lA form of communication we thought was dead is now making a comeback. You can venture a few guesses.
A typewriter? Cord phones? Messenger pigeons?
Sure, all of these concepts were amazing for their time. Even today, we revere vintage fashion and reminisce about the good old days. However, the above guesses aren’t quite it.
Here’s a hint: Ryan Gosling, or “Noah,” sent 365 of them.
That’s right, the handwritten letter! In the case of marketing, it’s not necessary or recommended to bombard potential customers with a handwritten envelope every day. Writing romantic letters to your clients is also discouraged.
In the age of receiving hundreds of emails a day, being blasted with pop-ups, and doom scrolling through social media, marketing has moved almost entirely digital. It’s time to stand out and wow your customer base with the dopamine rush of getting something personal in the mailbox.
Here’s why.
Back in 2020, 306.4 billion emails were sent every single day. That statistic is enough to make anyone’s head spin. It’s no surprise that our eyes burn and our heads hurt from staring at screens all day. When we wake up, we check our phones. Then we move to our computers to start working. When we get breaks or get out of work, we scroll on our phones and tablets or watch TV for hours.
With all those hours spent on screens, it makes sense that marketers have moved their efforts to emails, social media, SMS, blogging, and audiovisual advertisements. Those efforts will only continue to grow and evolve as we get more plastered to our devices.
With all that digital marketing, the email open rate is only 20-40%. To combat the low open rates, marketers send more and more emails. Break out from the crowd and give your target customer a break from the screens. They’ll thank you for not crowding their inbox.
Direct mail marketing was once a huge part of the industry, as we can reed here. People still receive flyers from their local grocery store and the occasional promotion from credit card companies, but for the most part, mailboxes are empty. The distress over tons of “junk” mail has now turned its attention to junk emails, and people now pay more attention when they receive physical letters.
It’s true, people are still quick to toss mail they deem as junk. Impersonal, gimmicky marketing materials in direct mail envelopes can be easy to spot and throw in the trash.
Impersonal, gimmicky marketing materials in direct mail envelopes can be easy to spot and throw in the trash.
But printer ink is distinctly different than pen ink. Real handwritten envelopes are easy to distinguish from perfectly typed font. Seeing a handwritten envelope in the stack of junk mail from the mailbox will give your potential customer pause.
That grasping of their attention is likely to get them to at least open the envelope rather than toss it with the rest of the stack. That action is all you need to let your marketing expertise do its magic.
There’s no denying it. If Allie had actually received that handwritten mail from Noah, things would have been very different. Years wouldn’t have been wasted, and they would have reunited so much faster.
If you’re always wishing your perfect clients would come to their senses and find you, reach out with that handwritten letter. Handwritten notes have a personal feel like nothing else. When someone takes the time to sit down and write out a letter, it really means something.
When’s the last time you did that? It means you bothered to pay for that envelope, paper, and stamp. It means you took the time out of your day to think of them as an individual, not just one of the hundreds that received your email blast.
Just like physical books have that strong emotional pull we can’t explain and could never replace with ebooks, handwritten letters will always have that emotional weight that emails never could. At the end of the day, isn’t that what we want? Isn’t our mission as marketers to connect our customers to our services, products, and brands emotionally?
Not all of us, but most of us, have an emotional connection to physical objects. We keep boxes of knick-knacks and souvenirs because they’re sentimental. They keep us connected to times, places, and people we love.
Increasingly, businesses are realizing that it’s not always so much the product as it is the service and experience that makes customers loyal and enthusiastic about a brand. They’re ecstatic about great products when they’re paired with amazing customer service experiences, and more forgiving of errors when companies show a human touch.
Boutiques and small businesses are becoming more popular as people enjoy the personal touches that come with them. Artists like photographers and jewelry makers are sending their products in extravagant packaging with handwritten thank you notes.
Do I need to speak further? No matter what brands you market for, you must realize the trend and do your best to incorporate it into your tactics. Handwritten mail is one powerful way to enhance the customer experience in a personal, boutique-cute type of way.
Fridge magnets are not dead, either. As a species that loves social gatherings around food, we gravitate to the kitchen. We store important things there and display them so we don’t forget. Bills you need to pay? Receipts? Wedding invitations? Throw them on the fridge.
Why not also display a handwritten letter from a cheery business owner on the fridge? Just as Christmas or birthday cards come rolling in, your handwritten letter of season’s greetings or happy wishes could be kept and displayed.
If you’re skilled enough, and with a bit of luck, the family that comes to visit could see your letter. They could ask about who it’s from. Now, you’re marketing to people you didn’t even intend to reach!
Handwritten letters are just a little bit harder to throw away than typed junk mail or email blasts. People will remember them and feel sentimental towards them, which means they’ll stick around longer to do their job.
Now, through all this reading you’re probably wondering, “Where am I going to find the time to handwrite personal letters to every single one of my potential clients?” Good news: you don’t have to.
The future of handwriting is here, and it’s been ushered in by robots. No, this doesn’t mean your handwritten letters are actually just typed in a clever handwriting font and printed onto paper.
The marketing tool company Handwrytten has actually created a production line of robot arms that hold pens and write out letters for you. This innovation means that you’re delivering handwritten envelopes and letters to people’s mailboxes that have real pen ink and somewhat real handwriting on them.
To really believe in the service, you’ll need to learn exactly how it works. Handwrytten has created an extremely clever and simple way for you to write to your customers at scale.
Handwrytten makes writing to your customers very convenient from anywhere. You can use the browser or download the app and sign in.
The service allows you to pick a plan or to pay as you go. All the cards can be used without signing a contract. You can also save by signing up for subscriptions or using bulk discounts. Most of the available cards can be sent for $3.25 each, plus postage; all you have to do is make sure you send it at the right time to get to where you want at the right time.
The service has many cards to choose from for all types of occasions and needs. You can even choose to design your own if you don’t see one you like.
You can use the app or the site to type out your message. The robot arms will take care of the rest. They will also be personalized with your customers’ names so the letter is extra special.
The service includes several different preset handwriting styles to choose from so you can get your message across with the right flair. If you want your letters to be extra special, you can pay a one-time fee for the robots to learn your own handwriting and use it for all future mail!
Wondering if the service could get any more special? Handwrytten offers several add-ons that will make your letters stand out even from other handwritten letters.
Is it your customer’s birthday? Handwrytten keeps many gift cards in stock for all types of places, including Starbucks and Amazon. You can even choose to add a business card!
Handwritten direct mail automation service is made to easily integrate with other marketing solutions so you can track your customer relations and marketing success.
It includes integration with Salesforce, Hubspot, Zapier, Integrately, Integromat, Syncspider, and more. You can also set up timed and automated handwritten mail so you don’t have to think twice.
Reap all the rewards of handwritten envelopes and handwritten letters without the added time and effort of writing them all out yourself.
Handwritten letters may be from the past, but they have a huge role in the future of marketing. If you’re ready to make your marketing efforts shine, request a free writing sample today!
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