November is the first full month of the holiday season that begins with candy and costumes on the last day in October and concludes with champagne and confetti on New Year’s Eve. November also marks the beginning of serious holiday promotions. As Daniel Butler, vice president of retail operations for the National Retail Federation puts it, “Half of the world of retail is on sale in November.”
Beyond the holidays and the sales, there are a number of reasons to mail in November, including:
November – All month long
November is men’s health awareness month. Thousands of men will go unshaven to raise awareness for men’s health issues such as prostate cancer, testicular cancer, and depression. November was started in 2004 by The November Foundation to “change the face of men’s health.” Over the past 10 years the organization has raised $559 million and funded more than 800 programs in 21 countries.
Businesses have taken up the November cause. Take Danny, for example. He owns a barbershop and men’s spa and every November he donates 15% of his proceeds to The November Foundation. At first Danny marketed the campaign by handing out flyers to his clients; that was successful, but he wanted to do more. Danny heard about Click2Mail and decided to put together a direct mail campaign. He designed a series of three 4.25” x 6” postcards. Using a mailing list he sent the postcards to every household with male residents over the age of 21, within 10 miles of the barbershop. The first year – and every year since – Danny exceeded his donation goal and gained more clients.
Thanksgiving – Thursday, November 27th
If you sell holiday-related products – food, décor, holiday cards – Thanksgiving is obviously a great opportunity to market your business. Sarah, for example, does more marketing in November than any other time of the year. She’s the marketing manager for a large personalized holiday card company. Each year, she sends out a mailer advertising the company’s Thanksgiving promotions. This year, Sarah chose a 5” x 8” postcard with photos of Thanksgiving cards and three coupons. She also included a QR code that, when scanned, links the recipient directly to the company’s mobile website. From there, the customer can take advantage of the coupons and start designing their specialized cards. Sarah has already seen a great response rate from both the coupons on the mailer and visits to the mobile website via the QR code.
If you don’t sell Thanksgiving-related products or services, mail is a great way to simply wish your customers a Happy and Healthy Thanksgiving – or to thank them for their business.
Black Friday – Friday November 28th
Black Friday is the biggest shopping day of the year. In 2011, 226 million people spent $11.4 billion on Black Friday. Many retailers make more on this one day than they do in an entire month the rest of the year.
If you sell on Black Friday, advertise your deals with direct mail. Take Addison, who owns a retail store and has special deals starting at 12:00am and ending at 11:59pm. She sends several mailers advertising her promotions, including an 8.5″ x 12″ EDDM postcard, with a coupon and pictures. Using Every Door Direct Mail (EDDM) she sent a special mailer highlighting all of the special Black Friday deals to every address on the nearest 10 carrier routes.
Small Business Saturday – Saturday, November 29th
Small Business Saturday (SBS) was founded in 2010 by American Express to help raise awareness of and support for America’s small businesses. So much attention is given to big retailers on Black Friday; American Express’ goal was to encourage people to support small businesses. Since 2010, Small Business Saturday has grown into a powerful initiative. In 2013, people spent $5.7 billion at small, independent retailers.
Many of our customers find great success advertising SBS with direct mail. Last year, John created a 6.5″ x 9″ EDDM mailer with a 20% off coupon and information about Small Business Saturday. He sent it to residents and businesses within 15 miles of his small business. He saw a huge increase in business from a typical Saturday and he was so grateful that he followed up with a “Thank You” letter to everyone who shopped his store that Saturday. John just sent his second annual Small Business Saturday EDDM mailer.
Perfect for this heavy promotional month, the USPS is offering a special EDDM discount for first-time users. From now until December 31, 2014, the USPS is issuing certificates for either $50 off (for mailings with postage of $350 or more) or $100 off (for mailings of $750 or more) on your first EDDM campaign. This deal is a very rare opportunity so don’t delay! Find out more: Learn How to Save $50-$100 on Your 1st EDDM Order.
Obviously, November is a great mail month. But no matter what time of year it is, using mail for marketing and business purposes is easy and cost effective with Click2Mail. For a full year’s worth of mailing ideas, visit https://click2mail.com/contact-us-support. To get started on your November direct mail campaign, visit Click2Mail.com.
