Direct Mailers Face International Challenges

"For Internarnational mailing, you have to take everything you know about direct mail and throw it out," says Howard Krawitz, president of Davis Direct WorldWide, Woodinville, WA (www.davisdirect.com). "The only consistency is that everything will be inconsistent."Don't, however, let the obstacles dissuade you from targeting foreign markets, which can be largely untapped and lucrative, warns Krawitz. Other countries are quite eager for U.S. goods and services, as response rates reflect. "The domestic companies that typically get about a 1 percent response rate here in the States often see 3 to 5 percent or more in the international arena," notes Krawitz.The first issue that direct-mail publishers must address before "going global" is identifying a target audience. This is not often as easy as it is here in the States, says Steve Roberts, president of Edith Roman Associates, Pearl River, NY."U.S. list brokers are not all trained in compiling international lists, so if you're going to work with an international list, you really should work with an international list broker," Roberts suggests.There are three types of international mailing lists, according to Krawitz: regional, multinational and American-generated lists. The least effective, he contends, are the American-generated lists, because they are typically compiled by U.S. mailers that may not be familiar with international addressing and postal codes.The multinational list is often sold by companies mailing from the U.S. to a number of countries. The problem with this type, Krawitz says, is that you may purchase a list that has only 20 subscribers within one given country on the list. Obviously, that limits the exposure you're likely to gain.Krawitz suggests the regional list as the best option for U.S. mailers. This type has been compiled within the targeted country, has been formatted with local postal considerations in mind and offers verified addresses, which cut down on the amount of undeliverable mail.International list brokers can help domestic publishers compile targeted lists based on a wide range of criteria, and most can aid publishers in the maintenance of lists, merging/purging tasks and preparation of mail for distribution.Edith Roman, for example, will recommend lists, purchase lists, and unduplicate, catalog and code lists, says Roberts. The company's Web site (www.edithroman.com) allows visitors to browse descriptions of over 30,000 lists—free-of-charge. Once registering at the site, direct mailers are able to search prospective lists by demographics, pricing, keywords and locations.The cost of businessInternational lists are typically more expensive than domestic lists, suggests Krawitz. "In most sectors of the world, lists start at the low end of about $195 per thousand names. It goes up from there. The average cost for an international list runs between $250 to $275 per thousand, and in countries where mailing is a bit more difficult, like Germany and Japan, you can expect to pay $400 to $500 per thousand," he explains. The cost adds up, particularly when you're looking at minimum requirements of 10,000 names for international lists.Regional Sales Director Derrick Davidson, Royal Mail, New York City, suggests the initial investment a direct mailer makes for the purchase of good list is the most important part of the project. "Keep in mind, if it goes to the wrong person, the whole project might as well have been tossed right into the Hudson River anyway," laughs Davidson. "Finding the right list is the key element … so it's worth investing a few extra dollars to get the right names." Royal Mail works with a wealth of list suppliers, Davidson points out; its primary partner is Metromail, Lombard, IL, which acts as both list broker and data-maintenance service provider.Formatting raw dataOnce you have a targeted mailing list, your work as a direct mailer has just begun. The next obstacle is formatting the list data to comply with international postal requirements. "Address hygiene is really difficult," Davidson concurs. "Each country is like a thing of its own. In the UK, for example, there is no rhyme nor reason to ZIP codes."Modern technology can help—to a certain extent. "You can go to a variety of vendors and buy software for under $1,000 that will address correct, merge/purge and take care of mail sorting for the U.S. But good luck the minute you leave our country," Krawitz declares. After realizing this, Krawitz and his colleagues took the proverbial bull by the horn and ventured out to create a software program to meet the needs of international mailers.Based on years of researching country-specific postal regulations, Davis Direct is now able to cleanse direct-mail pieces destined for more than 200 countries. Krawitz explains: "We format to the appropriate requirements of the postal administration of the country. … Countries change their rules like some people—excuse the expression—change their underwear. With Germany, for example, when the Wall came down, postal codes changed eight times within six months—and they're still driving me nuts." Firms like Davis Direct offer up-to-the-minute postal information.In addition to considering postal requirements, it is also important to be savvy when merging and purging duplicates, Krawitz suggests. "For an average file, we typically drop 5 to 15 percent of addresses. You can imagine what that's like when you're working with a list of 2 million. … Most list owners understand that lists go through a cleaning process and offer a credit for any addresses that can not be used. That's good business," he adds.The way to monitor the success rate of your direct-mail campaign is by the response rate. "If you put 100,000 deliverable pieces into the mail, the response rate should be true," says Krawitz. "But if 20 percent of your mailing is not deliverable, because of duplicates or inaccurate addressing, your response rate will be off." Thus the reason for a reliable method of formatting your list.It is also vital that you familiarize yourself with local culture when mailing to a foreign country. In Latin America, for example, a single household often houses more than one family. This fact may cause mailers to take exception to rule of one piece per household. "The other issue is how to handle apartment complexes," notes Kra-witz. "Apartment buildings in Mexico usually don't have apartment numbers. The one-per-household rule in that case can be very detrimental to a direct mailer."Assumptions are dangerousFor Krawitz, the most important thing to remember about mailing abroad: "You can't assume that the local postal authorities are going to go out of their way to deliver your mail. You need to do everything you can to ensure that your list is a good list, it's been purged and corrected and you abide by the postal regulations for each country."In "The 12 Most Common Direct-Mail Mistakes … and How to Avoid Them," Robert Bly, president, Center for Technical Communication, Dumont, NJ, offers his own brand of advice: "The most common direct-mail mistake is not spending enough time and effort up front when you select—and then test—the right lists. Remember: In direct marketing, a mailing list is not just a way of reaching your market. It is the market." -Gretchen A. Kirby

General

Direct Mailers Face International Challenges

Publishing Executive Staff

About

Subscriptions

Events

Publications

WORK SMARTER - LEARN, GROW AND BE INSPIRED.

Subscribe today!

Publishing Executive Staff