You are making a calculated investment in personalized direct mail, so you want to maximize that investment. Adhering to best practices can distinguish between good and great campaigns. Let’s look at five best practices for personalized direct mail that you should use in your campaigns.

1. Focus! Before sending out your next direct mail campaign, take the time to get to know— really get to know— your target audience. This way, you can make your message relevant and right on the money.

2. Use clean data. Nothing is more cringe-worthy than a personalized print campaign with misspelled names and outdated data. Give your mailing list a “spring cleaning” and a “fall cleaning” every year. Update it regularly.

3. Make it personal, not just personalized. Data is just that— numbers in a spreadsheet. The real magic happens when you transform this data into messages that genuinely connect with the person receiving them. Even if you've gone to great lengths to use data-driven text and images, it won't make a difference if the recipient doesn't find the content relevant to them.

4. Make it cross-channel. All direct mail campaigns need a great message and creativity. If you reinforce this message across multiple channels, such as following up with a personalized email or text, this consistently increases the chances that someone will respond.

5. Test, test, and test again. How do you know your efforts are working? Test different approaches, offers, and variables in the campaign. Step by step, changing one element at a time while keeping one constant as a control. This way, you gain insights into what resonates best with your audience and what doesn't, helping you refine your strategies over time.

Success with personalized print doesn’t happen by accident. It takes planning and strategy. You can get the most out of your direct mail dollars by putting these best practices to work.