relationships—A Matter of Trust  

The Power of a Compelling Call to Action for Direct Mail Campaigns

Your nonprofit’s reputation means everything to recruitment and talent acquisition success. Cultivating your standing as a great workplace will draw new applicants to your organization. In fact, studies show that:

• 86% of job seekers read company reviews before applying for a job.
• Companies with strong employer branding receive 1.5x more applicants.
• Strong employer branding can increase retention by as much as 28%.

Creating a strong employer brand requires more than putting together talking points in a brochure. The most successful employer brands are built up by a targeted marketing strategy that consistently delivers the right message. 

In this guide, let’s review the importance of employer branding and how to integrate it into your recruitment marketing approach.

Why Employer Branding Matters

 Your employer brand is shaped by everything from leadership style and candidate interactions to your online reviews and community involvement. Even small details, like the design of your hiring posters or the first impressions you make at recruitment events, affect how your brand is perceived. 

Prioritizing your employer branding is crucial for nonprofits of all sizes and niches. By doing so, you:

• Improve your recruitment strategy’s efficiency by identifying what a great candidate looks like.
• Entice more candidates to apply to your organization and join your hiring funnel.
• Increase employee retention by reaching the most qualified fit for each role.
• Spread awareness of your organization to the community, including potential funders or beneficiaries. 
• Gain an edge to attract top talent.

Now that you understand what a robust employer brand can help you achieve, let’s review how to create one from the ground up.

How to Build an Employer Brand

1. Assess your current brand perception.

The first step in revamping your employer brand is understanding its current state. That way, you can accurately determine key performance metrics, strengths, and weaknesses in your current strategy. Assess your current reputation by:

• Surveying employees and candidates. Go straight to the source by asking past and current employees for feedback on their experience working with your nonprofit. Also, ask candidates who are either currently interviewing or who voluntarily leave your hiring funnel what they think of your organization.
• Checking job review sites. Sites like Glassdoor, Indeed, and LinkedIn have rating systems where employees can review their experience with an employer. Look for overarching trends highlighting what you’re doing well and what you could improve.
• Reviewing other employer brands in your field. For instance, if you’re a small nonprofit focused on local animal welfare, look at other local groups and large organizations like the World Wildlife Fund, as they likely compete for the same talent.  

Don’t strictly rely on qualitative data during this stage. Lever suggests analyzing quantitative metrics like employee retention rates, offer acceptance rates, and candidate feedback scores to understand other facets of your employer brand.

As you brainstorm these details, you might find additional weaknesses that may harm the perception of your employer brand. However, don’t try to hide your faults—actively work to improve them. For instance, if you notice employees are consistently disgruntled by your lack of PTO, work with them to see if you can find a compromise. Remember, word of mouth is an important element of building your employer brand—having satisfied employees will go a long way for your reputation.

2. Define your core message.

Much like other marketing efforts, you need a core message as the foundation of your employer brand. These guiding principles should embody your organization’s mission, vision, values, and workplace culture. 

The best core messages are nuanced, so you might need to approach the brainstorming process from multiple angles. Start with these questions:

• What sets our workplace apart from others?
• How does our mission shape our workplace?
• What do employees love about working here?
• What impact do we want to make on the community, world, and our employees?
• What employee benefits do we offer?
• What approach do we take to work-life balance?
• How do we support our employees’ professional development?

Add any other questions that address unique aspects of your workplace, such as whether you expect employees to participate in an annual team bonding retreat. Combine your answers to establish your core message and give it dimension.

Here’s an example of a nonprofit’s core message for their employer brand:

“Our nonprofit is committed to cultivating a purpose-driven workplace where employees feel challenged and supported along their professional journey. Our culture relies on preserving work-life balance, competitive benefits, and a collaborative work environment. Together, through supporting our beneficiaries, we aim to support each other as a team.”  

3. Build your employer brand guide.

After determining the big-picture aspects of your brand, hone the more minor details in your employer brand guide. Add the following information to your guide:

• Recruitment marketing channels, such as in-person job fairs or direct-mail flyers.
• Tone and voice guidelines, like preferred terminology and slogans.
• Visual elements and design standards, such as your brand’s typography, logo, and colors.
• Key employee value propositions, such as opportunities for advancement or professional development. 
• Diversity and inclusion commitments, like targeted recruitment efforts to underrepresented communities.

Once your employer brand guide has been completed, it’s time to use the details inside it to complement your hiring and talent acquisition activities. During this process, treat the guide as a source of truth to ensure you represent your employer brand consistently across your team. For example, use the same language to describe your key employee value propositions across all channels and printed materials.

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Once you’ve revamped your employer brand, it’s important to consistently monitor its reception. Track the aforementioned recruitment analytics and compare them with your pre-release numbers. Send letters and feedback cards to current employees and colleagues in the space, asking for their advice.

That being said, your employer brand should be dynamic. You want to keep up with changing employee priorities and pivot if they impact your nonprofit. For instance, more employees today are interested in corporate social responsibility (CSR) than ever before. To meet this need, highlight your CSR initiatives in your upcoming recruitment cycle.

Ultimately, if you consider employee perspectives and keep a pulse on workplace trends, you can build a versatile brand identity that attracts the highest-quality candidates to your nonprofit.

Health professionals can’t afford to neglect their outreach strategies. For providers and payers, effectively reaching patient populations with timely and relevant information is the key to empowering them to take charge of their health. As a result, thoughtful and data-driven marketing impacts health outcomes and the cost-effectiveness of care.

However, to garner responses to their calls to action, health professionals must make informed decisions based on relevant data. In this guide, we’ll explore the impact of data analytics on healthcare marketing and the steps health professionals must follow to implement it.

What Is Data Analytics?

Arcadia defines healthcare analytics as “the systematic use of data and statistical analysis techniques in the healthcare industry,” which involves “collecting, managing, analyzing, and visualizing data to derive valuable insights and make informed decisions.”

When applied to outreach, this process enables providers and payers to identify populations that could benefit from proactive services and cost-effective interventions. For example, payers might analyze claims history to identify members needing wellness programs or support groups. By sending targeted communications, payers can address members’ specific health risks and increase their responsiveness to the recommended care.

Key Data Points to Analyze

Different data points provide unique insights that allow healthcare marketers to understand their audience’s preferences and needs. The following data points are key to driving successful healthcare marketing:

• Audience demographics: Demographic data stored in electronic health records (EHRs) helps healthcare marketers understand their audiences and what messages resonate with them. This data includes age, location, and socioeconomic status.
• Engagement metrics: Metrics like webpage click-through rate (CTR) and direct mail response rate reveal how patients interact with certain campaigns. For example, you might find that your audience is highly responsive to direct mail appointment reminders as opposed to digital outreach.
• Health and wellness interests: Direct patient feedback, such as survey responses, offers a wealth of information about the interests healthcare marketers should prioritize. Data analysis enables marketers to identify topics audience members will respond to, such as wellness tips or disease prevention, and deliver highly relevant content.

By analyzing these data points, healthcare marketers can craft personalized and timely content that yields high response rates.

4 Tips for Implementing Data Analytics in Healthcare Marketing

1. Start with Clean, Quality Data

Proper data governance in healthcare ensures health information is accurate, accessible, and secure. This is vital to care delivery, but it also impacts patient outreach. Data-driven marketing decisions start with a foundation of robust, reliable data. 

The first step to obtaining clean, quality data is aggregating information from multiple sources. A centralized data management system, like a data analytics platform, consolidates information from health records, EHRs, and other sources to provide a comprehensive view of patient populations.

Next, NPOInfo recommends cleaning your database by following these steps:

• Conduct an audit of your database.
• Remove unnecessary or unuseful information, like the contact information of deceased persons.
• Review the remaining data for duplicate entries and other errors.
• Standardize processes for ongoing maintenance.
• Consult a data marketing expert for additional help.

After cleaning their databases, healthcare marketers can be confident that the data driving their outreach strategies is current, relevant, and aligned with their audience’s needs.

2. Segment Your Audience for Targeted Campaigns

Review your data to identify similarities between groups within your target audience. For example, you might group hypertension patients together and create a separate group for diabetes patients. 

These groups, or audience segments, will help you create targeted communications that speak directly to patients’ health needs. In the end, segmentation can even impact health outcomes by delivering the right information to the right audiences in a timely manner.

3. Personalize Messaging Across Channels

Although some communication channels are more effective than others, your message matters more. Tailoring messages to patients’ needs helps them feel supported on their health journeys. 

Here are a few ways you can use what you know to create messages that resonate with recipients:

• Address recipients by name: Using a recipient’s name in any form of communication immediately makes the interaction feel personal and direct. Consider starting physical mailers, text messages, and emails with the recipient’s first name. 
• Tailor health tips: Share health tips specific to each individual based on their age or medical history. For example, send information on maintaining heart health to adults at risk of hypertension.
• Include community resources: Highlight relevant community resources, such as nearby clinics or wellness programs, based on the recipient’s location. Or, share information about telehealth services for those in rural areas.

Additionally, your audience segments can guide personalized reminders and follow-ups for patients receiving care. Targeting these materials increases the likelihood that recipients will respond since they’ll see your organization is attentive to their specific health journey.

4. Track, Analyze, and Refine Campaigns

Maximizing marketing success is an ongoing process. As audience members come and go and health concerns shift over time, you must consistently track your campaigns to identify areas of improvement.

To keep your campaigns adaptive, consider these approaches:

• Track social determinants of health (SDoH): SDoH refers to the nonmedical factors that impact a patient’s health. For example, a religious person may have a different outlook on preventive health services, like vaccinations, than an atheist. By tracking SDoH data, healthcare marketers can more precisely tailor resources according to the external factors that could change a patient’s health needs.
• Leverage predictive analytics: Using historical data and machine learning to anticipate potential health needs, marketers can forecast future campaigns. For example, a healthcare organization could identify patients at risk of developing type 2 diabetes and design an outreach campaign that offers tips for managing blood sugar levels.
• Implement automated campaigns: Enable real-time responsiveness by adjusting messaging according to patient interactions. For example, send rescheduling instructions to a patient who recently missed their appointment or educational content to a patient with a newly diagnosed condition.

Also, continue tracking engagement data to learn what communication tactics garner the most engagement. For example, are your traditional newsletters cutting it, or would audience members prefer dimensional mailers?

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Data analytics is a powerful tool for enhancing both patient care and outreach. Using robust analytics tools and prioritizing a clean database are crucial steps in turning your data into actionable insights. 

To maximize the reach of your marketing efforts, review your current tech stack and determine what tools you’re missing. From there, pair your data with top-tier technology for a strong and effective marketing approach.

No matter what your persuasion—religious, ethnic, or otherwise—you most likely have heard (some would say “been assaulted by”) the “The 12 Days of Christmas” song during the holiday season. The earliest known printed version of the lyrics appears in a 1780 children’s book called, “Mirth Without Mischief.” The titular “twelve days” refers to the period between Christmas Day (December 25) and Epiphany (January 6), which marks the arrival of the Magi to visit Jesus. The version most of us hear—from Halloween until the 25^th,  it now seems—was set to music by English composer Frederic Austin in 1909. He is responsible—for good or ill—for the current lyrics and melody.

The song follows what’s called a “cumulative structure,” building on previous verses, which made it effective as a memory game. So, in essence, it began as a secular memory tool that evolved into a Christmas tradition, with its religious connections coming later rather than being inherent in its origins.

Today it remains a well-worn Christmas carol, with opinions divided as to whether people find it delightful or tedious. The media, of course, has fun with it each year by determining the cost of the 12 gifts in current dollars. (For the record, the total cost of the gifts noted in the holiday carol for 2023 was $46,729.86. And while there are many variables, we can guarantee you that direct mail is far more valuable and economical than these “gifts.” In fact, DM is the gift that keeps on giving.)  

For our purposes here, we are most interested in its “memory game” characteristics, and not religious connotations. It just might be that, in this form, marketers the world over will have an easier time remembering all the direct mail items that can be used every day of the year—and not just during the holidays.

On the first day of Christmas, Printing for Less gave to me:

1. A Postcard for Something That Is Free
   Whether you’re a marketing professional in an enterprise, a small business owner, a real estate agent, or a landscaper, postcards can enhance your promotional strategies—including “Buy One, Get One Free” or “Call Now to Claim Your Free Sample.”
2. Two Targeted Letters
   Marketing manager, entrepreneur, non-profit organizer, retail business owner, whomever, mastering the art of direct mail letters—personalized and to a target audience—can help you connect with customers and prospects in a meaningful way.

3. Three Bold Brochures
   While perhaps a bit more costly than digital methods, brochures and catalogs deliver real value, providing the space to showcase your products or services in bold colors and imagery to connect with prospects and customers. 
4. Four Business Cards
   Despite it being a digital world, there are times when only a physical introduction will do. The venerable vehicle for that has been the business card, which can spark a memorable connection between a prospect and your brand.

5. Five Eye-catching Envelopes
   While it’s what’s inside that ultimately counts, recipients often judge the importance or value of mail by the envelope. Wow them with unique and eye-catching envelope designs that make a great impression to ensure they get opened.
6. Six Captivating Catalogs
   Direct mail catalogs remain a powerful tool for engaging customers and driving sales. With their ability to showcase products in a visually appealing format, catalogs—like their brethren, brochures—can truly captivate recipients in a unique way.
7. Seven Nurturing Newsletters
   Printed newsletters are great for building relationships and providing ongoing value for your customers. By educating and entertaining, they have long provided businesses in all industries with an effective way to build, then nurture, relationships with the target audience.

8. Eight Custom Calendars
   Sending out a calendar created just for your business is a simple yet excellent way to keep your brand top-of-mind all year long. They offer practical use and engaging design, making them a thoughtful choice.  
9. Nine Nifty Notepads
   The simple notepad—of any size and shape—is a nifty choice in today’s highly competitive business environment. It enables you to stand apart with both current and potential customers. Who doesn’t need one? 

10. Ten Dimensional Mailers
    While all dimensional mailers have their physical nature in common, there are many different types to choose from. From product sample mailers to special event invitations, dimensional mail can create memorable experiences, drive engagement, and strengthen relationships with your target audience. 
11. Eleven EDDMs
    The USPS’s ‘Every Door Direct Mail®’ (EDDM®) service lets you market local by connecting with the right people, at the right time, with the right message. It is one of the best tools for cost-effectively reaching customers in a geographical area.
12. Twelve Tangible Results
    There are certainly more than a dozen reasons why direct mail’s is so successful, but many sing its praises for providing a tangible, physical touchpoint that digital marketing cannot replicate. It can be personalized, targeted, and integrated into a broader marketing strategy. By leveraging the strengths of each type of direct mail and focusing on clear, engaging messages, businesses can create powerful campaigns that drive results.  

The Printing for Less teams wish you all the best of the season.

Beginning January 1, 2025, California will implement new regulations for direct mail marketing of consumer financial products and services. These new regulations aim to protect consumers and increase transparency in financial product marketing. Businesses that fail to comply may face penalties and fines. As your trusted partner in direct mail solutions, we want to keep you informed about these changes and how they might affect your marketing strategies.

Key Points of California State Bill 1096

Disclosure Statement Requirement
The most significant change is the requirement for a disclosure statement on the front of the envelope. This statement must be in bold, enlarged type and clearly indicate that the contents are an advertisement, with no obligation for the recipient to act or make payments. Here is the suggested text:

THIS IS AN ADVERTISEMENT. YOU ARE NOT REQUIRED TO MAKE ANY PAYMENT OR TAKE ANY OTHER ACTION IN RESPONSE TO THIS OFFER.

Sender Identification
Marketing materials must prominently display the name and contact information of the business responsible for the content, enhancing transparency for the consumer.

Opt-Out Mechanism
All marketing mail must include an easily accessible opt-out mechanism, such as a pre-paid return envelope or postcard for physical mailings.

Accurate Information
The law emphasizes the importance of providing accurate and non-misleading information in all marketing claims.

How We Can Help

At Printing for Less, we’re committed to helping our clients navigate these new regulations. This is a new and complex law and we will do everything we can to help you execute it successfully. Conferring with legal counsel, of course, is always a good course of action.

In the meantime, our team is ready to assist you in adapting your 2025 campaign in compliance with California State Bill 1096. We’ll work with you to implement the required changes while maintaining the effectiveness of your direct mail marketing strategies.