Archive for the ‘Catalogues’ Category

Newer Entries »

Direct Mail some good advice from USA but…..

Tuesday, April 27th, 2010

10 ELEMENTS EVERY DIRECT MAIL PIECE SHOULD HAVE

Tuesday, 27 April 2010 00:00 Written by Joy Gendusa

Don’t want your direct mail to end up in the trash with the rest of the unread mail? These 10 tips will help you get the results you want:

1.       A clear, bold headline

On the envelope or front of the mailer there should be one central message. The best way to achieve that is with a bold, clear headline that’s not cluttered with other text. A good guideline is to have the headline fill up at least 15 percent of the front of the mailer.

2.       A graphic that supports the message

The graphic should be easy to understand and easily relatable to the message the headline is trying to convey. For instance, if you are trying to get people to buy a car, you would want to show a car with a promotional sign clearly visible, such as “$1,000 Cash Back”. That graphic reinforces the message more than a simple picture of a car.

3.       Color that pops

Make the headline and other text stand out by using a color that stands out from the background color. When you look at the card, ask yourself, “What do I see first?” If your answer isn’t the headline, you might want to tweak the colors.

4.       Subheads that lead into text

If you have a couple of paragraphs of text with no lead in, there’s nothing to entice people to actually read the copy. A subhead will give people a place to start reading. If you have only 100 words or so you may be able to get away with it, but if the text gets any longer the average reader will want to have some guideposts along the way.

5.       Benefits, benefits, benefits

One of the biggest advertising errors people make is to state features rather than benefits. For example, never assume recipients know what benefit can be derived from a lower interest rate. Let them know how their monthly payments will go down.

6.       The offer

An offer is always a good idea and should represent a specific reason to call now, such as “Limited supply” or “Interest rates are climbing.”

7.       Your company name and logo

Although this needs to be on the mailer, it shouldn’t overshadow the offer. Customers care most about what you can do for them.

  1. 8. Call to action

Tell prospects exactly what you want them to do. “Call today for more information” or “See us online” are two of the most common desired actions.

9.       Contact information

Provide your name, phone number, and web address directly following the call to action. Whatever you ask prospects to do, give them the means to do it easily.

10.    Return address

A return address ensures you’ll get returned mail from the post office and sends a message that you’re an established professional. People feel better knowing the company they’re dealing with has an actual location.

BUT… WHAT DO YOU DO WITH YOUR RETURNED AND UNDELIVERED MAIL? THE ‘GONE AWAYS’?

OUTSOURCE IT TO THE PROFESSIONALS – VERIDATA

We take the headache of the ‘end of life solution’ and the producer responsibility that all waste paper generated is disposed of correctly. We will also:

  • Capture the information you require
  • Keep your databases clean
  • Save you money
  • Help you comply with PAS2020 & Royal Mail’s Sustainable Mail
  • Protect brand image
  • Mitigate opportunity for identity fraud
  • Lower your carbon footprint

Call Tim Craig 07970 759282 today

PS Save even money ask us about CodEffect 2d bar code

Article by Joy Gendusa is CEO of PostcardMania, USA for more information visit www.postcardmania.com.

Posted in 'Gone away' mail, Carbon Footprint, Catalogues, CodEffect 2d bar code, DMA, Direct Mail, Environmental responsibility, Government and SMEs, PAS2020, Recycling paper, Returned and Undelivered Mail, Royal Mail, Sustainable Mail | No Comments »

Direct Mail and Public Perception

Wednesday, April 14th, 2010

Paper has been identified as a material where reduced waste and greater recycling can yield significant environmental benefits.

The Government has already concluded voluntary producer responsibility agreement to promote, in particular, increased recycling magazines and direct mail the Periodical Publishers Association (PPA) and the Direct Marketing Association (DMA).

Add in Newspapers and these three waste streams are estimated to amount to about 3.6 million tonnes (which would equate to about 14% of total household waste).

Direct marketing material estimated to account for approximately just 2% of this but the public perceive it to be much higher because it is so visible. More and more consumers are concerning themselves with environmental and social issues and 53% of UK and 66% of US consumers have considered switching brand due to corporate social responsibility. 51% said they or their family had boycotted a company because its products damage the environment.

For companies that send out large mailings our service helps to address corporate social responsibility and the issue of ‘producer responsibility’ in that all waste paper generated is disposed of properly. 80% of the carbon footprint for a piece of mail is in this ‘end of life’ solution. It also helps with BSI Standard PAS2020, Sustainable Mail and new EU directives on landfill,

Public perception about the much maligned ‘Junk Mail’ is skewed because it is so visible and in the home but opting out is all or nothing and who has not at sometime been prompted to make purchase from direct mail?

Protect your brand, reduce your carbon footprint, and save shed loads of money just call us now.

Posted in 'Gone away' mail, Carbon Footprint, Catalogues, CodEffect 2d bar code, DMA, Direct Mail, Environmental responsibility, PAS2020, Postal returns, Sustainable Mail | No Comments »

Cut the cost of returned mail handling and make your customers happy

Friday, April 9th, 2010

Would you like to reduce the cost of handling returned mail and enhance the service you offer your customers? Veridata established in 1996 provides a dedicated, automated and fast turn around data capture for returned and undelivered mail.  We have the capacity to process large volumes at a competitive price and the ROI is substantial.

Our cost is more than met by the savings made, helps to meet the requirements of PAS2020 and Sustainable Mail and includes the safe destruction and recycling of all waste paper.

Licensed to process CodEffect 2d barcode, a powerful method of encoding large amounts of data and successfully used by HMRC and Tesco. Since using it, the latter have seen a 50% reduction in its operational costs for returned mail over the last six months.

Attracting a lower charge rate to capture than standard alpha/numeric data, we can return the data files on a daily basis if required. We tailor our service to save you money.


Posted in 'Gone away' mail, Carbon Footprint, Catalogues, CodEffect 2d bar code, DMA, Direct Mail, Environmental responsibility, PAS2020, Postal returns, Recycling paper, Returned and Undelivered Mail, Sustainable Mail | No Comments »

Save up to 50% on your returned and ‘gone way’ mail

Monday, March 29th, 2010

We are in partnership with Arbutus Ridge to process their CodEffect 2d barcode, a powerful method of encoding large amounts of data and successfully used by HMRC and Tesco. The latter have seen a 50% reduction in its operational costs for returned mail. It attracts a lower charge rate to capture than standard alpha/numeric data and we can return the data files on a daily basis if required.
Veridata now offers this encrypted 2d bar-coding system which means that capture of name & address, campaign codes etc. is considerably cheaper and enables us to offer our customers great savings for processing their returned mail.

CodEffect capture solution offer a fixed charge, regardless of the amount of data captured. The service has two distinct elements – simple data capture from returns and data verification & enhancement. If required it can explain the reason for returns, which can be run against a number of industry wide data sets.
The discreet two-dimensional barcode can be set in various places in or outside the envelope

For the “core” data capture service the price is simply based on the number of scans performed – the amount of data captured is irrelevant. There is no charge for the software or the creation of the barcode.
Also included in the cost is the destruction and responsible disposal of all waste paper, which is recycled locally; reduces your carbon footprint. Our service also helps you to comply with EU Directives on Landfill PAS2020 and Royal Mail’s Sustainable Mail.

Technical Requirements
Veridata in partnership with Arbutus Ridge will provide all software required to manage the printing of the CodEffect 2d barcodes free of charge and will work alongside the Client and chosen print company to install and test the process. Full technical requirements will be produced on agreement of contract.
Supplied as Windows DLL’s, which you can integrate using Visual Basic

Posted in 'Gone away' mail, Carbon Footprint, Catalogues, CodEffect 2d bar code, DMA, Direct Mail, Environmental responsibility, PAS2020, Postal returns, Recycling paper, Sustainable Mail | No Comments »

The Benefits of using a 2d bar code

Tuesday, March 23rd, 2010

We have are licensed by Arbutus Ridge to process the CodEffect 2d barcode, a powerful method of encoding large amounts of data. It has been used by HMRC for some time now and is completely secure.

It attracts a lower charge rate to capture than standard alpha/numeric data and we can return the data files on a daily basis if required.

CodEffect has 2 distinct elements – simple data capture from returns and data verification/enhancement. These are 2 distinct and separate services, designed so that users can ‘buy-in’ to both services, however this is not mandatory.

Veridata through Arbutus Ridge will provide all software required to manage printing of the CodEffect 2d barcodes free of charge and will work alongside the Client and chosen print company to install and test the process. Full technical requirements will be produced on agreement of contract

The cost of processing your returns, and capturing additional valuable marketing information, is greatly reduced by using this intelligent 2dbar code.

For further information on how you can dramatically reduced costs and stay ahead of the competition call: -

Tim Craig on 01244 350700

Posted in 'Gone away' mail, Catalogues, DMA, Direct Mail, PAS2020, Postal returns, Returned and Undelivered Mail, Royal Mail, Sustainable Mail | No Comments »

Landfill – Newspapers, magazines and direct mail and the paper sector

Tuesday, March 16th, 2010

Paper has been identified as a material where reduced waste and greater recycling can yield significant environmental benefits.

The Government has already concluded voluntary producer responsibility agreements to promote, in particular, increased recycling of newspapers, magazines and direct mail with the Newspaper Publishers Association (NPA), the Periodical Publishers Association (PPA) and the Direct Marketing Association (DMA) respectively.

These three waste streams are estimated to amount to about 3.6 million tonnes (which would equate to about 14% of total household waste).

Direct marketing material estimated to account for approximately 550,000 tonnes of the household waste stream. Of this, 181,500 tonnes is estimated to be addressed direct mail with the remaining 368,500 tonnes being unaddressed direct marketing material.

Posted in 'Gone away' mail, Carbon Footprint, Catalogues, DMA, Direct Mail, Environmental responsibility, PAS2020, Recycling paper, Returned and Undelivered Mail, Royal Mail, Sustainable Mail | No Comments »

Landfill Tax Reaches £40 per Tonne

Tuesday, March 9th, 2010

Landfill Tax Reaches £40 per Tonne

Posted by Joe Hind under General | Tags: landfill tax, waste |
1 Comment

It now costs an additional £40 per tonne to send most types of waste to landfill.

Landfill Site in UK

The total costs are actually much higher than £40 as most businesses will pay a company or local authority to collect their waste and will be charged for the other elements, over and above the tax. Whoever does the collection has to pay for:

  • Transport to Collect the Rubbish.
  • Guys to Pick up the Rubbish.
  • A Plant or Depot to Process/Separate/Crush the Waste.
  • Transport to the Landfill Site.
  • Landfill Gate Fees.

So the real cost of waste to landfill is much higher than just the £40 tax.

But, I hear you say, most of those costs are the same for recycling so it doesn’t really matter!

Well yes, it is true that recycling carries a cost. But the development of recycling infrastructure, coupled with the inevitable increase in the cost of raw materials as we literally use them up, means that the business model for recycling services has started to look very robust.

Also, consider why the Government imposed the landfill tax in the first place. It’s not just about helping the environment but also the fact that we are running out of space for landfill sites. Current sites are reaching capacity and new landfill sites are pretty much the least popular choice, apart from Nuclear Waste Dumps, for ways to use land in the UK, particularly for those living nearby!

We all have to make a decision about our waste, and the knowledge that landfill tax is likely to rise year-on-year (by £8 a tonne until 2011 at least) might make a difference to what you decide is best for your business.

Posted in 'Gone away' mail, Carbon Footprint, Catalogues, DMA, Direct Mail, Environmental responsibility, Government and SMEs, PAS2020, Postal returns, Recycling paper, Royal Mail, Sustainable Mail | No Comments »

Defra research on landfill bans

Tuesday, March 9th, 2010

Defra research on landfill bans

Liz Gyekye
08 Sep 2009

The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs is researching how landfill bans on materials such as paper, food, glass, aluminium or wood could be implemented in the UK.
It comes after environmental charity Green Alliance recently completed a consultancy report for Defra called Landfill bans and restrictions in the EU and US ( August 2009).
The aim of the report was to analyse four EU countries (Austria, Germany, Sweden and the Netherlands), the Flanders region of Belgium and a US state (Massachusetts) that have implemented restrictions or bans on the landfilling of a range of waste materials.
The reports summary states: “We feel that this project is timely. Despite an impressive increase in household recycling rates in recent years, the UK is still heavily reliant on landfill, the final destination for 54 per cent of municipal waste, 41 per cent of commercial and industrial waste and 31 per cent of construction and demolition waste.”
A Defra spokeswoman told MRW: “The research we’ve published shows not only that landfill bans have been very effective in other countries and regions – waste to landfill in Germany decreased from 27 per cent to 1 per cent, for example – among other interesting results. It also shows that these countries and regions already had pretty good recycling rates by the time they introduced landfill bans – between around 30 per cent and 50 per cent. In the UK our recycling rate is currently 36 per cent, so we’re certainly on the right road, but we are still sending 54 per cent of our waste to landfill.”
Defra has been exploring the possibility of banning or restricting some materials for some time. In June, when announcing the Packaging Strategy, Environment Secretary Hilary Benn said: “Take food, glass, aluminium or wood – why would you put any of them into landfill when they can be recycled, or used to make energy? What sort of a society would throw away aluminium cans worth £550 a tonne when aluminium producers are crying out for the raw material?”
The Landfill bans and a restriction in the EU and US report asserts that “it is not clear that landfill tax will be sufficient on its own to attract the necessary investment in alternatives [to landfill]”.
A Defra spokeswoman said: “In terms of next steps, we’re also researching how landfill bans could work in this country – what infrastructure and resources would be needed, what the impact would be, how effective it would be, etc – this research will be published in October/November.
We then aim to consult on proposed landfill bans for certain materials by the end of the year/beginning of next year. Our argument is that the research published shows that landfill bans work, and have been working in a number of places for years, so why shouldn’t they work here – that’s essentially what we want to know and that is our next step.”
The results of the report show that all the countries in the study believe that the landfill bans had succeeded in achieving their objectives. However, there were differing emphases on what should replace landfill and interviewees said that landfill bans and restrictions had been deployed as one instrument in a range of fiscal, regulatory and other interventions aimed at diverting waste away from landfill.

Posted in 'Gone away' mail, Carbon Footprint, Catalogues, DMA, Direct Mail, Environmental responsibility, PAS2020, Postal returns, Recycling paper, Returned and Undelivered Mail, Sustainable Mail | No Comments »

Because ‘gone away’ mail matters……

Thursday, March 4th, 2010

With the changes in the world of direct mail increasing attention is being focussed on returned and Gone Away mail and its impact on the environment. For companies that send out large quantities of mail there is a ‘producer responsibility’ for the ‘end of life’ solution for their undelivered and returned mail.

Returned, unwanted and undelivered mail produces vast amounts of waste paper and 80% of the carbon footprint for direct mail pieces lies in the ‘end of life’ solution.

PAS2020, Royal Mail’s Sustainable Mail and the EU Directives on Landfill all require that the waste paper generated by returned mail is disposed of correctly. From 2015 the will be a complete embargo on dumping this kind of waste into landfill.

As a consequence the service that Veridata offers has never been more relevant. Setting the standards in returned mail management since 1996, we have developed bespoke solutions for our clients from international banks through to catalogue companies.

We provide a proven, specialist, automated and quick turn around service for processing Returned and Undelivered Mail from anywhere in the UK.

Our centralised service can helps achieve three key business goals…the essential ‘E’s

  • Efficiency… waste reduction minimises cost
  • Effectiveness…greater focus increases campaign performance
  • Environmental friendliness… social responsibility obligations

Posted in 'Gone away' mail, Business Link, Carbon Footprint, Catalogues, DMA, Direct Mail, Environmental responsibility, PAS2020, Recycling paper, Sustainable Mail | No Comments »

Newer Entries »