Consider Statement-based Marketing

5 Reasons It Works

Because other marketing channels are plagued by spam filters and do-not-call lists, statements are becoming an even more valuable component of the overall communication mix.

1. Unrivaled Openability. Statements and invoices are expected — they contain important financial information and usually require action. So it’s not surprising that more than 95% of transaction documents are opened and read each month — far more than any other type of direct response effort.
   
   
2. High Involvement. Bills and statements receive more attention than any other form of communication, including television advertisements. The average customer invests between one and three minutes for statement review.
   
   
3. Trusted Media. While e-security and telephone fraud continue to make headlines, nearly everyone trusts the Postal Service to send and deliver mail — including highly important documents.
   
   
4. Functionality. Not only do statements command more attention when they are initially opened, they are often viewed more than once. The paper-based nature of transaction mail is valued by consumers as they pay bills, submit expense reports, prepare taxes and file documents.
   
   
5. Greater Returns. As statements are already in the mailstream today, marketers are finding TransPromo* to be one of the most cost-efficient communication channels. Statement-based marketing is also more effective simply because of the target audience: current customers. A five percent increase in current customer business can translate into as much as a 50% increase in bottom-line profits.

From Mailing Systems Technology - March-April 2008

*TransPromo is the combination of personalized promotional messages with must-read transactional documents such as statements, invoices, explanations of benefits, policy notifications and other customer-facing documents including receipts and point of sale/purchase documents.