A 50,000-piece mailer launched in December by accounting software firm Peachtree uses lots of copy and few images to show owners of small- and medium-sized businesses the benefits of offering direct deposit to their employees.
The mailer consists of a four-color No. 10 envelope, a personalized letter, a flier and a business reply envelope. Campaign designers chose to avoid technical details and flashy images, focusing instead on benefits the service provides for both the business and its employees, said Ryan Teeples, campaign manager with OneSource, Peachtree's marketing agency.
“Simpler is probably better for this product,” he said. “We want people to understand what the product is and how it works without overwhelming them with too much information.”
The campaign, which dropped in early December, offered small-business owners a direct deposit service to offer their employees for a rate of $1.50 or less per check processed. Peachtree waived a $25 application fee for those who responded before Dec. 31.
“Twenty-five dollars doesn't seem like much in the corporate world,” Teeples said. “But to these folks, it affects their bottom line because it comes out of their pocket.”
Results are still being tabulated. Peachtree, Atlanta, did not set goals for the campaign but will look for stimulated sales from the mailer, Teeples said.
The campaign went to previous Peachtree customers, mostly those who recently bought an update to their accounting software, he said. Peachtree thought they represented “the cream of the crop,” the most loyal, recent and frequent customers.
Being mostly small-business owners, those targeted were not tech-savvy and cared little for details of how Peachtree's direct deposit software works, Teeples said. In the copy of the letter, writers focused first on how the employer benefits from employees using direct deposit.
The letter briefly explains the steps it takes to pay an employee using direct deposit, then touts how the service improves productivity — workers don't need to leave the office early to deposit their pay — and improves security. Employee benefits also earn a mention.
“Both you and your employees will enjoy the convenience and reliability while increasing productivity like never before,” the letter promises.
Personalization in the letter includes the recipient's name in the header and greeting. OneSource used its in-house production facility to print the mailer.
OneSource, Lindon, UT, a full-service direct marketing agency providing market research, creative and production capabilities, is owned by Call_Solutions, which mainly offers call center services. Call_Solutions bought OneSource in July 2001 to diversify its holdings.
Since then, OneSource has benefited from clients brought to it by its sister companies and has offered its own clients teleservices functions through Call_Solutions, Teeples said. However, with this campaign, Peachtree opted to provide inbound teleservices on its own.
