AlphaGraphics, a digital publishing and traditional printing provider in Tucson, AZ, has chosen relationship marketing software from TargetSmart, Denver, to better customize the direct mailings going out to its mostly small and medium-size business customers.
“We used to do a combination of mass direct mailing and automated direct marketing services for our franchise system,” said Michael Witte, chairman/CEO of AlphaGraphics. “Each store had the same piece each month with the same offers. They had no choice or flexibility in the design, offers being made or frequency of the mailings.”
According to Witte, to increase the productivity of its direct mail programs, AlphaGraphics' stores needed to start separately customizing their direct mail programs and targeting customers and prospects.
The first campaigns using the new software will begin rolling out this week. The size of each campaign will differ based on the size of the location's market. But Witte said each location will be mailing out anywhere from 500 to 1,500 pieces each. The designs of the pieces were created in collaboration with Direct Results Group, Boston.
“Our stores no longer have to wait every month for the next mass mailing to go out,” Witte said. “Now they can do as many as they want per month. This has created a completely automated way for them to execute their own direct mail programs.”
The software also has the ability to track and measure the productivity of each campaign on either an individual or a franchise-wide basis.
Each store will be able to export its point-of-purchase sales system information to the TargetSmart software, which will then organize that information and provide a visual of its customers based on the criteria of recency, frequency and monetary value of their purchases. That file is then exported to AlphaGraphics Web-based targeted direct mail center, which provides each store with 30 different direct mail pieces and up to 80 different product offers to choose from.
TargetSmart is also going to provide AlphaGraphics with the technology to mine its existing data while tracking new data on the buying behavior of its prospects and existing customers.
