Direct Mail Campaign Development: Tips for Success

Posted on by Camille Lehmann

When executed properly, direct mail is a highly effective way to reach target audiences and generate leads. What’s the secret sauce? Careful planning and execution. A successful direct mail campaign is not completed by flying blind, but instead by taking a deep dive into your objectives, data, and creative. 

An effective direct mail plan incorporates thoughtful strategy, data tests, creative tests, and more. To help break down what you need to know, we’ve enlisted the help of some industry experts and have compiled the insights below.  

  1. Build a sustainable campaign platform with measurable results

    Alan Sherman, VP of Marketing Strategy at Nahan, once said “Direct mail is changing. If you still think of direct mail campaigns as a “throw spaghetti at the wall” mass-mailing approach, you’re greatly mistaken.” Today, successful direct mail plans are built on a sustainable campaign platform that allows for measurable results.  

    Marketers must also define their goals and objectives. Determine what you want to achieve with your campaign, whether it’s generating leads, boosting sales, or increasing brand awareness. Then, develop a plan that includes projected metrics for success and a process for measuring and analyzing your results. 

  2. Test your creative and align it with your audience 

A creative audit can help you identify areas where you can improve your mail package format, messaging, offer, personalized copy and images, and integrated digital/direct mail campaign. This audit can provide valuable insights that will help you optimize your mail plan and improve its performance. Use this information to inform your creative tests, such as testing different formats, messaging, and offers. 

“Creative tests allow you to refine your messaging and design and make sure it is resonating with your target audience. Your data and your creative really need to align with each other to make sure the correct message is being spoken to the corresponding audience.”

-Mike Dietz, Executive Creative Director

3. Build predictive targeting models and profiles based on your current customer list, and target those most likely to respond

One of the most effective ways to target your direct mail campaign is by building models and profiles based on your current customer list. 

“Analyzing your customer data allows you to identify the most likely prospects to respond to your mail campaign,” Sherman says. “This can help you build a more targeted and efficient campaign that delivers better results.” 

To do this, data analysts must analyze your customer data to identify common traits and behaviors indicative of response, such as age, income, and purchase history. Depending on the industry, this could include analysis of credit data. Use this information to create targeted models and profiles that can guide your mailing list selection and messaging. 

4. Continual improvement through testing 

“Continual improvement is key to a successful direct mail program,” Krista Black, VP of Marketing and Account Services says. “By continuing to test your data sources and creative, you can refine your campaign over time to ensure it doesn’t fall flat.” Regular testing is an investment that puts the long-term odds in your favor. Every test is an opportunity to learn and improve. 

“We really cannot stress enough how vital direct mail testing is to the health of a direct mail campaign. It really is the lifeblood of it. While some marketers have a fear of testing for a “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it” mentality, failing to test is more risky. Every package will eventually face a decline. Testing must be a regular ongoing process. Ideally, that means part of every campaign or at least testing quarterly.”

-Alan Sherman, VP Marketing Strategy

Let’s do a quick recap of the above: 

  1. Define your goals and develop a mail plan with clear metrics for success. 
  2. Incorporate best practices, data and creative tests into your mail plan. 
  3. Build models and profiles based on your current customer list to target most likely to respond. 
  4. Continuously test and refine your campaign to improve results. 

 

If you’re ready to test smarter and drive ROI for your program, fill out the form below for the full guide to direct mail testing today! 

Nahan Takes Home Best of Category at 2023 PIM Star Awards

Posted on by Camille Lehmann

SAINT CLOUD, MN – June 23, 2023 – Nahan has received a Best of Category award win at the 2023 Star Awards, hosted by Printing Industry Midwest (PIM). The Star Awards is an annual five-state print competition that recognizes excellence in print quality in the printing, communication, and graphic arts industries. 

 

Nahan was proud to receive the award for Best of Category – Web Press Printing, which is the highest award a printer can receive in this category, for a catalog produced for Room and Board, a high-end furniture retailer. Nahan also received four Awards of Recognition in the Product Catalog and Single Promotional categories, and two Certificates of Merit. 

Nahan’s very own Jolene Simi, Senior Account Manager, took home the win for Customer Service Representative of the Year. Team members Dawn Volante Brown, VP of Business Services and Erik Turbin, Direct Mail Production Supervisor were also nominated for Young Professional of the Year and Production Professional of the Year, respectively.  

Dawn Volante Brown, Jolene Simi, and Erik Turbin 

 

It was also an honor to have our very own, Aaron Weekes, VP of Information Technology, speak at the event on behalf of the PIM Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion DE&I) Program.  

About PIM Star Awards 

The PIM Star Awards competition recognizes the companies, teams, and individuals who take part in the creation and production of print communications in the Midwest. For more information about the Printing Industry Midwest Star Awards, please visit www.pimw.org or call PIM’s office at 612.400.6200. 

About Nahan 

Nahan is a world-class, privately owned, direct marketing services and print solutions company. Nahan produces integrated marketing solutions for their clients, enabling them to successfully acquire, develop, and retain profitable customer relationships. Nahan leverages the power of omnichannel marketing strategy, creative, data, and analytics coupled with exceptional production and postal strategies to closely connect brands with customers. For more information about Nahan and to learn more about joining the Nahan team, please visit http://www.nahan.com. 

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Celebrating African American Contributions to Print: Freedom’s Journal

Posted on by Camille Lehmann

Print media has played a crucial role in shaping societies and disseminating knowledge to communities throughout history. We cannot even imagine a world without print.  

When reflecting on African American contributions to print, one cannot overlook the groundbreaking achievement of Reverand Peter Williams, Jr. And William Hamilton, co-founders of The Freedom’s Journal, the first African American-founded newspaper, debuting in March 1827. 

Rev. Peter Williams, Jr. and William Hamilton

The Conception of The Freedom Journal 

Reverend Peter Williams, Jr. Was a prominent clergyman and activist in the African American community in the early 19th century. He recognized that education and communication held tremendous power over opportunity and knowledge. William Hamilton was a trailblazer in journalism and a successful businessman with a history in the printing industry. Together, Willaims and Hamilton made the perfect pairing to co-found The Freedom’s Journal. The pair’s determination to uplift the African American community and shared experience ensured the newspaper’s steady production and distribution, enabling it to reach a wide audience and create a lasting impact.

An Issue of The Freedom’s Journal, 1827 

The Impact of Print on the African American Community 

During the early 19th century, African Americans faced a variety of hardships and challenges, including limited access to education, restricted civil rights, and widespread discrimination. The founding of The Freedom’s Journal marked a monumental moment in history, as it allowed for printed media to be a vehicle for change and empowerment. Rev. Peter Williams, Jr. and William Hamilton recognized the need for a platform to voice the concerns, achievements, and aspirations of the African American community. 

Legacy of The Freedom’s Journal 

The Freedom’s Journal emerged as a powerful voice for African Americans, highlighting their achievements, addressing social issues, and challenging the prevailing racial prejudices of the time. It became a beacon of hope, fostering a sense of unity and community among African Americans across the nation. 

The newspaper’s establishment was a watershed moment, paving the way for future African Americans who would contribute to newspapers, journalism, and other forms of print media. It demonstrated that African Americans could not only contribute to the field of print, but also shape public opinion and advocate for their rights.  

 

Postal Rate Increase: The Role of Data Analytics in Optimizing Direct Mail Campaigns

Posted on by Camille Lehmann

 

USPS postal rates are continuing to climb, with the latest increase set to take effect on July 9th, 2023. As a result, direct mail marketers are becoming progressively concerned with the rising costs of campaigns. However, increased postal costs do not mean that your direct marketing budget needs to go out the window.  

The Current State of Postal Rates 

The proposed postal rates were approved by the Postal Regulatory Commission on May 31st, 2023. This rate increase is the fourth of its kind since the post office moved to the twice per year cadence, and the Postmaster General has been clear that increases will continue to occur twice per year at least through 2025. 

As a company deeply invested in postal ongoings, two of our very own, Brandon Jacklin, Postal and Logistics Manager, and Kelly Marthaler, Sales Representative, went to Washington D.C. to collaborate with the ACMA (American Catalog Mailers Association) and Vogel Group to bring awareness around the impact of rising postal costs and tax laws to the Postmaster General Louis DeJoy. 

Direct Mail Optimization Amidst Postal Increases 

What can you do about rising postal rates? Optimize, optimize, optimize! By being wise about your data, you can be strategic in mailing less, but to highly responsive consumers, lowering your postage costs.  

Audience Segmentation 

The more people you mail to, the more postage you must spend, plain and simple. To save on postage, marketers should perform an audience audit. Who is your responsive audience? What is your key demographic and what is their past behavior?  Understanding better who your audience is will help you narrow the net you mail to. Less mail to a more responsive audience equals a higher ROI. 

Predictive Modeling

Data analytics allows marketers to leverage predictive modeling techniques to identify those most likely to respond. By analyzing historical promotional data and customer files, companies can build models that predict customer behavior, response rates and conversion rates. Predictive models optimize various aspects of direct mail campaigns, such as selecting the most responsive target audience, and determining the optimal timing for mailings.  By using data-driven insights, marketers can make informed decisions that maximize the impact of their direct mail campaigns and minimize the costs associated with postage. 

Testing

Data analytics enables marketing to conduct testing and optimization of their direct mail campaigns. By testing different variables such as messaging, design, offers, and call-to-action, companies can measure the effectiveness of each element and make data-driven decisions to improve their campaigns. Through continuous testing and optimization, businesses can identify the most impactful strategies, refine their mailings, and achieve better results while mitigating the impact of rising postal rates. 

Integration with Digital Marketing

Data analytics also plays a crucial role in integrating direct mail campaigns with digital marketing efforts. By leveraging customer data from various sources, such as online interactions, social media, and previous email campaigns, businesses can create a comprehensive view of their customers’ preferences and behaviors. This integrated approach allows for a cohesive and consistent customer experience across different marketing channels. Data analytics helps in identifying the most effective touchpoints, enabling businesses to create a seamless and personalized omnichannel experience that maximizes engagement and conversion rates. 

Don’t let rising postal rates get you down. Instead, focus on ways to optimize your direct mail campaigns to ensure a high ROI. Being smart about your data is one of the necessary tools marketers can use to achieve this optimization.  

If you’re ready to test smarter and drive ROI for your program, fill out the form below for the full guide to direct mail testing today! 

 

Fortifying Customer Privacy: Data Security Best Practices for Direct Mail

Posted on by Camille Lehmann

Data privacy is a looming concern for consumers and thus securing sensitive data should be paramount for direct mail marketers. Data breaches can have severe repercussions, such as financial loss, identity theft, reputational damage, and legal consequences. All of which can be prevented by implementing strict security measures. 

As a leader in direct mail marketing, we adhere to industry best practices and prioritize robust data security measures that enable us to offer personalized direct mail campaigns while respecting privacy and maintaining trust. Nahan maintains compliance certifications like PCI DSS Level 2, AICPA SSAE18 SOC2 Type 2 + HITRUST CSF, HIPAA, and GDPR compliance. We also engage third-party auditors to conduct security audits, penetration tests, and risk assessments, validating our security measures and identifying areas for improvement. 

It’s important that marketers understand the risks, impacts, and regulatory requirements associated with direct mail campaigns, and how Nahan employs key security measures in response. Let’s dive in! 

Importance of Protecting Sensitive Customer Data in Direct Mail Campaigns 

In today’s digital age, where data breaches and privacy concerns are prevalent, protecting sensitive customer data is of utmost importance in direct mail campaigns.  Direct mail involves the collection, storage, and processing of customer information, such as names, addresses, credit card details, purchase history, and other financial information. Safeguarding this sensitive customer data should be a top priority for businesses engaging in direct mail marketing. It is essential that direct mail providers implement robust security measures to ensure the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of this data. 

“We live in a world where consumers want both personalization and data security. In response, direct mail marketers must work with a trusted partner who has industry knowledge, integrity, and rock-solid security measures. At Nahan, I’m proud to say we have all three.”
-Elizabeth Evans, Security Administrator

Common Security Threats and Solutions 

When it comes to direct mail campaigns, several common threats pose risks to the security of sensitive customer data. Understanding these threats is essential for implementing effective security measures.  

Threat: Data Interception and Breaches 

During the transmission of customer data, interception by malicious actors can occur, compromising the confidentiality of the information. Intercepted data can be exploited for identity theft, fraud, or other malicious activities. 

Nahan’s Response: Data Encryption and Protection 

Data encryption transforms sensitive information into unreadable code, securing it against unauthorized access. It applies to data transmission, data storage, and physical documents, with key practices including using strong encryption algorithms, secure key management, end-to-end encryption, regular updates of encryption protocols, and regular security audits and training. 

Nahan’s robust information security program adheres to international standards, ensuring comprehensive data governance and privacy protection. We continually monitor our systems and data to detect suspicious activities or potential security breaches. In the event of any security incidents, our incident response team follows a predefined process that includes containment, investigation, mitigation, and recovery. 

Nahan emphasizes continuous improvement and ongoing training. Regular security training sessions raise employee awareness about data protection best practices and emerging threats. We also conduct regular risk assessments and vulnerability scanning to identify and address any security weaknesses promptly. By analyzing and learning from security incidents, we continually enhance our data protection measures and mitigate future risks. 

Threat: Unauthorized Access

Unauthorized individuals gaining access to customer data can lead to misuse or theft of sensitive information. This can occur through physical breaches, such as theft of mail or documents, or through cyberattacks targeting digital systems and databases.

Nahan’s Response: Access Control and Authentication   

Access control limits unauthorized access to sensitive data, with strong passwords, role-based access controls, and regularly updated user access privileges. Multi-factor authentication adds an extra layer of security, requiring multiple factors of authentication. We also promote a security-conscious workforce through regular employee training. 

Nahan implements physical security measures, including access control systems, video surveillance, and equipment protection measures like fire suppression systems and uninterruptible power supply (UPS), to protect premises and sensitive equipment. 

Threat: Disaster 

There is always the risk of the unthinkable happening, such as cyber-attacks, natural disasters, power outages, and equipment failure, among other disasters. Organizations of all sizes generate a large amount of data, with much of it extremely important to daily operations.  

Nahan’s Response: Disaster Recovery and Business Continuity Planning 

We have established a comprehensive Disaster Recovery Plan outlining procedures and protocols for responding to disruptions. Regular testing and refinement ensure its effectiveness, preparing Nahan to handle any unforeseen disruptions effectively. 

Work With a Prepared Partner  

What we’ve learned through seeing various organizations fail in the areas described above is that it is crucial to work with a partner you can trust. Your direct mail partner should be able to answer all of your security questions and have stringent measures to protect your customer data.  

By prioritizing data governance, ongoing monitoring, incident response, continuous improvement, and employee training, Nahan ensures the highest level of protection for sensitive customer data in direct mail campaigns. Our commitment to data security enables our clients to have confidence in the integrity and confidentiality of their information throughout the direct mail process. 

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The Emotional Edge: Drive Consumer Influence with Direct Mail

Posted on by Camille Lehmann

 

Direct mail holds a unique advantage that digital channels such as social media and email fail to replicate: the ability to forge genuine connections and evoke powerful emotions through touch. With crowded inboxes and social ads fighting for attention with the scrolling consumer, physical mail presents an opportunity to connect like no other.  

Emotionally resonating direct mail copy has the potential to create a lasting impact, influencing consumer behavior and driving conversions. 

In this article, we will explore how direct mail can engage recipients on a deeper level, highlighting the unparalleled impact it can have in a world dominated by screens and pixels. Understanding and harnessing the emotional potential of direct mail campaigns is vital for marketers seeking to create lasting impressions and influence consumer behavior. 

Understanding the Power of Emotion 

Emotions play a fundamental role in human decision-making. Countless studies have shown that emotions, rather than logic, often guide our choices.  

Psychologist Gerald L. Core, said human thought is “often automatic, heuristic, unconscious, and guided by emotion instead of being strictly logical and reasoned.”

When it comes to marketing, tapping into these emotions can be a powerful tool to connect with consumers on a deeper level. Direct mail has a unique advantage in this regard, as it allows for a tangible and personal experience that can engage multiple senses.  From the initial mailbox experience, when the consumer touches and feels the package and makes a decision to engage, it is a living and breathing channel. 

According to Nahan’s Executive Creative Director, Mike Dietz, “Evoking emotion through tactile components like paper weight, texture and treatments is a major driving force behind every successful direct mail campaign. It’s the key to creating a lasting impression and influencing consumer behavior.” By leveraging the power of emotion, marketers can create a memorable experience that resonates with recipients long after the mail has been opened. 

The Role of Resonating Copy 

The written word holds immense power to evoke emotions and shape perceptions. In direct mail, resonating copy acts as a catalyst to provoke an emotional response from the recipient. It goes beyond merely conveying information; it aims to captivate, inspire, and persuade. 

“In direct mail, words are more than ink on paper. They have the potential to connect with readers on a personal level, driving them to take action,” says Mike Dietz.

By crafting compelling and relatable copy, marketers can tap into the desires, fears, and aspirations of the target audience, creating an emotional bond that drives engagement. 

Let’s think about a credit card example. When students are going off to college, it is a prime time for credit card companies to target them with student credit card offers with low interest rates and tempting rewards. The emotional direction a direct mailer uses to target college students considering a credit card is different from a high-salary professional who might be seeking a high credit limit. With direct mail, marketers can create highly personalized messaging that speaks to them. 

By harnessing the power of four-color variable data printing, marketers can create unique 1:1 messaging to consumers. The internal components of a direct mail piece allows the marketer to create a journey unlike any other channel, with the ability to utilize a large variety of configurations to address barriers, develop relevant messaging tone that is focused exclusively on the individual consumer. Dietz says, “The ability to combine actionable data inputs and dynamic 4 color digital technology allows marketers to leverage direct mail to create a unique 1:1 experience.” 

Consumer influence

Creating Emotional Connections 

Harvard Professor, Gerald Zaltman, says that 95% of purchasing decisions are subconscious. To create emotional connections, direct mail campaigns must be rooted in a deep understanding of the target audience. You must know who you are trying to reach before you write anything. Market research and customer insights are essential in developing resonating copy that strikes a chord with recipients. By identifying the pain points, aspirations, and motivations of the target market, marketers can tailor their messaging to elicit specific emotional responses and respond positively to the call to action. Here comes the advantage of variable data printing again. 

Let’s think of the example of life insurance. A consumer cares about his or her family and wants them to be financially stable in the event of their passing. This is partially an emotion-based decision. Direct mailers can appeal to that desire not to leave behind familial financial strains. How a marketer appeals to that desire in the copy affects the consumer’s reaction.  

Leveraging Emotional Triggers 

Different emotions can be leveraged strategically in direct mail campaigns to achieve specific goals. For instance, a sense of urgency can be invoked through time-limited offers or exclusive discounts. Fear of missing out can drive recipients to take immediate action, ensuring a higher response rate. On the other hand, appeals to happiness, joy, or nostalgia can create positive associations with a brand or product, fostering long-term loyalty. By aligning the emotional tone with the desired outcome, marketers can increase the effectiveness of their direct mail campaigns and drive meaningful results. 

Measuring Success and Iterating 

The effectiveness of direct mail campaigns can be measured through various metrics, such as response rate, conversion rate, or customer lifetime value. By analyzing these metrics, marketers can gauge the impact of their emotional appeals and resonating copy. It is essential to track and evaluate the campaign’s performance to understand what worked and what can be improved upon in future iterations. 

 “Direct mail campaigns should be seen as an iterative process. By learning from data and feedback, we can refine our messaging to better connect with our audience’s emotions and achieve greater success,“ says Mike Dietz.

Conclusion 

Emotions play a crucial role in decision-making, and direct mail has the capacity to evoke those emotions in personalized and tangible ways that digital can’t live up to. Through empathy and understanding of the target audience, marketers can create copy that resonates on a personal level, building strong emotional connections. 

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Exploring the Impact of AI Language Models on Direct Mail Marketing

Posted on by Camille Lehmann

 

ChatGPT….a term that is likely newer to our vocabulary, but undoubtedly, a word you’ve seen pop-up at an increasing rate anytime you open an internet browser or a smart device. But have you considered the impact of ChatGPT on direct mail marketing? 

At the start of this article, we were confronted with a dilemma. Do we ask ChatGPT for an outline? Do we have it write the entire article (as a meta-experiment of course)? Or do we ask it to provide some background research on the topic to get us started? This seems to be a common situation that content marketers now face. 

And of course, this is just a minuscule example of how this fast artificial intelligence is impacting marketing departments and other knowledge workers.  

 

According to a recent CBS News article, 30% of professionals are already using ChatGPT for their jobs, and if we had to speculate, it’s likely the marketing industry may be among the leading users.  

 

At Nahan, we believe that AI language models such as ChatGPT have the potential to significantly impact the direct mail channel in a positive way, but how fast and to what degree are very much uncertain, like so many things with the emerging AI revolution.  

In this article, we will discuss how direct mail marketers can use ChatGPT to enhance their campaigns, as well as some of the limitations and potential risks to consider. 

And yes, we did ask ChatGPT for some help in writing this article, but it is mostly human generated!  

What is ChatGPT? 

At its most basic level, ChatGPT is a chatbot that uses Natural Language Processing (NLP) and Artificial Intelligence (AI) to generate responses to user input. Its models are built by analyzing enormous amounts of text from the internet and other sources like books, social media, new articles and academic papers. The algorithms can then use this data to understand human language, identify patterns, and generate responses. 

It’s currently available to use for free on the Open.ai website, and recently a paid PRO tier of $20 a month was created. It has been integrated into Microsoft’s Bing search and Edge browser, with plans for rolling out a new product called Co-Pilot which will be integrated into many of the Microsoft Office applications, including Word and Excel.  

Three Ways Direct Mail Marketers Can Use ChatGPT Today 

The extent that ChatGPT is being incorporated into direct mail workflows cannot be known in full just yet. From our conversations with clients and others in the industry, we know that people are starting to tap into its great potential on certain tasks.  

Of course, AI and machine learning technology have been a part of the direct marketing industry for several years on the data side of the equation, especially when it comes to targeting.  

But what are some other areas where generative AI could have an impact? Let’s look at a few use cases.  

 

AI and direct mail

 

Personalized Responses 

Generative AI’s ability to generate personalized responses based on user input has the potential to enhance the personalization of direct mail campaigns.  

For example, a direct mail piece might include a call-to-action that invites the recipient to chat with a chatbot. Once engaged, the chatbot can ask questions and generate personalized responses based on the user’s answers. 

Optimization

Direct mail marketers are always focused on optimizing campaigns. However, finding the right formula can be time-consuming, and expensive. Artificial intelligence and chatbots could have a significant impact on that process by generating real-time feedback on campaigns. This in turn will allow for more robust and experimental testing with the goal of generating a higher ROI.  

By automating certain tasks, such as testing and targeting, AI can help marketers identify the most effective strategies quickly and efficiently, leading to more successful campaigns. 

Copywriting and Creative 

Direct Response copywriting is a core part of direct marketing campaigns. Best practices have been defined by the industry over the years, and this is exactly the type of structured data tools like ChatGPT have been trained on.  

Generative AI will allow marketers to generate ideas, outlines and research and a high volume of copy in lightning speed. This will give marketers the opportunity to expand possibilities and potentially lead to greater creativity.  

By inputting key information about the target audience and marketing goals, ChatGPT can provide customized content optimized for engagement and conversion. This can save time and resources while improving the overall effectiveness of direct mail campaigns. 

Limitations of Using ChatGPT for Direct Mail Marketing 

While ChatGPT can be a powerful tool for direct mail marketers, there are some limitations to be aware of: 

Accuracy

It may not always generate entirely accurate or relevant responses, although they can sound very convincing. Currently, ChatGPT has a knowledge cut-off date of September 2021. It’s important to review and verify to assure accuracy.  

Originality

ChatGPT is capable to generating dazzling, convincing, and sometimes even very funny results, but it does require trial and error with the prompts, otherwise there’s a risk that output will sound like more generic marketing copy and nobody wants or need more of that. Due to this limitation, copywriters will still have job security. Human touch and talent are still critical to the process of refining and enhancing the ideas AI outputs.  

Data Privacy

As with any tool, precautions need to be taken to assure that your proprietary data is safe and secure, so at this point you most definitely do not want to share that or any private customer information. 

Legal Risk

The insurgence of AI capabilities in marketing is new. And while very tempting to use in any way you can, its newness means that laws and regulations have not yet caught up with it. We simply don’t know the answers to all the legal and ethical questions that ChatGPT may bring up with its use in marketing. 

As the industry learns more about generative AI, there will no doubt be more clarity on some of these limitations, but for the time being, caution is recommended.  

 

AI and direct mail

 

Takeaways for Direct Mail Marketers Using ChatGPT 

The marketing industry understands hype better than just about any other. In fact, it’s marketers that help build and generate hype for brands. At this point, the hype around ChatGPT and generative AI is impossible to avoid, and likely won’t dissipate anytime soon.  

ChatGPT is certainly one of the most impressive, and potentially industry changing tools to come around in a long time. We believe the hype is real and that the direct marketing industry needs to start experimenting with these tools because, well, your competitors are going to and the risk that you fall behind is very real. To summarize:  

  • Direct mail marketers can use ChatGPT for personalized responses, optimization, and copywriting. 
  • There are limitations to be aware of, including accuracy, originality, and data privacy. 
  • Direct mail marketers should start experimenting with ChatGPT to stay ahead of the competition and take advantage of its potential benefits. 
  • The integration of AI technology is new, and thus best practices are ongoing. However, we recommend this source as a starting point for getting your feet wet in learning how to form prompt questions for AI. 

 

Employee Spotlight: Pat Scanlon

Posted on by Camille Lehmann

 

Author: Camille Rosa, Senior Marketing Specialist

Nahan is proud to have many extraordinary employees and we love taking the opportunity to share their stories with you. It’s not only our product quality that we take pride in, but the people who make the quality our customers expect, possible. In this Employee Spotlight, we are featuring Pat Scanlon, Pressman, and member of the Nahan team for the last 28 years.

 

Pat Scanlon

Pat Scanlon, Pressman

A Master of Print

Pat first ventured into the print industry in 1978, through a high school vocational program at Volkmuth Printing. Volkmuth originated in 1938 in Waite Park, MN, and would eventually be purchased by Quad Graphics, running until its closure in 2014. Pat earned his MPA (Master Printers of America) accreditation from the Printing Industries of America (PIA) in 1988. In 1990, he moved to working in the printing department of Banta Catalog Group. From there, Pat accepted a job at Nahan in 1995.

An Accomplished Pressman

One of the reasons Pat enjoys his role of Pressman at Nahan is the opportunity to think through and recommend ways to produce projects on the press. An accomplishment he prides himself on is being part of a team to start up three presses: M1000BE, Sunday 3000, and the Man Roland Rotoman.

 

“Working on these press teams gave me the opportunity to better understand how and why these presses are built the way that they are.”

-Pat Scanlon, Pressman

 

Even after 45 years in the industry, Pat says he still enjoys the art of putting ink on paper. Being part of a team where he is passionate about what he does, and where he gets to help people new to the industry learn more everyday about the ins and outs of print, gives Pat joy each day he comes to Nahan.

Beyond Nahan

Outside of work, Pat enjoys spending time with his family, his wife Theresa (also a member of the Nahan team), snowmobiling, fishing, going to the cabin, and riding motorcycles. In fact, he and his wife are planning a cross-country motorcycle trip this summer from Minnesota to northern California and back. Pat says his favorite place he’s traveled to so far has been Europe, where he and his family traveled across the continent. He also had the opportunity to go to Germany to be trained on the Man Roland Rotoman press.

When asked what the best piece of advice he’d ever been given was, Pat replied with “Don’t be afraid to learn something new every day.” In Pat’s decades long experience in print and 28 years of dedication to Nahan, he has truly shown the essence of this advice. Always willing to learn and to teach, Pat is an incredible value to the Nahan team and a tremendous individual as well.

What Is Zero-Party Data?

Posted on by Camille Lehmann

 

Author: Camille Rosa, Senior Marketing Specialist

All marketers know….data is king. And lately there’s been a new type of data sitting on the throne, known as zero-party data. If you don’t closely follow the data landscape, this is likely a new term you’ve heard floating around, unsure of its meaning for marketers. With the state of the market today, zero-party data is a crucial tool that all marketers should become familiar with. 

Changing Consumer Behavior  

It’s no surprise that consumers are becoming more concerned about their data and how it’s being used. With fears of data breaches or invasive data tracking, consumers are more wary than ever of how their data is collected.  

At the same time, consumers want a personalized shopping experience – one that makes product recommendations based on their interests and doesn’t just blindly advertise to them. Can consumers have the best of both worlds – data privacy and a personalized advertising experience?  

This is where zero-party data enters the chat.  

What Is Zero-Party Data? 

Zero-Party data is relatively new to the data scene. Forrester Research coined the term in 2018, defining it as “data that a customer intentionally and proactively shares with a business.” It can include preference center data, purchase intentions, personal contexts, and data on how an individual wants to be recognized by the brand.” 

Instead of relying on tracking consumers, zero-party data allows consumers to voluntarily offer personal data to a brand. In exchange, consumers are expecting their freely given information to improve their shopping experience.  

Let’s go over some examples of questions brands might ask to gather zero-party data: 

  • “Tell us about your most recent shopping experience with us.” 
  • “How much does sustainability impact your purchasing decisions?” 
  • “What problem does this product/service help you solve?” 
  • “What are some of your hobbies?” 
  • “Do you prefer one email per week or one every two weeks?” 

How do brands capture the answers to these questions? 

  • Pop-up windows  
  • Opt-in forms 
  • Social media prompt questions 
  • User profiles 
  • Polls, quizzes, and surveys 

 

How Does Zero-Party Data Fit into the Data Landscape? 

Zero-Party Data – This type of data is voluntarily given by the consumer and thus requires no inference or analysis to determine its meaning.  

First-Party Data – This type of data comes from consumer information such as tracked website activity, purchase history, or contact information to make educated assumptions about the consumer’s interests. First-party data is a highly accurate source, but still requires analysis, unlike zero-party data. 

Second-Party Data – This type of data is another company’s first-party data that is received via some type of partnership. The same type of information as first-party data is collected, but it’s not directly from the first source. 

Third-Party Data – This type of data is bought from an outside source that is not the original collector. 

 

Zero-party data

 

Death of Third-Party Cookies 

As consumer data tracking has become more regulated and privacy concerns have grown, third-party cookies have become phased out by several companies, including Firefox and Safari. Google is set to have them fully phased out by 2024. 

What does this mean for marketers? Privacy will remain a concern for consumers. Now is the time to begin collecting data in other consent-based methods, such as zero-party data. 

Using Zero-Party Data in Your Marketing  

One sure-fire way to grow revenue is to show consumers products and services that are tailored to their interests. It’s a no brainer, right? Brands have been doing it for years.  

Not only is zero-party data the way of the future, but it is also more accurate as it comes explicitly from the consumer. When used in combination with first-party data, marketers can gain extremely valuable insights into the desires of consumers, ultimately offering them a better brand experience with less controversial data methods.  

Now is the time to do an audit of how you are collecting your data and how you’re making the data work for you.  

Learn more about our data services and how we provide prospect leads by utilizing multiple data sources and generating predictive models here. 

 

Marketing Agility in a Risk-Adverse Economy

Posted on by Camille Lehmann

 

Author: Bryan Formhals, Senior Marketing Specialist 

Being a marketer in today’s economy likely produces some trepidation and maybe some nervous laughter. You might not be confident that your well-thought-out marketing plans will unfold as expected in 2023.  

Everyone under the sun has heard of the looming economic uncertainty, many of which are calling the most telegraphed recession in history. There’s a lot of angst in this economy, especially in the marketing industry.  

We feel the pressures of the economy, but view the challenge as a great opportunity for the direct mail channel.  

Why?  

When you create an agile framework and embrace new ideas, you can find growth while others act out of fear and face growth decline. 

Nahan is here to help you create an agile framework for your direct marketing program to help ensure it remains nimble and profitable during uncertain times. 

Remember that Avoiding Risk At All Cost Can Be Costly

When businesses face uncertainty, the natural tendency is to take a more cautious approach to new initiatives and scrutinize spending more closely. Caution is recommended when it is coupled with strategy to find opportunities.  

The key is to not withdraw and become entirely risk avoidant. Avoiding all risk can actually become a bigger risk.  

In our opinion, the riskiest decision direct mail marketers can make in 2023 is pulling back on testing – completely missing out on the opportunity to learn and improve their programs.  

To help marketers build a testing strategy that will limit risk and provide the most performance improvement, we’ve published a Guide to Direct Mail Testing. Warning: we get a little geeky and deep into the data models…but that’s what we like. We believe it’s through testing that marketers will find the most success in direct mail, and ultimately the best ROI.  

You can leverage Nahan as an extension of your marketing team. We’ll bring our decades of data and testing expertise to help you continue to test and learn in 2023, while avoiding unnecessary risk. Turning to in-depth industry expertise is critical when there’s less room for error. In challenging times, leaning on strong expertise matters. 

Find Partners That Embrace Agility

During challenging times, marketers need to be flexible. We understand the need for adaptability as your strategies, offers, promotions, and competitive environment are rapidly changing. 

Throughout the past several years, we’ve prioritized agility in our upgrades and evolution as a company. We’ve built a dynamic platform with the capability to produce a wide range of direct mail formats, increase efficiency, improve change management, and allow for more dynamic personalization, just to name a few.  

We have an end-to-end trigger platform that takes advantage of the fact that best results are driven by human behavior – whether it’s consumer credit inquiries or web abandoners – and everything else in between. Results are 40-140% higher than business as usual mail. 

We love connecting the dots for our customers, from data to creative to digital integrations, and helping find ways to improve speed to market. We’ve learned that every job is unique and requires a unique solution. And that’s why Nahan makes agility a top priority. 

Ensure Stability For Your Direct Marketing Program

When the market is uncertain, you want a trusted and reliable partner at your side. Nahan has been in business for over 60 years and is a thriving, financially stable organization.  

Our leadership team is filled with direct marketing veterans, each with over 25 years of experience in the industry. We’ve weathered many economic ups and downs over the years, and have made investments along the way that ensure continuity and efficiency for our clients.  

We’ve invested in dual production facilities –  one in Minnesota, and another in Pennsylvania. These two facilities not only drive production and logistics benefits for our customers, but also provide enhanced disaster-relief continuity to our clients’ programs.  

Another example is our strategic relationship with supply chain partners such as those that supply paper and ink. Through these decades-long relationships, we’re able to gain unique visibility into supply chain strategies and challenges before they become a problem. This allows us to plan further ahead to mitigate challenges with availability and pricing of materials.  

Lean Into Data

Fresh and accurate data is the single most important factor in driving direct mail performance improvement. We make it our business to deliver the right data solution for your unique targeting needs.  

Not only can we access credit data from the 3 main credit bureaus when a client is eligible, but we can also access supplemental and alternate credit data sources and demographics to provide complete asset targeting and identify under-banked individuals.  

Due to our overall volume and contractual agreements, we can obtain data at a price lower than clients can obtain on their own. Credit data itself is more accurate than traditional demographic data, leading to higher rates of deliverability and improved targeting, both of which save our clients substantial marketing dollars. 

Using data, we can create predictive “meta-models” that combine many source-specific sub-models, making them more powerful and flexible than traditional single-source models.  

Ensuring your offers are being sent to the right audience is crucial to success, especially when budget dollars are tight. 

Make Agility Your Approach in 2023

2023 is a year for refining and opportunity-seeking amidst uncertainty, not a year for staying stagnant. Maintaining an emphasis on flexibility, adaptability, and continual improvement is the name of the game.  

Responding to market conditions in a cautious, but wise way that takes strategic risks, will set your business up to thrive in the future. 

Ready to up your agility? Download our “Guide To Direct Mail Testing Today” white paper. 

In this white paper, we provide an insiders guide to effective direct mail testing for programs of all sizes and across industries. It doesn’t matter if you’re just getting started with testing or a seasoned pro, our guide will provide you with actionable insights you can implement today.

Learn how the four phases of the testing process work together to drive optimization.

  • Research
  • Pre-Testing
  • Testing
  • Post-Campaign Assessment

If you’re ready to test smarter and drive ROI for your program, fill out the form below for the full guide to direct mail testing today! 

 

Direct Mail Testing is Like the Stock Market: Here’s Your Investors Guide

Posted on by Camille Lehmann

When we talk direct marketing to marketers, the subject of direct mail testing inevitably comes up. For some, it’s all about creative testing, where testing might be tweaking existing creative once a year. For others, it’s a regular creative testing program, with new creative being tested with every campaign. For still others, testing may include offer, copy, contact cadence, list, and predictive model testing as part of the necessary mix. But why this range of approaches and is there a right way?

We find that the frequency and scope of testing depends on budget, your product or service, one’s risk tolerance, and prior experience with testing. This last item is a big one – many people are simply unfamiliar with what a regular testing program looks like and its value.

I like to think of testing as similar to long-term investing in the stock market. With all of the recent attention paid to artificial intelligence, I decided to informally check my theory by asking AI provider ChatGPT about the value of long-term investing. Here are the key value points to long-term investing that came back, with my comments:

  • The Earning of Compound Interest – With enough time, the compounding of interest leads to major growth. When we test, we accumulate a long-term knowledge base of what works and what doesn’t.
  • Reduced risk – Given time, short-term risk fluctuations are reduced. Same thing in direct mail testing. Each time we test, we learn a little (or a lot) more, which reduces risk.
  • Potential for Higher Returns – Long-term investing is associated with higher returns. Same as with testing. When we are in testing for the long-term with a regular, consistent program, we are “in it to win it.”
  • Diversification – When we diversify our investments, we reduce our risk. So when we test a variety of items we learn more, which leads to less risk and greater performance in the long-term
  • Ability to Meet Long–Term Goals – Long-term investing can help us reach long-term financial goals, like education funding and retirement. Testing enables us to reach our long-term marketing performance goals.
  • Peace of Mind – Long-term investment can lead to greater piece of mind. When we run a comprehensive testing program, we have the peace of mind that we’ve left nothing to chance.

The challenge for many marketers is that they are unfamiliar with how to structure a best practice testing program.

That’s why we created Nahan’s Guide to Direct Mail Testing!

In this white paper, we provide an insiders guide to effective direct mail testing for programs of all sizes and across industries. It doesn’t matter if you’re just getting started with testing or a seasoned pro, our guide will provide you with actionable insights you can implement today.

Learn how the four phases of the testing process work together to drive optimization.

  • Research
  • Pre-Testing
  • Testing
  • Post-Campaign Assessment

If you’re ready to test smarter and drive ROI for your program, fill out the form below for the full guide to direct mail testing today! 

USPS 2023 Postal Rates: Mail Smarter

Posted on by Camille Lehmann

Author: Brandon Jacklin, Manager of Logistics and Postal Affairs

New USPS postal rates went into effect on January 22, 2023. These postal rate increases will enable the USPS to provide reliable and predictable service while ensuring its financial sustainability. More information about FAQ’s about USPS rate changes can be found here.

For your convenience, a printable rate chart can be downloaded here.

How Nahan Provides Cost-Effective Mailing Solutions

  • Logistics expertise – We have a team of logistics experts to help our customers determine the best mailing and transportation method for their needs. The team is always on top of what’s going on with industry changes and is quick to respond.
  • Multiple shipping methods – We have three primary shipping options: co-mail, commingle, and drop-ship, all of which our team of experts can help you choose from to best support your needs.
  • Advocating for our customers – Throughout industry changes, we remain committed to finding the best postage rates for our customers and by the best means possible relative to desired transit times and in-home dates.
  • Active support – We actively monitor, recommend, and assist with approvals to allow clients to take advantage of USPS postal promotions. This often saves clients 3-5% on their postage, which is typically the largest component of direct mail spend.

The printing and direct marketing industry could not exist without the partnership of the USPS to deliver your eye-catching and action-driving piece to your consumer. The team at Nahan is here to help you find solutions to minimize postage and transportation costs and drive improved marketing return on investment (ROI).

Nahan Awarded Star One – Commitment in PIM’s Diversity, Equity & Inclusion (DE&I) Accreditation Program

Posted on by Camille Lehmann

 

(SAINT CLOUD, Minn.) – February 7, 2023 – Nahan, a full-service, direct marketing and print solutions provider, is proud to announce it has been awarded Star One – Commitment, from Printing Industry Midwest’s (PIM) Diversity, Equity & Inclusion (DE&I) Accreditation Program. As one of the first in the industry to unlock this achievement, we’re excited to continue working with PIM to grow this program in the industry.

This program is comprised of a passionate group of PIM members working towards creating foundational changes in the recruiting, hiring and training practices of our industry. Achieving this accreditation demonstrates our compliance and dedication to being a more diverse, equitable and inclusive company.

“We’re proud of the DEI initiatives we’ve implemented in recent years. This recognition from PIM underscores that we’re on the right path to helping the printing industry diversify and expand opportunities for marginalized groups,” said Chad Coss, VP, Human Resources at Nahan.

Nahan’s journey to becoming a more diverse and inclusive company will continue as we work towards the next star level, Aim. To achieve this level, Nahan will review our processes and documentation, setting measurable goals on how we can move forward with having an effect on DE&I.

 

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About Nahan

Nahan is a full-service direct marketing and print solutions provider. Our portfolio of services includes strategy, creative, data, analytics, print production, mailing, logistics and fulfillment services.

Founded in 1962 by Jim and Helen Nahan, the company established a strong reputation for providing high-quality direct mail and commercial print and exemplary customer service. What was then a 15-person, family-owned print shop is now home to over 400 employees, including industry-leading experts in direct marketing strategy, data, analytics, creative, and more.

For more information about Nahan and our services, please visit http://www.Nahan.com.

 

ABOUT PRINTING INDUSTRY MIDWEST

Printing Industry Midwest (PIM) is the trade association representing print service companies in Iowa, Minnesota, Nebraska, North Dakota and South Dakota. Membership resources add value to companies that provide print, graphic communication services, market or manufacture supplies for the printing industry. Visit PIM’s website (www.pimw.org) or call PIM’s office (612.400.6200) for more information and questions about membership.

 

ABOUT PIM’S DE&I PROGRAM

Printing Industry Midwest’s (PIM) Diversity, Equity & Inclusion (DE&I) Accreditation Program was designed to create foundational changes in the recruiting, hiring, and training practices of our industry. This program was created by the PIM Diversity Coalition, a group of individuals from companies who are members of PIM, who put together metrics and a process for accreditation that will help your company continue to uphold and enforce a more diverse and inclusive company environment. For more information, please email Kristin Pilling-Davis & Sadie Johnson (diversity@pimw.org) or visit our website (www.pimw.org/diversity/).

 

Direct Mail Trends for 2023

Posted on by Camille Lehmann

 

Author: Camille Lehmann, Senior Marketing Specialist 

2023 is here and one thing that has not changed, no matter the year nor the climate, is your need to reach your consumers. The challenge lies in reaching them in an efficient and effective way that aligns with your marketing budget.  

With over 60 years in the direct mail and catalog industry, we’ve garnered a thing or two from interacting with the evolving market space. In 2023, we’re seeing a stronger case than ever for utilizing direct mail in your marketing campaigns.  

As the economic environment has shifted and the priority for personalized, highly-targeted campaigns have increased, we’ve seen a few trends populate that will help you amp up your marketing game. 

Optimize with Highly Targeted Campaigns 

Gone are the days of throwing spaghetti at a wall, just hoping something sticks. Your customer base is unique and your direct mail should be as well. 

Mailing smarter by strategically choosing your audience means less mail produced, less money spent, and more engaged consumers. Win-win-win.  

It’s time to optimize your direct mail campaigns by making them highly informed with fresh data, fresh strategy, and fresh results.  

How does Nahan do this? We can provide prospect leads generated by predictive models. These tools are built via analytics derived from multiple data sources and elements not commonly found in standard sources. By utilizing data across sources, we can identify highly predictive data elements—leading to greater response and conversion results. 

Depending on available data, we can identify patterns based on past behavior and transactions, then supplement the target development universe for analysis with appended demographic, psychographic, and attitudinal data. We often build multiple models that work in concert for the best solution. 

“Consumers can be hesitant. Get to know them and what keeps them from taking action. Once you know that, you can address it right away in the copy itself. It’s personalized and targeted pieces that will get you results. That requires thought and intention, but delivers in ROI.”

-Mike Dietz, Executive Creative Director

Digital Retargeting and Digital Overlay 

You send your consumer a direct mail piece on the biggest sale of the year. It arrives in their mailbox, and three days later, they receive a digital display ad on their Instagram account reminding them about the coupon they received. This is not a coincidence, but a strategic digital retargeting.  

Digital overlays can display the same message in your direct mail piece on a digital display ad, packing double the punch. These types of ads can be useful in driving traffic to a specific landing page for generating leads. 

Consumers don’t have a great retention span and see multiple marketing messages per day. But you know what they say about repetition – it sticks.

Direct Mail Testing 

Direct mail is not a “one-size fits all” or an “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it” type of situation. Yet, many marketers treat it that way.  

“We find that marketers can be reluctant to test, simply because they don’t know how. While others may not want to risk the company’s budget on a test that may not out-perform the control. And sometimes it’s a combination of the two. But not doing any testing, will ultimately result in performance decline. 

-Alan Sherman, VP Marketing Strategy 

In 2023, both creative and data testing will be the way to go to ensure a campaign keeps hitting the mark. Testing must be a regular ongoing process.  

Ideally, that means part of every campaign or at least testing quarterly. The aim is to develop a stable of high-performing creative packages and a precisely optimized audience by testing new data sources and predictive models to continually improve results. 

Teaming Up with Informed Delivery 

Marketers who utilize Informed Delivery will receive a 4% postal discount in 2023 from August 1st to December 31st.  Informed Delivery is a free program through the USPS for consumers who wish to participate that allows them to see photos of the mail before it arrives.   

It consists of two main elements:  

1) A large grayscale image of the piece or a full-color representative image of the mailer.  

2) A smaller, “Ride-Along” image that offers interactive marketing potential. Clicking on this image or on the “Learn More” call to action opens the URL associated with the campaign. It can also be used to open a marketer’s phone app for the recipient to call. 

With over 44 million consumers signed up for Informed Delivery, there is major potential for marketers to take advantage of that audience with links and Call-To-Actions accompanying the user’s mail images. 

Saving with the USPS Tactile, Sensory, and Interactive Promotion

Each year the USPS has multiple promotions, one of the newest being the Tactile, Sensory, and Interactive promotion. Marketers can save 5% by utilizing including elements such as specialty metallic or thermal inks, textured papers or varnishes, scented coatings, or interactive pull strings and die-cuts to make use of the promotion and stand out in the mailbox. 

For your easy access, you can download our promotions guide here. The guidebook provides a quick glance over each promotion’s most important information including eligibility and effective dates.  

Time to Get In the Game

Direct mail is a core part of an omnichannel marketing strategy. Now is the time to engage with optimization and testing opportunities. Settling for the status quo is not going to lead to results. 

We challenge you to not sit on the sidelines with your marketing strategy in 2023, but instead find ways to improve efficiency, effectiveness, and overall ROI. And as direct marketing experts at Nahan, we’d love to help you do it.  

A Guide to Direct Mail Testing Today

Testing is a key component of any successful direct marketing program. The most impactful direct mail marketers are constantly testing creative, lists, and offers, which enables them to make marketing decisions armed with more insight.

We have found that testing means different things to different people. Clients approach it in a variety of ways.

In this white paper, we provide an insiders guide to effective direct mail testing for programs of all sizes and across industries. It doesn’t matter if you’re just getting started with testing or a seasoned pro, our guide will provide you with actionable insights you can implement today.

Learn how the four phases of the testing process work together to drive optimization.

  • Research
  • Pre-Testing
  • Testing
  • Post-Campaign Assessment

If you’re ready to test smarter and drive ROI for your program, fill out the form below for the full guide to direct mail testing today! 

Key Career Lessons From a Leader in Print: Lisa Palm 

Posted on by Camille Lehmann

 

Author: Lisa Palm, Director of Manufacturing

Paving The Way For Others

I may be the first female Director of Manufacturing at Nahan, but I won’t be the last. It’s been quite a ride getting to this point and some would say I took the road less traveled. I say I paved the way.

My hope is that I can encourage others – especially other women in print – to pursue their career goals and provide some practical advice for overcoming obstacles in the corporate world.

Lisa Palm

Lisa Palm, Director of Manufacturing

Four Key Lessons I’ve Learned 

  1. The Importance of Setting Work/Life Boundaries

We work in a 24/7 industry. I use my phone for both work and personal connections. My work email, voicemail and text are always there at my fingertips even when I’m not physically at work. I had to learn to remind myself that when I’m not working, others will step in and respond – it’s ok to take time off for family and personal time.

As a leader when you train and empower your team, you’ve done the work ahead of time to know your team can handle the workload. It’s about building trust.

  1. Leaders Listen First

Early in my career, I noticed that I was always speaking in meetings. While it’s still important for me to contribute during meetings, I realized I needed to take a step back and encourage others to speak too. I had to learn when to give input and when to open the floor to others so that their good ideas would be heard.

I saw that by listening and more importantly, taking action on employee suggestions, it helped my team members to feel valued. As a leader, facilitating their ideas and pursuing them strengthened our culture and our results.

  1. Earning Respect on the Production Floor 

Working on a production floor can be challenging. There is no handbook on what you will encounter and how best to react. I have faced many difficult situations and even experienced disrespect that at times was upsetting. But through these experiences, I learned to hold my head high; never letting others see if a situation was “getting to me,” and to give out the energy I wanted to receive even during the toughest moments. If I responded to a situation matching the energy of an angry employee, things would take longer to diffuse, and exhausted more energy and time on my part. Instead, I learned to handle myself calmly and professionally to help resolve the situation faster.

In addition to leading by example, it is important to develop mutual respect with the press operators; they are the experts. I look for opportunities for them to teach me – not only do I learn from them, but it allows me to demonstrate my true respect for their trade. And by better understanding their process and developing strong relationships with them, I not only earn their respect in return, but can better ensure they have what they need to be successful.

  1. Importance of Finding Mentors Along the Path

The higher you move up, you naturally have fewer peers and mentors that you can bounce ideas off of. One of the biggest reminders I regularly give myself is to not get comfortable. I have had to stretch myself to continue finding people and opportunities to push myself forward.

My former supervisor Michelle was a very influential person in my growth as my leader. She saw something in me that I did not recognize at the time.  I remember going into her office one evening and hearing her ask if I was going to apply for a supervisor role. My response was, “…In Production…on nights??” She replied saying, “Yes you would be good at it.” I remember the look on my face, thinking she had lost her mind. The opportunity felt like such a stretch outside of my comfort zone. If it was not for her, I would not have taken the leap, and would not be where I am today. For that I am forever grateful, and I can’t stress enough the importance of finding mentors that believe in you throughout your career.

Final Thoughts

I absolutely love my job and the people I work with. I enjoy allowing my authenticity to show and encouraging my team by giving them opportunities to lead, share ideas, and make connections that build trust and respect. My strength and success as a leader is thanks in large part to the coworkers and mentors who invested in me, and now as a leader in my field, I get to be the one that ignites the spark in others. I encourage you to do the same.

 

 

 

 

USPS Announces 2023 Postal Promotions

Posted on by Camille Lehmann

 

Author: Brandon Jacklin, Manager of Logistics and Postal Affairs

 

Exciting news for all marketers – the 2023 USPS Postal Promotions have been approved! The annually released Postal Promotions are a valuable resource for marketers to save money by mailing smarter.  

For your easy access, you can download our promotions guide here. The guidebook provides a quick glance over each promotion’s most important information including eligibility and effective dates. For more detailed information on each promotion, please visit https://postalpro.usps.com/promotions. 

Let’s dive into the most important changes in this year’s Postal Promotions and how you can use them to your advantage.  

USPS 2023 Postal Promotions

 

What’s Changed? 

The 2023 Postal Promotions include a few notable changes and additions that marketers should be aware of. 

  • Mobile Shopping has moved under the Emerging and Advanced Technology category, and now qualifies for a 3% discount (up from 2% this year). (May 2023 – November 2023) 
  • The Tactile and Interactive (TWI) Engagement promotion is increased to 5% and  will include applying scent to the outside of the mail piece as an eligible technique. (February 2023 – July 2023)
  • New to 2023 is the Reply Mail IMbA promotion. A new automated accounting system for Business Reply Mail (BRM), the USPS is encouraging mailers to use the system, offering a 3% discount to mailers that use static IMbA on their BRM and a 6% discount for mailers that use serialized IMbA. (July 2023 – December 2023)
  • Another new promotion for 2023, is focused on Retargeting Mail, providing a 5% discount to mailers of First-Class Mail automation postcards that are mailed in connection with website or app behavior. (September 2023 – November 2023) 

Save Money With Informed Delivery 

Marketers who utilize Informed delivery will once again receive a 4% discount in 2023. Informed Delivery is a free program for consumers who wish to participate that allows them to see photos of the mail before it arrives.  

It consists of two main elements: 

1) A large grayscale image of the piece or a 4-color representative image of the mailer. 

2) A smaller, accompanying image that offers interactive marketing potential. Clicking on this image or on the “Learn More” call to action opens the URL associated with the campaign. It can also be used to open a marketer’s phone app for the recipient to call. 

With over 44 million consumers signed up for Informed Delivery, there is major potential for marketers to take advantage of that audience with links and Call-To-Actions accompanying the user’s mail images.  

Save with Postal Promotions in a Changing Economy  

It’s no secret that the economy has changed, throwing many marketers into a whirlwind of trying to pinch pennies and be smarter about their strategy. One of the best ways to do this with direct mail is, as we like to say at Nahan, to mail smarter. Plan ahead with the Postal Promotions to strategize what you mail and when. Incorporate ride-along images with mail pieces to utilize with Informed Delivery. With so many possibilities, there’s always a way to save.  

The Power of the Holiday Catalog: Leading with Nostalgia

Posted on by Camille Lehmann

 

Author: John Klumb, VP Sales

 

Imagine sitting at the foot of the Christmas tree as a child, hot cocoa in one hand and a thick holiday catalog in the other. Thumbing through its pages, you bookmark the items you wanted for your list to Santa.

Calming, right? Reminds you of simpler times and the childhood joy that came alongside anticipating the holidays.

There’s a reason why thinking of those holiday catalogs now brings feelings of merriment and peace as it plays on our feeling of nostalgia. Even though the size and thickness of the holiday catalogs may change, they still have a hold on our emotions and thus, consumer spending.

Consumer Holiday Spending Power

According to the National Retail Federation, holiday retail sales during November and December of this year will grow between 6% and 8% from last year, equaling between $942.6 billion and $960.4 billion. The increase in percentage is down from last year, likely due to consumer fears of recession. However, the positive trend of growth since the end of 2020 continues, likely due to the effects of the pandemic.

“In the face of these challenges, many households will supplement spending with savings and credit to provide a cushion and result in a positive holiday season.”

– NRF President and CEO Matthew Shay

 

holiday catalog

Take Advantage of Traditional Advertising Over Digital

While digital may seem to be everywhere you look, that comes with its downfalls. You’re competing with every other brand advertising on social media, TV, streaming, and display ads that normally advertises….times 10 because it’s the holidays.

And herein comes one of the powers of print…standing out from the digital crowd.  As marketers increase their budgets to try and capture the holiday shoppers, keeping a consumer’s attention may be even harder. Print advertising, however, has an advantage that digital can never copy because its based on how our brains work.

According to the USPS, the part of our brain that controls motivational response is 20% more engaged when we view print advertising. The real power of catalogs is how they increase the vividness of a product by allowing the consumer to visualize the product’s usage (Harvard Business Review). Humans are visual people. We like to see how the product can be used, and catalogs are a great way to deliver that visual.

Combine the powerful impact of print with the nostalgia of the holidays and you’ve got an award-winning duo.

Beyond the Holidays

When the New Year has been rung in, the lights have been taken down and ornaments put away, the holidays might be over, but the power of the catalog is not.

“Catalogs are a great way reach your consumers in a captivating way. With exceptional print and paper quality, it creates an entire immersive experience for the consumer that can never be replaced with digital alternatives.”

Mark Groff, VP Eastern Region Sales

We’d love to talk to with you about harnessing the power of print for your brand! Find out more at nahan.com/direct-marketing-solutions/catalog-production/.

Employee Spotlight: Mike Gillen

Posted on by Camille Lehmann

 

Author: Camille Lehmann

Mike Gillen, an anchor of Nahan’s training team, has played an integral part in our success as a growing organization, now home to over 400 employees. We believe in empowering our employees with training and development opportunities. Much of this is accomplished through our Nahan University program, which Mike played a large part in launching in 2019 in partnership with St. Cloud State University. I had the privilege of learning more about Mike’s career journey throughout the print industry and what he’s passionate about outside of Nahan.

Mike GillenMike Gillen, QA and Training Lead

Decades of Experience in Print

Mike’s career in print began in the 1980s, where he spent several years at Post Publishing Co. During that decade, the Minnesota printing industry was more uncertain, resulting in his workplace closing in-house production. With three children at home, he began searching for another opportunity. What happened next, was the beginning of a long-lasting relationship with Nahan. Coincidentally, his thumbing through the Yellow Pages and making phone calls, led Mike directly to Mike Nahan, our CEO at the time. Nahan had just purchased a new Heidelberg Web 8 Heatseat Press and we were in need of people to run it. Nahan was growing so quickly, that multiple shifts were needed, and Mike began working night shifts regularly. After a couple of years, Mike moved to the Twin Cities area to be close to family and left Nahan. Mike Nahan always left the door open for him to return, which he did in October of 1989. Now Mike is celebrating over 30 years at Nahan.

From Humble Beginnings

Mike shared that what makes him most proud is how Nahan has grown from its humble beginnings to the highly successful print and mail operation it is now, all while not losing its heart. He commends the group of people he has worked with on their strong work ethic and ability to press through challenges, particularly those on Press 288 who he worked alongside for 14 years.  It is the people who have helped shape Nahan into the successful company it is today.

“We’ve always done a wide variety of things at Nahan and taken on challenging projects. What’s fascinating and rewarding is that each person brings something a little different to the table and the combination of all of us finds ways to make it happen.”

    -Mike Gillen, Production Trainer

Passionate About Print

Even though he can’t explain it, Mike says he has always had a fascination with printed material; everything from the equipment that prints ink on paper, the controlled processes, and all the human interaction that is required as well. Being a part of a team that preserves production quality and trains others about the amazing attributes about print.

Mike Gillen

Mike and some of his family

Beyond Nahan

Outside of Nahan, Mike is passionate about his family, heritage, faith, and his woodworking hobby. He always finds a thrill working with reclaimed lumber. He describes one of his favorite things to do is watch movies with his wife as they try to figure out the plots of the story. Whenever he gets the chance to travel, Mike enjoys capturing photos of memories. Through the generosity of a grandfather, he was able to go to Israel in 2018, one of his favorite trips so far.

 

Author Bio: Camille Lehmann is a Senior Marketing Specialist and has been on the Nahan team since January 2020. Camille is responsible for managing Nahan’s social media, blog content, and other internal and external content communications. She graduated with her Masters of Science in Marketing with a specialization in Project Management in 2020. In her spare time, Camille enjoys visiting new coffee shops and restaurants with friends, playing tennis, and finding new Pinterest projects.

Evolving Your Direct Mail Strategy In a Changing Economy

Posted on by Camille Lehmann

 

Author: Bryan Formhals, Senior Marketing Specialist 

It’s hard to avoid reading about inflation and predictions of a recession in the news. Supply chain snarls, the war in Ukraine, and labor shortages have all contributed to the highest inflation in over 40 years.  

In response, the Federal Reserve has been raising interest rates and is likely to continue raising them in 2023. However, the jury is still out on whether the Federal Reserve can pull off a soft landing without pulling us into a recession.  

What to Expect in the Industry  

Consumer sentiment is a key indicator of where the economy is headed and it’s looking a bit grim right now. According to the second-quarter 2022 PRINTING United Alliance/NAPCO Research State of the Industry, around 79% of consumers expect “bad times” in the year ahead for business conditions, the poll number highest since the great recession in 2009. 

It’s no secret that during an economic downturn, marketing budgets are often one of the first area companies make cuts.  Less than excellent economic conditions mixed with tight labor and difficult supply chains creates the landscape marketers are facing. It’s gloomy but business goes on during challenging times. Marketers can stay a step ahead by evolving their strategy, tactics, and process out of necessity.  

With our 60 years of experience, Nahan has seen its share of economic peaks and valleys and have learned from these experiences on how to work with marketers to optimize their direct marketing programs to remain effective and focused on growth.   

Review Your Programs and Vendors 

With budgeting season upon us, it is important to know how your direct mail is performing and whether you’re spending your dollars effectively. In times like these, it’s critically important to ensure you’re getting the most return possible for your investment. 

The knee-jerk reaction might be to start slashing, but that often causes more harm than good long term. If you’re not thoughtful about the cuts, you’ll often find programs worsening in performance, ultimately leading to further cuts, and thus create a downward spiral.  

Instead, you’ll want to review your most effective programs to make sure they align with your current goals. It’s also a good opportunity to review your vendors to see if there are possibilities for improved efficiency. A few important questions to consider:  

  • Has your data vendor fully optimized your mailing list with predictive analytics and refined targeting strategies?  
  • Has your creative agency been successful at building test packages that successfully turn into control packages or are your packages experiencing response fatigue?  
  • Do you have a regular testing program aimed at creative and data? 
  • Has your production and mailing partner discussed options for optimizing your formats and campaigns for production efficiency and postal savings?  
  • Are your partners helping you take advantage of USPS promotions and discounts? 
  • Are you confident in your response and conversion attribution – do you know for certain which channels are driving performance? 
  • How can strategy, data and creative more effectively work together to achieve your results?  

With the right partners in place, asking the right questions, it’s time to make sure you’re optimizing for improved ROI. This is where you can uncover opportunities for efficiency if you focus on the next topic: testing.  

About Data Testing 

Effective direct marketing is the convergence of data, creative, strategy, and testing. Whether the economy is humming along or in a recession, testing and optimizing will always be critically important. Here are three steps you can take… 

  • Implement Predictive Modeling: Direct mail is all about generating a response from your customers. Predictive modeling using sophisticated analytics will help predict the likelihood of a response or conversion from your mailing. At Nahan, we work with our partners to utilize your current customer base and promotional history to help you target the best prospects and customers, allowing you to be more selective in who you mail to. 
  • Creative Format Testing: Finding the right creative formats to present your messaging and offer is key and you have options. You’ll want to test for efficiency and economic optimization to improve your ROI. For example, if you are sending out catalogs, shaving an inch from the page size, or reducing the page count may not save you money on paper, but it could push you into letter-rate postage which will creative significant savings.  
  • Creative Message and Offer Testing: Finding the right message and offer is a constant challenge in direct mail. Is your offer competitive and unique? Consumers can be fickle. If they are in a more conservative mindset due to economic uncertainty, brands will want to adjust their messaging or offer strategy to entice them to take action and convert.  

Mail Smarter: Find the Opportunities 

There are always opportunities for greater efficiency and effectiveness in the direct mail channel, no matter the economic climate. We have a mantra at Nahan and we think it’s appropriate for every brand to keep it top of mind: It’s time to start mailing smarter! 

In an economic downturn, there will be shifts in the industry and more than likely the mailbox will become less populated. But if you are mailing smart, that means when your message does arrive, it will become more prominent.  

There are always opportunities to optimize your budget. For example, take advantage of USPS promotions. Through the remainder of the year, direct marketers can save 4% on postage simply by including Informed Delivery as part of their campaigns. At Nahan, we have streamlined this process, so all our customers need to do is say “Yes!” and it’ll be added to their program.  

We don’t know just yet which way the economy will turn the remainder of 2022 and into 2023, but no matter what, marketers can find opportunities to improve ROI by mailing smarter. We’re confident if you do this, you’ll come out on the other side with a much more effective direct mail program. 

Are you currently testing your direct mail programs?

Testing is a key component of any successful direct marketing program. The most impactful direct mail marketers are constantly testing creative, lists, and offers, which enables them to make marketing decisions armed with more insight.

We have found that testing means different things to different people. Clients approach it in a variety of ways.

In this white paper, we provide an insiders guide to effective direct mail testing for programs of all sizes and across industries. It doesn’t matter if you’re just getting started with testing or a seasoned pro, our guide will provide you with actionable insights you can implement today.

Learn how the four phases of the testing process work together to drive optimization.

  • Research
  • Pre-Testing
  • Testing
  • Post-Campaign Assessment

If you’re ready to test smarter and drive ROI for your program, fill out the form below for the full guide to direct mail testing today! 

Using Data to Develop Informed Creative

Posted on by Camille Lehmann

 

Author: Mike Dietz, Executive Creative Director and Laura Karels, Lead Designer

Ultimately, the goal of any direct mail piece is to pique a consumer’s interest, but also leave them wanting more. This is where informed creative comes into play.

When a piece of mail is in a consumer’s mailbox, there are two steps that need to be taken to achieve the desired outcome. First, it must garner the attention of the consumer to be opened. Once that occurs, it needs to convince the consumer to take action, whether that’s a phone call, typing in a unique URL, or scanning a QR code.

Getting the consumer to the point of taking action requires thoughtful strategy behind the design and copy of the piece – allowing the data to inform influence the creative strategy.

Knowing your audience means being able to resonate with them better. But the only way to do that is to know your data.

Subtle Changes Can Make Big Differences

Every target demographic is different, so why wouldn’t your direct mail reflect that? Writing for different target audiences require a good amount of nuance. This is when having a strong copywriter who knows how to add in those subtle changes that make all the difference for who you’re speaking to.

Let’s say you’re an insurance company and you want to reach those of retiring age as well as those who are just starting their families, that’s people in two wildly different life stages. While the entire structure and copy doesn’t need to change, reordering the bulleted benefits in a way that puts the most important to them first is a way to capture attention. The retired couple might not be looking for the same elements of a health insurance plan as a young family with three children.

The same goes for imagery. While you don’t need hundreds of image options, having a few that reflect who you’re sending to is helpful. You’re more likely to open something that looks like you.

Understand Your Consumer’s Barriers

Another important aspect to know about your audience is what might keep them from taking action. Identifying potential barriers is key. Once identified, address it in the copy right away. Going back to the insurance example, some people might not want to switch insurances because they think it will be too complicated and you’ve lost them before they even read the offer. By stating that the insurance company will eliminate all the pain of switching, you’ve helped overcome their hesitations.

Move the Needle

Ultimately, figuring out what elements will move the needle for your consumer are what’s most important. And you guessed it, infusing data into your creative strategy provides you with the best opportunity for success. At Nahan, our Designers work seamlessly with our Data and Strategy teams to develop informed creative that gets the job done.

A Guide to Direct Mail Testing Today

Testing is a key component of any successful direct marketing program. The most impactful direct mail marketers are constantly testing creative, lists, and offers, which enables them to make marketing decisions armed with more insight.

We have found that testing means different things to different people. Clients approach it in a variety of ways.

In this white paper, we provide an insiders guide to effective direct mail testing for programs of all sizes and across industries. It doesn’t matter if you’re just getting started with testing or a seasoned pro, our guide will provide you with actionable insights you can implement today.

Learn how the four phases of the testing process work together to drive optimization.

  • Research
  • Pre-Testing
  • Testing
  • Post-Campaign Assessment

If you’re ready to test smarter and drive ROI for your program, fill out the form below for the full guide to direct mail testing today! 

The Trustworthiness of Direct Mail in the Age of Cybersecurity

Posted on by Camille Lehmann

 

Author: Bryan Formhals, Senior Marketing Specialist

 

Security and privacy are two issues that impact almost every aspect of the way consumers engage with marketing in today’s world. While much of the focus revolves around cybersecurity and consumer data privacy, what happens in one channel has an impact in other channels.   

For marketers currently working in direct mail, or considering moving into it sometime soon, it’s important to understand some of the high-level issues revolving around security and privacy, which may not always be obvious on the surface.  

In the post, we’ll review how cybersecurity issues impact direct mail, and how agencies like Nahan help marketers navigate tricky security and privacy issues.  

Cybersecurity and Data Privacy Are Top of Mind Issues 

The inherent security risks around digital interactions are well known at this point. We all know about spam, phishing and data breaches. They make headlines and we’re all trained by our IT departments about these threats.   

These days, consumers are faced with potential threats anywhere they interact online, whether that’s clicking on banner ads or a link in an email. The threats are everywhere.  

Our inboxes are particularly a prime target which has made us inherently more risk adverse. We look for our billing statements, emails from friends and family and perhaps a few newsletters from trusted brands and media outlets. Anything else is oftentimes viewed suspiciously.  

Along with cybersecurity threats, consumers are weary about data privacy and how their information is collected and used by companies. This has made data privacy a hot button political issue with new laws in Europe fundamentally changing how companies can collect data. There could be similar laws in the United States within a few years, making data collection, targeting and analytics more complex for marketers.  

In this ever-changing landscape, it’s no wonder that consumers are growing weary of, and have a short attention span for marketing messages. In fact, brands have less than 3 seconds to capture consumers attention with an email message.  

So, what does this mean for marketers working the direct mail channel?   

Direct Mail is Trustworthy  

Direct mail has long been a trusted media channel. It might be common sense, but we know that when we get a piece of mail, it’s probably legitimate. There is no threat to your personal data by opening an envelope or reading a postcard.  

Beyond its safety, many consumers actually welcome mail from brands they trust. According to an Epsilon survey, 59% respondents say they welcome and enjoy getting mail from brands to find out about new products.  

Effective marketing requires integrated approaches and finding the right channel mix. These days, there’s a lot of uncertainty, and dynamics are always changing which requires smart marketers to be even more data driven. If you’re looking to break through the noise, direct mail is both safe and effective. According to the Data & Marketing association, around 90% of direct mail gets opened compared to 20-30% of marketing emails.  

We know that consumers trust direct mail, and it can be a highly effective channel with the right message and offer. However, that trust is built on security and established privacy laws and policies, which are critical to understanding in the direct mail channel.  

Direct Marketing Agencies Are Security Partners  

Security is a paramount issue in the direct mail channel. Many types of campaigns require companies to share sensitive customer data with their direct mail partners.  

With security protocols becoming more stringent to meet increasing cybersecurity threats, direct marketing providers like Nahan need the highest level of commitment to security to ensure consumer privacy.  

That’s why Nahan is certified at the highest level by organizations including HIPPA or PCI DSS, SOC2+HITRUST, S2Score (third-party security/risk assessment), PCI DSS, SOC2+HITRUST, HIPAA, CCPA, and GDPR. 

Nahan Security Safeguards   

At Nahan, we have decades of experience in direct mail industry, working with brands across many industries that require the highest security standards. We’re constantly reviewing our protocols and working with customers to develop new security processes. 

We know that protecting our clients’ customer data is critical to building trust, and delivering the results that drive business forward.  

Nahan prioritizes security by protecting the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of customer data through multiple layers of technical, physical, and administrative controls including:  

  •  Secure file transfer processes including secure transport protocols, Secure FTP (SFTP)

  • PGP file encryption

  • Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA) including biometrics

  • Highly-trained staff with weekly, monthly, and annual security training sessions and modules

  • Secure online industry-standard proofing application

  • Customer data access protected with ACL’s, audit trail logging, and file integrity monitoring (if required)

  • Secure data deletion with Certificate of Destruction (if required) 

If you’d like to learn more about growing your business or increasing your ROI through direct mail, get in touch!

Are you currently testing your direct mail programs?

Testing is a key component of any successful direct marketing program. The most impactful direct mail marketers are constantly testing creative, lists, and offers, which enables them to make marketing decisions armed with more insight.

We have found that testing means different things to different people. Clients approach it in a variety of ways.

In this white paper, we provide an insiders guide to effective direct mail testing for programs of all sizes and across industries. It doesn’t matter if you’re just getting started with testing or a seasoned pro, our guide will provide you with actionable insights you can implement today.

Learn how the four phases of the testing process work together to drive optimization.

  • Research
  • Pre-Testing
  • Testing
  • Post-Campaign Assessment

If you’re ready to test smarter and drive ROI for your program, fill out the form below for the full guide to direct mail testing today! 

The Risk in Not Testing Your Direct Mail

Posted on by Camille Lehmann

 

Author: Alan Sherman, VP Marketing Strategy

If you’ve been in the direct marketing space for any amount of time, you’ve certainly heard about the importance of testing. But “testing” means different things to different people, and we see people approach it in a variety of ways. My colleague, Maggie Stack, recently published a blog on Direct Mail Testing. Consider this a prequel – insights into the risks of not testing.

Testing “Approaches” Run the Gamut

Some marketers don’t test on a consistent basis or simply don’t test at all. After mailing the same creative package, list or offer, for months or even years on end, they experience the inevitable performance decline, and think it may be time to test a new creative. Their creative team or agency offers a new creative that hopefully out-performs the old one and then the process repeats itself. Still other marketers occasionally test but are so risk averse that they test small creative attributes, such as a headline in a letter or on an envelope, which rarely moves the performance needle. And data testing happens less frequently than creative testing, even though data has a more significant impact on results.

A Fear of Testing

Why the reluctance to test? Some marketers simply don’t know how. Others may not want to risk the company’s budget on a test that may not out-perform the control. Sometimes it’s a combination of the two – “I don’t know how – so why take the chance?”

What About Data Testing? I hear less about this than creative testing.

Why is there so little data testing? Data can be tougher to test – nowadays it would be less likely for us to test an entire list. With the cost of postage, we must be as precise as possible. Segments or model groups within an audience are not always easily explained or understood. Many lists should not be mailed without the use of effective predictive models to rank prospects. It feels riskier than changing a creative headline, or maybe data is managed by another group in the organization.  Maybe the data testing setup and measurement can feel daunting. We can hold and touch creative – it feels more “real” than data and many of us like to think we intuitively know what works in creative when it’s sometimes best left to the direct mail creative experts. 😊 And yet data has a larger impact on response than creative.

The Risk in Not Testing Your Direct Mail

Some might apply the old saying “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it” to direct mail testing. I would argue if it ain’t broke yet, it will be some day.  I would say that there is greater risk in NOT testing. Every creative package’s performance declines over time, and if you wait until that happens you could find yourself many months away from a new, high-performing package. The same applies to data. Doing nothing is short-term thinking that, over time, delivers inferior results. Regular testing is an investment that puts the long-term odds in your favor. Every test is an opportunity to learn and improve.

How frequent should testing be done?

Testing must be a regular ongoing process. Ideally, that means part of every campaign or at least testing quarterly. The aim is to develop a stable of high-performing creative packages and a precisely optimized audience by testing new data sources and predictive models to continually improve results.

We can make testing work for you. Testing is both art and science – Nahan offers both. We will continue to cover various aspects of testing in upcoming blogs.

Are you currently testing your direct mail programs?

Testing is a key component of any successful direct marketing program. The most impactful direct mail marketers are constantly testing creative, lists, and offers, which enables them to make marketing decisions armed with more insight.

We have found that testing means different things to different people. Clients approach it in a variety of ways.

In this white paper, we provide an insiders guide to effective direct mail testing for programs of all sizes and across industries. It doesn’t matter if you’re just getting started with testing or a seasoned pro, our guide will provide you with actionable insights you can implement today.

Learn how the four phases of the testing process work together to drive optimization.

  • Research
  • Pre-Testing
  • Testing
  • Post-Campaign Assessment

If you’re ready to test smarter and drive ROI for your program, fill out the form below for the full guide to direct mail testing today! 

Excitement Continues With The Success of Nahan’s East Coast Facility

Posted on by Camille Lehmann

 

Author: Michael Henry, VP Operations

 

As announced in April, Nahan recently acquired a second facility in Montgomeryville, Pennsylvania. It has been an exciting past several months ramping up the facility and launching production. Our team is incredibly proud of all the hardworking individuals who made this addition possible.

From preparing equipment, to hiring a work force, to installation of new branding, and much more, many people had a hand in the success of this addition that enables faster speed to market.

Nahan East

Nahan East

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

To celebrate this progress, we asked members of our Leadership Team to share a few sentiments regarding the facility and its team.

“Direct mail is the fastest-growing segment of our business,” said CEO Mike Ertel. “The addition of an East Coast facility strengthens our already best-in-class platform with improved cycle time, which is integral to our end-to-end direct marketing solution.”

“Marketers are seeking integrated solutions to increase agility, efficiency, and effectiveness,” said Mike Logar, SVP Sales and Marketing Services. “The addition of Nahan East puts us in a strong position to produce direct mail campaigns that will deliver high-performance results for our customers and drive business growth in a highly competitive market. We are super-pumped to have our PA facility online and are proud of the efforts by everyone who contributed to the launch.”

Aaron Weekes, VP Information of Technology and Adam Rohde, Manager of IT, had significant roles in getting all the technology in the facility in working order. Aaron stresses that the addition of this location is fantastic, “but the best thing about it is the amazing people. The team there takes pride in their work, they are knowledgeable about what they do, and are fun to work with as well.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The exceptional team dynamic that has been cultivated at this location is a testament to the amazing people at this location. Dawn Volante Brown, VP Business Services says “I am impressed by the level of the energy and collaboration created between both our St. Cloud and Montgomeryville locations. We are quickly becoming a global Nahan with the benefit of two geographic locations.”

As the VP Operations of Nahan East, I am incredibly excited about the progress so far and I’m looking forward to expanding and growing the facility to support the platform in the months ahead.

 

 

Author Bio: Michael Henry is the VP Operations at our facility in Pennsylvania. He joined Nahan in 2022 and has over 30 years of leading and direction organizations, bringing valuable leadership experience in the direct mail industry. Away from work, Mike enjoys spending his time on the Chesapeake Bay in Maryland with his family and friends.

Employee Spotlight: Ryan Newell

Posted on by Camille Lehmann

 

Author: Camille Lehmann, Senior Marketing Specialist

Earlier this year, we announced the exciting news of our addition of a second location in Pennsylvania. It has been a thrilling past few months getting the operations up and running. One of the people who has played an integral role in this success is Ryan Newell, Director of Manufacturing at our East Coast location. I had the privilege of getting to know Ryan better and what has made him proud to be a part of the Nahan team after only a few short months.

“One of my favorite parts about my job is producing something that is top quality and wows clients. Then add the fact that I get to be a part of a team that is so collaborative. We’re always learning from each other.”

-Ryan Newell, Director of Manufacturing

 

Ryan Newell

Ryan Newell, Director of Manufacturing

Coming Aboard Nahan

Ryan joined the Nahan team in March 2022 as a Production Shift Manager  at Nahan’s East Coast location in Montgomeryville, Pennsylvania. In July 2022, he was promoted to Director of Manufacturing. Ryan began his direct mail career as a technician in Prepress, later moved to a Direct Mail Specialist in Lettershop, and then was promoted into various management positions. When asked what professional accomplishment he is most proud of, Ryan says that leading an initiative to implement a digital print platform is top of the list. And now he is excited to be adding starting and expanding the Nahan East Coast operations to that list. We are excited about what this second location means for the future of Nahan and the additional ways we can serve our customers. Ryan’s efforts are have been a huge part of driving success for Nahan East.

“The best piece of advice I’ve ever heard is to work hard, don’t cut corners, and always give the maximum of your ability.”

-Ryan Newell, Director of Manufacturing

Beyond Nahan

When Ryan isn’t busy helping lead the way for Nahan East, he enjoys spending time with his family in the beautiful mountains of Pennsylvania. You can almost always catch Ryan doing something outdoors in his free time. Whether it is fishing, hiking, hunting, or playing a round of golf or cornhole, Ryan’s there for some fun and fresh air. Thank you Ryan for being a dedicated member of our team!

 

Author Bio: Camille Lehmann is a Senior Marketing Specialist and has been on the Nahan team since January 2020. Camille is responsible for managing Nahan’s social media, blog content, and other internal and external content communications. She graduated with her Masters of Science in Marketing with a specialization in Project Management in 2020. In her spare time, Camille enjoys visiting new coffee shops and restaurants with friends, playing tennis, and finding new Pinterest projects.

3 Benefits of Behavioral Targeting in Direct Mail Campaigns

Posted on by Camille Lehmann

 

Author: Camille Lehmann, Senior Marketing Specialist

 

If you’ve been in the direct marketing industry for any period of time, you’ve undoubtedly heard that data is a key driver of results. Better yet, highly targeted data. But this may leave marketers with the question – What kind of data should I use? The answer largely depends on your direct mail campaign history. Have you sent campaigns before, and do you have customer response data? If the answer is no, the first step is to begin with demographic targeting to be able to later use behavioral targeting for improved results in subsequent campaigns.

So what’s the difference between demographic targeting and behavioral targeting and how do you use them to increase your direct mail ROI?

Demographic Targeting Vs. Behavioral Targeting

Demographic targeting uses information such as age, gender, geographic location, income, and vocation to target an audience. While there are hundreds of additional data points available for use, the first time a brand mails, these are often the only data points available, since there is no previous response data. Demographic data is frequently used to create a predictive Lookalike (or Profile) Model as a first step to predict those most likely to respond. It is not ideal, as it is simply not as powerful as analytic tools that utilize past behavior. After enough initial responders are gathered, strategists and analysts use this information to learn which people have an affinity for the product and are likely to respond via direct mail. If creative tests were done, we gain insight into which type of creative copy and formats appeal to responders. The response data is used to build a more sophisticated response model, which utilizes both demographic and behavioral data. It is based on the principle that past behavior indicates and is predictive of future behavior.  We then implement behavioral targeting in the next campaign and beyond.

Behavioral targeting and analytics use a brand’s own data, usually in the form of direct mail response and corresponding purchase data for better acquisition results. Marketers must consider how they will capture and measure response, so that information can be used to inform future decisions, making behavioral targeting more successful. Examples of this include using custom QR codes, a personal URL only for that campaign, a 1-800 number, or promotional codes unique to each campaign file.

“By utilizing data across sources, we can identify highly predictive data elements—leading to greater response and conversion results.”

-Alan Sherman, VP Marketing Strategy

Once you acquire behavioral data, why should you consider using behavioral targeting in your next campaign?

Benefit #1: Advertise to Consumers Likely to Engage

When you target behaviorally, you are analyzing the behavior of past responders and using that behavior to find more consumers like them. Targeting likely responders means better results.

Benefit #2: Print Less, Spend Less

Using behavioral targeting is more cost-effective when the data is available. The more targeted your audience becomes, the smaller it gets. With rising paper and postage costs, a smaller, but more responsive audience becomes more efficient to reach, both from financial and environmental perspectives.

Benefit #3: Greater Marketing ROI

While your audience is smaller, it is also more responsive. No longer is money spent on people who have less interest in what you are selling. The combination of spending less on materials and having a more responsive pool equals a greater ROI.

We’re data experts at Nahan with access to more than 20 of the best data sources comprising over 25,000 data points. Our decades of experience paired with the amazing partners we work with, means you get service that can’t be beat. We’d love to help you reach your audience the best way possible with your direct mail campaign. Contact us today to find out how we can help you increase your ROI.

A Guide to Direct Mail Testing Today

Testing is a key component of any successful direct marketing program. The most impactful direct mail marketers are constantly testing creative, lists, and offers, which enables them to make marketing decisions armed with more insight.

We have found that testing means different things to different people. Clients approach it in a variety of ways.

In this white paper, we provide an insiders guide to effective direct mail testing for programs of all sizes and across industries. It doesn’t matter if you’re just getting started with testing or a seasoned pro, our guide will provide you with actionable insights you can implement today.

Learn how the four phases of the testing process work together to drive optimization.

  • Research
  • Pre-Testing
  • Testing
  • Post-Campaign Assessment

If you’re ready to test smarter and drive ROI for your program, fill out the form below for the full guide to direct mail testing today! 

4 Ways Nahan Makes Safety a Priority

Posted on by Camille Lehmann

 

Author: Doug Roob, Safety Coordinator

 

To be the top direct marketing solutions company, we need to have the top people in every department. How do you attract the top people – you give them an environment where they feel safe, heard, and appreciated. We’re honored to have consistently been awarded a Printing Industry Midwest Best Places to Work designation. Prioritizing the safety of our employees is always top-of-mind and a practice that we see flow naturally out of our team.

 

1. Committed Safety Team on Production Floor

When I started at Nahan in 1989, safety was controlled under department managers, the changes made to having a designated Safety Coordinator helped streamline safety policies. To raise more awareness of Nahan’s safety policies and to ensure employees are following best-practice procedures, we developed a Safety Team that comprises of employees across departments. This team serves as a link between employees and management where anyone can bring their safety ideas and suggestions to be brought up in Safety Meetings.

 

2. Monthly Online Safety Training

Working in a production facility naturally brings up many safety topics. We feel it is important to keep all of our employees updated on safety measures by using monthly, online safety training. Preventative measures like this can help us reduce injuries and time away from production, leading to more satisfied employees, and higher quality work for customers.

 

3. Monthly Safety Audits

To make sure that safety measures are being implemented consistently, monthly safety audits are completed. The results of these audits are shared with the Production Department to make any changes that are needed to minimize hazards, if not entirely eliminate them.

 

4. Priority of Safety Work Orders

At Nahan, safety is not an after-thought – our entire team is committed to it. Safety Work Orders are given top priority and are completed immediately by our Maintenance Department.

 

Helping employees recognize hazards, learn how to minimize them, and keep themselves and their teammates safe is why I love what I do. Nahan’s commitment to training employees on best practices and ensuring the safety of all, is a big reason I have been on the Nahan team for over 30 years.

 

Author Bio: Doug Roob started at Nahan in 1989 and began his role in Safety in 1992. His favorite part of the job is teaching people how to keep safe in the work environment, and the challenges that it can bring.

 

 

Insights from the 2022 National Postal Forum

Posted on by Camille Lehmann

 

Author: Brandon Jacklin, Manager of Logistics and Postal Affairs

 

Two weeks ago, I had the privilege of attending the 2022 National Postal Forum in Phoenix, Arizona. This annual conference always serves as a great opportunity to learn about the new happenings in the print and mailing industry, as well as connect with others in the field. This year’s theme was Facing the Future Together – a homage to overcoming the challenges remaining after the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as to the transformation taking place with the USPS’s Delivering for America initiative. Postmaster General, Louis DeJoy, outlined several key initiatives the USPS is implementing, all of which are of interest for those in the print and mailing industry, as they will affect postal rates, delivery, and efficiency.

Increasing Service Standard Times

The USPS is implementing several improvements behind the scenes to drive better delivery performance while reducing costs. They are planning major capital investments into its processing network, facilities, retail locations and fleet.  This includes maximizing existing routes to ensure that trucks and planes are being sent at full capacity, and consolidating facility operations from multiple locations into one larger one, where possible, to increase efficiency.

Improving Employee Retention

Another focus of the USPS is improving employee amenities to help with workforce retention and morale. With employee shortages nation-wide, the USPS realizes it needs to increase the desire to stay for current employees who in many cases are facing higher demands. Some of these changes include improving the onboarding and training process, workplace safety, and updating equipment and vehicles. The USPS is seeking to electrify it’s entire fleet by no later than 2035.

Looking Towards the Future

Postmaster General, Louis Dejoy, acknowledged that the USPS has faced several industry headwinds in recent decades (not the least of which being the Covid-19 pandemic). However, he stressed that it is the postal service’s responsibility to rise up, remain competitive, and achieve its mandate of being a self-sustaining enterprise regardless of whatever challenges may exist. Under the Delivering for America plan, the post office anticipates operating with a positive net income beginning in fiscal year 2023 or 2024 and predicts reversing a projected $160 billion in losses over the next ten years.

 

Employee Spotlight: Erik Turbin

Posted on by Camille Lehmann

 

Author: Camille Lehmann, Senior Marketing Specialist

 

If you were to ask someone at Nahan what their favorite part about being on the team is, more likely than not, their answer is the people. Our people are where we take the greatest pride. One of those people is Erik Turbin, Direct Mail Production Supervisor. I had the opportunity to get to know more about Erik and why he has made Nahan his home for almost 10 years.

 

Erik Turbin

Erik Turbin, Direct Mail Production Supervisor

30 Years in the Print Industry 

Erik came to Nahan in 2013 with twenty years of experience in bindery, as well as being a supervisor. Since he started at Nahan, Erik has held the positions of Operator and Finishing Department Lead Trainer. This fall he will be celebrating an exciting personal milestone of 30 years in the print industry! Nahan is proud to have someone as talented and knowledgeable as Erik on the team, holding so many years of experience. In 2016, he even received the Production Professional of the Year award from Printing Industry Midwest (PIM). When asked what aspect of his career he is most passionate about, Erik responded that always being honest and fair to employees under his supervision is his priority, as well as helping people understand how every minute adds up to supporting both Nahan’s goals as well as their own personal goals.

 

“I love to see people meet a production goal and also work on building their relationships with others in the organization.”

-Erik Turbin, Direct Mail Production Supervisor

Beyond Nahan

When Erik is not busy leading his team at Nahan, he enjoys hunting, camping, and fishing (as he describes the normal Minnesota way of life). He also enjoys spending time with his wife, five children, and five grandchildren. When he has the opportunity, he loves to travel, citing the Boundary Waters up north as his favorite place so far. He hopes to visit Iceland and Bora Bora sometime in the future as well.

Careers at Nahan

If you are interested in learning more about a career at Nahan, visit our Careers page today!

 

Author Bio: Camille Lehmann is a Senior Marketing Specialist and has been on the Nahan team since January 2020. Camille is responsible for managing Nahan’s social media, blog content, and other internal and external content communications. She graduated with her Masters of Science in Marketing with a specialization in Project Management in 2020. In her spare time, Camille enjoys visiting new coffee shops and restaurants with friends, playing tennis, and finding new Pinterest projects.

Direct Marketing Insights from NEMOA Spring Summit

Posted on by Camille Lehmann

 

Author: Bryan Formhals, Senior Marketing Specialist

As the economy continues to recover from the pandemic, marketers and brands are facing new challenges from rising input costs, labor shortages, and continued supply chain disruptions. With all this uncertainty, gaining an edge in the market and optimizing marketing programs becomes even more important. One place to gain insights is from industry peers and experts developing innovative solutions.

Every spring NEMOA (National Etailing & Mailing Organization of America) holds their first of two summits, bringing together leading experts to share their insights on the current market, providing the opportunity to network with peers, and have lively discussions about the biggest topics in the industry.

This year’s spring summit was held virtually and we at Nahan were thrilled to attend and present our roundtable conversation on ‘Extending your Catalogs Reach by Geo Targeting Mobile Users.’

We also attended several of the presentations and roundtables to learn what some of the best minds in the industry are thinking. Here are a few of the key takeaways:

DTC Brands Turn to Print Inserts

In ‘The Power of Marketing Via Print Inserts’ hosted by by Craig Kapilow, Senior Director, Strategic Partnerships RUE GILT GROUP, we learned how digitally-native brands are utilizing print inserts for brand awareness and customer acquisition.

They also offer a great way to delight when they open their packages by offering a little surprise, which everyone loves!  Another key advantage of print inserts is the ability to include offers from thirty party partners. Craig warned that brands shouldn’t try to do too much with their inserts and should make sure their brand and logo are always prominent, as well as including a crystal clear call to action and value proposition.

Getting Creative with Catalogs

 Catalogs are a big investment, making it critical marketers assure their effectiveness in engaging with their customers. In “Catalogs: Creative and Creation,” Brent Niemuth, J. Schmid spoke with Jackie Ardrey of Grandin Road and Bryan Seeley of BSW to learn their insights about tactics for creating beautiful, impactful catalogs.

For Seeley, catalogs are a great way to cut through the digital noise for their B2B focused customers in the broadcast industry. He recommends working with suppliers to help pay for catalogs, as well as featuring the people behind the brand, and most importantly, make it fun!

With Grandin Road, Ardey says catalogs are a source of inspiration and the best format for telling a broader and deeper brand story. Their customers are looking for inspiration and ideas and want to see something they have never seen. Their top tips are to elevate the creative by focusing on great photography and conveying personality through copy.

The Future of Print is Personalized

Digital inkjet technology is a significant trend for everyone in the print world. Ricoh’s Director of Global Marketing, Mike Herold hosted an insightful roundtable discussion on the “Opportunities and Obstacles in Customizable Print” with a few key takeaways that are going to be relevant for all marketers in the space.  

The COVID pandemic accelerated the decline of offset which is also facing labor shortages. There aren’t enough skilled employees to run offset equipment, so future growth will come on the backbone of digital solutions. Right now less than 1% of the 44 billion direct mail pieces produced annually are produced with inkjet technology, so there’s a lot of growth ahead.

One of the huge benefits of inkjet printing is the ability to personalize the campaigns, however customization does come at a higher cost. This tension requires marketers to work closely with their partners on optimization. In many cases, those higher costs will be offset by the higher response rate you get from personalized campaigns.

Smaller and more targeted runs, sometimes called ‘microruns’, are quicker and more customized, with programmatic print continuing to grow. Bottom line, traditional print is not going away, but how can you compliment it with digital to drive value? 

Taking Multi-Channel Marketing from Digital to Catalogs and Print

Many direct-to-consumer brands had great success building their brands through digital marketing, but with the cost increasing, some are diversifying to catalogs to increase engagement.

In a presentation called, ‘The Whys and Hows Of Beyond Digital Multi-Channel Marketing,’ Liz Dolinski, Chief Growth Officer of Lunya, shared how the three pillars of media diversification, customer journeys, and brand building have helped them grow in the face of steeper digital marketing costs.

With media diversification, she emphasized the importance of meeting customers where they are by not allowing one channel/partner to dominate your marketing spend.

Moving into the physical world with catalogs is a great way to tell the full brand story and create a deeper, richer experience. Since the lead times for print are much longer, they can be more difficult for agile marketing strategies.

A couple of tactics they have found successful are to follow up with a postcard when a customer unsubscribes from their newsletter and to add a copy of catalogs to gift boxes.

Conclusion

NEMOA brings together some of the best minds in the print industry. The presenters at the spring summit shared actionable insights that marketers can implement into their 2022 direct marketing strategies. We look forward to the fall summit to see how  these trends and insights evolve throughout the year.

 

 

Bio: Bryan Formhals is a Senior Marketing Specialist at Nahan. His efforts focus on public relations, trade shows, sales support, and other external marketing initiatives. He has over 20 years experience in digital marketing working across content, social media, strategy, and communications. In his free time, Bryan enjoys photography and art, walking and hiking, and exploring parks and nature.

 

Paper Market: 5 Insights for 2022

Posted on by Camille Lehmann

 

Author: Bryan Formhals, Senior Marketing Specialist

 

It doesn’t take long in the print industry to know that the current paper market is a tricky challenge to tackle. There are many different layers to consider when developing your direct mail and catalog strategy, but the most tangible element of your planning will always be your paper choices. Paper is what makes print….well, print!

Whether you’re a seasoned paper veteran, or new to print, you’ve undoubtedly realized that there are many variables to understand, including: pricing, size, finish, coating, sustainability, among others. The last two years have added a new layer of complexity with increasing paper shortages due to supply chain issues brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as fundamental shifts in the paper market. What does this mean? Marketers are facing unprecedented challenges when developing their direct mail and catalog campaigns. In such an environment, knowing the pulse of the industry and trends is more important than ever.

While we could certainly write a book on the topic (hey, this is our business and we love it!), we’re going to instead share the top tips and trends you need to know about making paper choices for your projects in 2022.

Stay Flexible When It Comes to Choosing Paper 

Paper availability looks different in 2022. What was used in your last project, might not be now, or might take longer to acquire than in prior years. The name of the game going forward is flexibility. For example, one might have to consider environmental certified versus recycled depending on availability and timing.

This is also a good opportunity to discover new paper types and sizes you haven’t tried before.

Small is the New Big

Want an easy way to combat the increase in paper prices? Go smaller. With paper prices increasing, it makes sense to try to use less of it. This doesn’t mean your mailer will lose impact. It means being concise and strategic with your messaging and creative design. Think “small but mighty.” A smaller mailer implementing best practices can have the desired impact and achieve your ROI. For example, we’ve helped several fashion retailers make a splash with mini catalogs that have a smaller paper footprint. Not only does it cut down on paper, but it also stands out in the mailbox.

Supply Chain Issues and the Resulting Delays

By now, the snags and snarls caused by the supply chain issues have been apparent in nearly every industry, forcing businesses to be nimble and adjust. For the paper market, transportation challenges have been a leading cause of delays and price increases. Rising energy and gas prices paired with a shortage of truck drivers have created a perfect storm for moving paper from the mills to printers. Experts expect some of these issues to slowly work themselves out over the year, but for the time being, patience is required.

The Paper Market is Changing

As with many industries the pandemic has disrupted and fundamentally changed the paper market. Many mills have had to shift production to producing corrugated cardboard to meet the increasing ecommerce demand and are suffering from the labor shortage as well. The result has been that paper companies are now setting allocations for paper delivery, with shipments requiring longer lead times, creating the shortage we’re all feeling.

Plan Early, and then Be Nimble

In an industry that requires effective planning with moving parts, the current headwinds with supply chain issues and paper shortages requires planning even further into the future. Once planning is in motion, you want to be nimble and know where you can make last minute adjustments. This is where it becomes important to work closely with vendors such as Nahan to help guide through the process and find opportunities for optimization.

“I’ve been telling clients they need to firm up circulations and place orders as soon as possible. They also should be open to trimming their mail file at the 11th hour to remove the populations they feel are less likely to respond,” Pat Nahan, VP of Client Solutions.

Conclusion

Paper may not be glamorous but it’s a crucial component in the success of any direct mail or catalog campaign. With supply chain challenges persisting and fundamental transformations taking place in the paper market, it’s important for marketers to understand the core industry taking place. While these new challenges create headwinds in executing campaigns, they can also create new opportunities for brands who plan with agility and partner with the experts.

 

 

Bio: Bryan Formhals is a Senior Marketing Specialist at Nahan. His efforts focus on public relations, trade shows, sales support and other external marketing initiatives. He has over 20 years experience in digital marketing working across content, social media, strategy and communications. In his free time, Bryan enjoys photography and art, walking and hiking, and exploring parks and nature.

 

The Dynamic Duo: Combining Direct Mail and Digital for Increased ROI

Posted on by Camille Lehmann

Author: Alan Sherman, VP of Marketing Strategy

Direct mail and digital ads are the ultimate power team. While compelling on their own, together they make a larger impact on the consumer, but this is increasingly difficult to achieve in the wake of the phasing out of third-party cookies.

For years, direct marketers have run cross-channel marketing programs that use third-party cookies to track user behavior across websites – we all see those ads that seem to follow us around online. In response to European and CA privacy regulations, third-party cookies have largely already been phased out by most browsers (now only relevant 40% of the time), such as Apple’s Safari and Google’s Chrome, which will fully phase out cookies in 2023.

So, if cookies are going away and direct marketers want to reach consumers at the same time across channels to lift and improve response, what do they do? 

Our Solution

Nahan’s solution is known as Direct Mail Companion™ (DM Companion™) – or if you’re a cataloger, it’s known as Catalog Companion™. The name may vary, but the solution remains the same. And what a solution it is! You can now leverage the power of your targeted offline prospect or customer files to create a seamless message before, during, and after your direct mail or catalog in-home date, leading to greater response and higher ROI.

DM Companion™ is a multi-channel marketing program that combines direct mail and mobile targeting. We leverage the direct mail file and target the same recipient via their mobile devices in their homes. The targeting process is based on geocoding technology that achieves a 100% match rate (except for multi-dwelling units) between the direct mail file and the digital universe.

Those that click the ads on their phones are further retargeted across digital channels and other known devices, all without the use of third-party cookies.

Respecting Privacy

We respect consumer privacy by leveraging mobile device ID, which is not considered Personal Identifiable Information (PII). It does not leverage cookies or IP address targeting and is not subject to digital privacy restrictions.

Results Are Impressive

Click-through rate results are typically 2x higher than traditional digital display campaigns, with a 50–75% reduction in cost-per-click and the added  frequency provides incremental response rate improvement of 20%+ over direct mail alone. Recipients can be digitally targeted before the mailing is delivered to build awareness, during the in-home delivery period, and during the remainder of the response cycle. This program uses a highly targeted, cost-effective approach that streamlines the path to response, and is proven across every industry we work with.

Multiple contacts to the same people across multiple channels translate to un-matched results. To find out more about DM and Catalog Companion™, get in touch with your Nahan representative or reach me at alan.sherman@nahan.com.

Bio: Alan Sherman is our Vice President of Marketing Strategy. Alan enhances Nahan’s current value proposition with strategy solutions that support new/existing client relationships. For clients, he leverages market, customer, and competitive intelligence to build achievable strategies for omnichannel marketing success. His marketing plan strategies include targeted data, predictive analytics, testing and creative that drive ongoing client performance improvement. In his spare time, Alan enjoys spending time with his family, traveling, going to concerts, watching sports (he’s a fan of the NY Giants, Boston Red Sox and Celtics) and walking the dog, even though it was just out.

Nahan Announces Investment in New Technology from Canon Solutions America

Posted on by Camille Lehmann

SAINT CLOUD, MN – November 17, 2021 – Nahan announced that it has expanded its digital printing platform with the addition of the ProStream 1800, manufactured by Canon Solutions America. “This state-of-the-art continuous feed inkjet press will enable Nahan to deliver highly targeted and personalized print at exceptional speeds with award-winning quality and flexibility, unlike anything we’ve seen,” said Nahan CEO Mike Ertel.

Speed

With the ability to produce over 62 million letter impressions per month, the ProStream will increase Nahan’s overall capacity, while reducing production cycle times and enabling faster speed to market for its clients. 

Quality

Setting a new benchmark for inkjet quality, the ProStream1800 provides a color gamut beyond offset standards on most papers. At full speed, the ProStream leverages 1,200 dpi resolution with Canon multi-level ink drop size modulation for smooth shadings, striking details in dark tones, and sharp fonts.

Flexibility

The ProStream allows for flexibility across a wide range of media, including standard offset coated, uncoated, and inkjet optimized papers from 40gsm to 300gsm. This will allow Nahan to efficiently produce a wider range of formats than ever before, from premium direct mail, to catalogs, self-mailers, and more. Another compelling feature of the ProStream is that it can produce fully variable 4-color catalog covers in-stream – a new and unique advance in capabilities for Nahan.

“We’re proud to partner with Canon Solutions America on this investment in our future,” said Paul Overn, Vice President, Operations at Nahan. “Their constant innovation and support is invaluable as it has enabled us to meet our customers’ increasing needs for speed and personalization.”

About Nahan

Nahan is an award-winning, privately owned, direct marketing and print solutions company. Nahan leverages the power of omnichannel marketing strategy, creative, data, and analytics coupled with exceptional production and postal strategies to closely connect brands with customers. For more information about Nahan, please visit http://www.Nahan.com.

About Canon Solutions America, Inc.

Canon Solutions America, Inc. provides industry leading enterprise, production, and large format printing solutions, supported by exceptional professional service offerings. Canon Solutions America, Inc. helps companies of all sizes discover ways to improve sustainability, increase efficiency, and control costs in conjunction with high volume, continuous feed, digital and traditional printing, and document management solutions. For more information on Canon Solutions America, please visit csa.canon.com.

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Nahan Named Top Digital Agency in Minnesota by DesignRush

Posted on by Camille Lehmann

St. Cloud, MN — November 2, 2021 — Nahan has been named a Top Digital Marketing Agency in Minnesota by DesignRush.

DesignRush is a B2B marketplace that connects brands with professional full-service agencies, web design companies, digital marketing firms, direct marketing firms and top technology companies. Their platform lists over 9,300 agencies from over 50 different countries and is consulted by thousands of decision-makers looking to start a project.

“We’re excited for Nahan to be recognized for driving performance improvement for clients through our integrated suite of services,” said Alan Sherman, VP-Marketing Strategy. “We’re proud to be a true one-stop-shop for all of their direct marketing needs.

Nahan’s team of experts across strategy, data, creative, production, postal logistics and fulfillment enable our clients to successfully acquire, develop, and retain profitable customer relationships, while continuously improving Return on Marketing Investment (ROMI).

To learn more about Nahan, visit: https://www.nahan.com/what-we-do/

To learn more about DesignRush, visit: https://www.designrush.com/

Halloween Special: Getting Started with Printing Isn’t “Scary”

Posted on by Camille Lehmann

Authors: Nahan Marketing Team

Halloween is right around the corner! Our business is “boo”ming this time of the year and our presses are running nonstop. So, we thought we’d have some fun answering some frequently asked questions with a few Halloween puns.  You’re in for a real “treat” and maybe a few “tricks.”

Why are so many of our customers starting to add print campaigns again into their marketing strategies, even if they have taken a break from print or have never printed before?

Many customers come to us because they have been under the “spell” of the same old marketing tactics and they are looking for something new to break it. Some customers are looking for strategies like loyalty mailings to bring their “zombie” customers back to life. Others are looking to leave their competition in the “shadows” with awesome new campaign strategies. No matter the circumstance, we always say don’t let print “scare” you. We’re here to help and have a “ghoulishly” good time at Nahan. We love new “tricks” on our equipment and love to “treat” our customers to amazing quality print. We also offer a whole “web” of services to our customers so they are well taken care of.

Once someone decides to add a print campaign to their strategy, what sort of things should they think about?

First of all, you’ll want to think about your goals and what you want to achieve. What do you want your print project to do for you – drive sales, acquire new customers, bring customers into your store, etc.? You will no doubt want to take advantage of our Mail expertise, as Direct Mail marketing has significant response rates and we want the project to be as successful as you do.

Once you have the details for the project, our team will create a quote for you and we’ll put together a project schedule.

How about paper selection?

While our industry is facing a “scary” paper shortage, do not “panic.” our Sales Representatives are here to help you work through any issues for your particular project. Our responsive and adaptable team is here to serve you every step of the way despite industry capacity shortages.

My catalog has MANY pages, does it need “creep?”

Depending on how many pages, your book may need “creep” because when taking a “face trim” off, we wouldn’t want to lose any “digits.” Creep refers to the moving of margins in the document when the pages are folded. The amount of creep varies depending on how many pages are in your catalog. Our team will then trim off an paper creeping out of the cover for a professional finish. Our skilled experts will take care of that for you.

My project has “bleed?”

Yes, if your image extends to the edge of the page, you will want 1/8” extra image so that your image can “bleed” off the page.

Will my project be prone to “ghosting?” 

When we talk about the term “ghosting back,” we are referring to an image being lightened up to use as a background or other light accent. However, there are many undesirable “traps” that can happen when printing large solids. If your solid image has reversed type or white knockouts a few different types of “ghosting” can appear.

Mechanical “ghost” is a “phantom” image on the printed side of the sheet caused by ink “starvation.” It can be quite “menacing.” You will need a well-maintained machine with highly skilled operators to help eliminate it.

Chemical “ghosts” appear ominously when the ink is drying, caused by a differentiated dry speed and gaseous emissions, leaving a “ghosted” image on the other side of the sheet (in the solids). Experienced operators with a lot of training, R&D, and quality products help eliminate this as well. This type of ghost generally only happens on coated papers.

So, if you’re concerned about “ghosting,” who you gonna call? “Ghostbusters!” Just kidding, you can call us and we will help!

Getting Started with Printing

Can I get help with creative design?

Does getting the best direct mail design seem too “mysterious?” We’re here to help! We have a team committed to providing creative services unique to your needs. With decades of experience, our creative department delivers impactful and targeted direct mail design focused on improving your Return on Marketing Investment. Whether we are providing format ideation or full creative development, we collaboratively work with our clients to help solve their marketing challenges.

Employee Spotlight: Lisa Palm

Posted on by Camille Lehmann

Author: Camille Lehmann, Marketing Coordinator

Our team consists of some amazing individuals, all dedicated to the Nahan mission focused on consistently exceeding expectations. Lisa Palm, one of our Production Managers, has been dedicated to that mission throughout her Nahan career and we couldn’t be more thankful for her commitment. We’re excited to share more about Lisa and her time at Nahan.


Lisa Palm, Production Manager

Lisa’s Career in Direct Mail

After graduating college with a degree in advertising and design, Lisa’s print journey expanded into multiple roles, including Prepress Production Specialist, Electronic Prepress Technician, and Production Artist. Her time in the print industry took her to various companies, including Nahan. After a few years away from Nahan, Lisa decided that she missed the sense of values, individuality, and worth that Nahan emphasized. In 2011, she returned to Nahan as a Customer Service Representative. Over the following five years, Lisa held the roles of Technical Service Rep, Project Coordinator, and was promoted to Account Manager. At the time, Lisa was confident her role in Account Management was her forever home. She enjoyed taking a project from point-of-sale to completion, along with the knowledge of the industry she was gaining. However, it wasn’t until she took a risk and applied to be a leader in Production that she realized her true calling. In 2017, Lisa became a Finishing Shift Leader, ultimately leading to her becoming Nahan’s first woman Production Manager in 2021. Her willingness to lead and participate in many workflow teams throughout her time at Nahan prepared her well to take on challenges and serve her team. Overall, it’s not Lisa’s accomplishments that make her proudest, but the growth of her team, emphasizing that it is the job of leaders to grow more leaders.

“Michelle Motschke, one of my mentors, taught me the value of tolerance, patience, and trust in business.”


Lisa Palm, Production Manager

Fun fact – Lisa and her husband, Tim, met at Nahan in 2009

Beyond Nahan

Lisa’s other greatest passion is her family, whom she describes as very close-knit and who taught her how to be courageous and have a kind heart. She enjoys getting to use her leadership qualities to support and cheer on her loved ones, whether it’s golfing with her husband or helping her son (who she says is growing up way too fast) with school and the challenges of being a teenager. She takes every chance possible to return to her roots in Madison, Wisconsin to spend cherished time with family. Lisa also enjoys spending time outdoors exploring with her family and two dogs, Freyja and Grizzly Bear, running half marathons, and cheering on the Packers.

 


Lisa’s son and their two dogs

“The best advice I’ve ever received is to be strong and listen to yourself, your value, and your worth. Don’t let others dictate your path. Rise above and make your dreams a reality.”


-Lisa Palm, Production Manager

Careers at Nahan

If you are interested in learning more about a career at Nahan, visit our careers page or contact us to learn more.

Bio: Camille Lehmann is on the Marketing team and started with Nahan in January of 2020. Camille is responsible for assisting in Nahan’s marketing strategies and goals. She graduated with her Master’s of Science in Marketing with a specialization in Project Management in 2020. In her spare time, Camille enjoys writing, going to coffee shops, and spending time with friends and family.

USPS Postage Rates Updated 2021: Cost-Effective Mailing Solutions

Posted on by Camille Lehmann

Author: Brandon Jacklin, Logistics Specialist

As of August 29, 2021, the USPS has released updated postage rates (printable chart can be downloaded here). These postal rate increases will enable the USPS to provide reliable and predictable service while ensuring its financial sustainability. The plan will support a precise and efficient processing and transportation network, positioning the USPS to deliver 95 percent of all mail and packages on-time. More information about FAQ’s about USPS rate changes can be found here.

Larger Maximum Allowable Size for First-Class Postcards

A positive development for marketers, is that the new plan includes an increase in the first-class postcard maximum dimensions from 4.25 x 6” to 6 x 9”, providing additional space for information and branding.

Compared to 6″x9” marketing mail, a 6″x9” First-Class postcard offers many additional benefits including 1-5 business day delivery, return to sender, address correction, and forwarding services. Under the new plan, it also comes with a much smaller upcharge than in the past when jumping from Standard to First-Class. Postcards provide an affordable and effective way to drive business. With the ability to be highly personalized and in-home quickly at a great price, this is a wonderful opportunity for marketers.

Co-Mail, Commingle, and Drop-Shipping Options Help Keep Postage Rates Low

There are a variety of ways that a finished mail piece can be shipped to a customer. Three of the most common methods include co-mail, commingle, and drop ship. Co-mail is used for catalogs and flat-sized pieces. In this type of shipment, multiple jobs are combined, enhancing the pre-sort, which gives the customer the lowest postage price. Commingling is used for letter-sized pieces and helps to save postage while combining mailings similarly co-mail. These two methods are most cost-effective for those mailing smaller quantities. Lastly, drop shipping consolidates pallets with other pallet jobs and then delivers them to postal facilities around the country. This method is beneficial for geographically concentrated quantities as well as the ability to hit a tight in-home window. Our postal and logistics experts at Nahan are here to help you navigate which shipping option is the best for your needs.

How Nahan Provides Cost-Effective Mailing Solutions

  • Logistics expertise – We have a team of logistics experts to help our customers determine the best mailing and transportation method for their needs. The team is always on top of what’s going on with industry changes and is quick to respond.
  • Multiple shipping methods – As explained above, we have three primary shipping options: co-mail, commingle, and drop-ship, all of which our team of experts can help you choose from to best support your needs.
  • Advocating for our customers – Throughout industry changes, we remain committed to finding the best postage rates for our customers and by the best means possible relative to desired transit times and in-home dates.

The printing and direct marketing industry could not exist without the partnership of the USPS to deliver your eye-catching and action-driving piece to your consumer. The team at Nahan is here to help you find solutions to minimize postage and transportation costs and drive improved marketing return on investment (ROI).

Employee Spotlight: Pete Schwarzkopf

Posted on by Camille Lehmann

Author: Camille Lehmann, Marketing Coordinator

Our employees are our greatest asset. We are so thankful for their dedication to the Nahan team and their commitment to going above and beyond for our customers. I’d like to introduce you to Pete Schwarzkopf, one of our Account Executives and someone who you can always count on to have a sense of humor. We are excited to be sharing more about Pete and his time at Nahan so far.

Pete Schwarzkopf, Account Executive

Pete’s Career in Direct Mail

Pete started at Nahan in December of 2020. Since graduating from the Western Wisconsin Technical College and University of Wisconsin – Stout, Pete has been a part of the print industry. He began his career running presses at a small print shop in Viroqua, WI, and went on to spend the next 20 years in positions ranging from Account Manager, to purchasing agent and Account Executive. Pete explains that the sense of accomplishment he feels booking a job for a new client after persevering in patience is his greatest work accomplishment.  He is passionate about exceeding customers’ expectations and says positive feedback from clients keeps that passion going. Knowing that the team knocked it out of the park on a project makes the job exciting and continually makes him committed to doing the same with every customer. Pete also enjoys the aspect of his Account Executive role that he likes to call being the “Swiss Army Knife” of the team – supporting and helping wherever he can to make each department successful.

“Knowing that we both knocked a job out of the park and that it’s a win for our company financially, that’s something that keeps me passionate about growing and retaining our customers!”

Pete Schwarzkopf, Account Executive

Life Beyond Nahan

Outside of the office, Pete first and foremost enjoys spending time with his wife and two daughters. He credits his wife as the person who inspires him the most – not only in her dedication to her career but her ability to keep the family organized and on task! He also enjoys being able to get outside and camp, fish, and play golf (although he admits golf can be a bit of a struggle sometimes). Visiting local breweries in the western suburbs of the Twin Cities and family vacations are also favorite activities. So far, a few of his favorite travel destinations have been the Rivera Maya region of Mexico and Ireland, and he hopes to visit Alaska and Hawaii sometime soon.

“The best piece of advice I’ve ever been given, as corny as it is, is that tackling something hard can always be broken down into smaller tasks so it’s not so daunting.”

-Pete Schwarzkopf, Account Executive

Careers at Nahan

If you are interested in learning more about a career at Nahan, visit our careers page or contact us to learn more.

Bio: Camille Lehmann is on the Marketing team and started with Nahan in January of 2020. Camille is responsible for assisting in Nahan’s marketing strategies and goals. She graduated with her Master’s of Science in Marketing with a specialization in Project Management in 2020. In her spare time, Camille enjoys writing, going to coffee shops, and spending time with friends and family.

Nahan Appoints Jim Andersen to Board of Directors

Posted on by Camille Lehmann

SAINT CLOUD, MN – August 17, 2021 – Nahan has announced that Jim Andersen joined its Board of Directors. In this role, Andersen will help Nahan chart its’ course for rapid growth. Andersen brings over 40 years of experience in the direct marketing industry, including leadership positions at Banta Corporation, and his most recent role as Chief Executive Officer at IWCO Direct, where he led the company to unprecedented growth for over 20 years.

“Jim is a legendary leader and visionary. His track record of success is unmatched in this industry, and he has an incredible passion for the business. We’re thrilled and grateful to welcome him to our board of directors,” said Nahan CEO, Mike Ertel.

Andersen’s accolades include being honored with the 2010 Harry V. Quadracci VISION award from the Printing Industries of America, as well as being inducted to the Printing Impressions/RIT Printing Industry Hall of Fame in 2008. He has served on the boards of the Printing Industry of Minnesota, the Envelope Manufacturers Association, Minnesota Business Partnership (MBP), and on the Direct Marketing Association’s finance committee.

For almost 60 years, Nahan has been known for providing the highest level of quality and innovation in the printing industry to some of the world’s largest and most recognizable brands. Earlier this year, it was announced that the company would expand its service offering to include marketing strategy, creative, data, and analytics.

“I’m excited to join Nahan at this crossroads in its’ history. We have a world-class production platform, a holistic, end-to-end marketing services solution, amazingly talented and experienced employees, and an entrepreneurial culture that fosters our ability to be nimble and innovative at a level most companies can’t match,” said Andersen. “And we have big plans for the future. I can’t wait to get started.”

About Nahan

Nahan is a world-class, privately owned, direct marketing services and print solutions company. Nahan produces integrated marketing solutions for their clients, enabling them to successfully acquire, develop, and retain profitable customer relationships. Nahan leverages the power of omnichannel marketing strategy, creative, data, and analytics coupled with exceptional production and postal strategies to closely connect brands with customers. For more information about Nahan and to learn more about joining the Nahan team, please visit http://www.Nahan.com.

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Employee Spotlight: Jim Dombrovske

Posted on by Camille Lehmann

Author: Camille Lehmann, Marketing Coordinator

A big part of what makes Nahan a great place to be is our amazing employees! I’d like to introduce you to Jim Dombrovske, our Shift Leader for 2nd Shift Finishing. We are happy to be sharing more about Jim and his time at Nahan.

Jim Dombrovske

27 Years of Dedication to Nahan

Jim began his career at Nahan in July 1994 as a Helper in the Bindery Department. Soon after, he was promoted to a Cutter Operator, which was the first of many promotions over the years. In his twenty-seven years, Jim has worked in the role of both Folder Operator 1 and 2, Stitcher Operator and has worked on various presses. Since October of 2019, Jim has been in the role of Shift Leader for 2nd Shift in Finishing. He considers his promotion to Shift Leader as his proudest achievement at Nahan. Additionally, Jim has loved the opportunities Nahan has given him to travel, including a memorable trip to Switzerland for training.

“I am most passionate about not only meeting the company’s expectations, but also the needs for the team I work with daily.”

Jim Dombrovske, Shift Leader, 2nd Shift Finishing

Beyond Nahan

When Jim is not busy working hard at Nahan, he enjoys spending quality time with his wife and three sons. In his extra time, Jim likes being outside either playing a few rounds of golf or relaxing with some fishing. His biggest passion is volunteering as a Peer Recovery Coach, spending as much time as he can helping anyone who struggles with substance abuse.

“While I’ve received much great advice in my life, the best so far has been to write down ten things I am grateful for if I am having a bad day. I had asked how this would help and was told a grateful thinking mind will replace a negative thinking mind. The two can’t exist at the same time.”

Jim Dombrovske, Shift Leader, 2nd Shift Finishing

Careers at Nahan

If you are interested in learning more about a career at Nahan, visit our careers page or contact us to learn more.

Bio: Camille Lehmann is on the Marketing team and started with Nahan in January of 2020. Camille is responsible for assisting in Nahan’s marketing strategies and goals. She graduated with her Master’s of Science in Marketing with a specialization in Project Management in 2020. In her spare time, Camille enjoys writing, going to coffee shops, and spending time with friends and family.

Nahan Takes Home Best of Category at 2021 PIM Star Awards

Posted on by Camille Lehmann

SAINT CLOUD, MN – June 22, 2021 – Nahan has received a Best of Category award win at the 2021 Star Awards, hosted by Printing Industry Midwest (PIM). The Star Awards is an annual five-state print competition that recognizes excellence in print quality in the printing, communication, and graphic arts industries.

Nahan was proud to receive the award for Best of Category – Booklets, which is the highest award a printer can receive in this category, for a mailer produced for an international natural fragrances company. Nahan also received four Awards of Recognition in the Booklet, Product/Service Catalog, and Consumer Promotional Campaigns categories, and three Certificates of Merit.

It was also an honor to have our very own, Aaron Weekes, Director of Technology and Service Operations, speak at the event on behalf of the PIM Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion (DE&I) Program. This program is a “coalition of graphic communications companies and professionals. The coalition works to solve the racial inequities in our industry and to promote diverse, equitable, and inclusive workplace” (https://www.pimw.org/pim-diversity/).

(https://www.pimw.org/pim-diversity/).

About PIM Star Awards

The PIM Star Awards competition recognizes the companies, teams, and individuals who take part in the creation and production of print communications in the Midwest. For more information about the Printing Industry Midwest Star Awards, please visit www.pimw.org or call PIM’s office at 612.400.6200.

About Nahan

Nahan is a world-class, privately owned, direct marketing services and print solutions company. Nahan produces integrated marketing solutions for their clients, enabling them to successfully acquire, develop, and retain profitable customer relationships. Nahan leverages the power of omnichannel marketing strategy, creative, data, and analytics coupled with exceptional production and postal strategies to closely connect brands with customers. For more information about Nahan and to learn more about joining the Nahan team, please visit http://www.nahan.com.

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Nahan Announces New CEO as Mike Nahan Retires

Posted on by Camille Lehmann

SAINT CLOUD, MN – June 16, 2021 – After decades of leadership as Nahan’s CEO, Mike Nahan, the son of company founders Jim and Helen Nahan, has announced his retirement effective June 7, 2021. Nahan will serve as an active board member following his retirement as CEO.

Mike Ertel has been named as Nahan’s new CEO, effective June 7, 2021. Mike Ertel is a highly respected industry veteran who brings a wealth of industry experience and an entrepreneurial mindset that will continue to propel Nahan into the future. Mike is excited to join the Nahan team and to continue the legacy, momentum, and explosive growth that Nahan is experiencing.

“Nahan is well on its way to becoming the leading provider of direct marketing services and print in the country, and I am thrilled to join this award-winning organization,” said Mike Ertel, CEO of Nahan. “With double digit growth planned in 2021, major equipment investments underway, and a recent influx of new talent, Nahan is positioned for explosive growth, now more than ever before. And the best part is we are just getting started.”                

For almost 60 years, Nahan has been known for superior print production and distribution. With a client roster of legendary brands, Nahan prints iconic work that represents some of the highest level of quality and innovation in the industry. Nahan’s client base includes many of the most well-known brands across the U.S. and globally.

In January of this year, Nahan announced an expansion of services to include a Marketing Services division. Nahan now leverages the power of omnichannel marketing strategy, creative, data, and analytics—coupled with world-class print production and postal strategies—to closely connect brands with customers. Check out the video introducing Nahan’s marketing services here: https://youtu.be/2094UttFo1E

“After 37 years serving as CEO, I could not be prouder of how our company has evolved, and I am immensely excited for this next chapter in our company’s growth. I can’t wait to see Mike Ertel drive Nahan’s success to even higher levels,” said Mike Nahan.

About Nahan

Nahan is a world-class, privately owned, direct marketing services and print solutions company. Nahan produces integrated marketing solutions for their clients, enabling them to successfully acquire, develop, and retain profitable customer relationships. Nahan leverages the power of omnichannel marketing strategy, creative, data, and analytics coupled with exceptional production and postal strategies to closely connect brands with customers. For more information about Nahan and to learn more about joining the Nahan team, please visit http://www.Nahan.com.

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New at Nahan

Posted on by Camille Lehmann

Author: Nick Hammitt

Being “The New Guy” (T.N.G.) at a company can be a tall task for any person. I personally have been the new guy at several different companies in multiple types of industries. T.N.G is always a new and unique experience, but share that same common feeling of nervousness on that first day. You ask yourself, “How can I overcome being T.N.G.?” It wasn’t long before I quickly realized that I didn’t have to worry about that here at Nahan.

Nick Hammitt, Marketing Intern

Day 0

In the past, I’ve had some not-so-good experiences applying for jobs online, and with Covid happening, I found myself doing it more now than ever. That’s why it’s always a relief to me when the job application process is user-friendly. The Nahan careers website was exactly that. It was easy for me to seamlessly scroll through the Careers page, find the posted job, and complete the steps needed to apply. The website was smooth, easy to navigate, and was filled with useful information. Since I live so far from the company, being able to do all of this remotely was important to me. The teamwork between the marketing and recruiting team was unmatched making it easy for me to traverse through the hiring process remotely.

Day 1

On my first day at the office, as usual, I was nervous about what to expect. Most of the people I had never met before and let’s face it, I was T.N.G. It was a happy surprise for me when I was given such a warm welcome by everyone I met. They seemed just as excited for me to be there as I was, making for a great first experience I won’t soon forget. As much as this team was welcoming, they were also about getting right down to business. Just like the easy application and hiring process, the orientation process I experienced when I arrived here was just the same, smooth, concise, and filled with important training information that would further help me down the road. It will definitely take some time for me to learn the ropes, but the hands-on collaborative training I received just on the first day leads me to believe it won’t be long before I too am an effective member of the team.

Day 7  

In my first week, I learned a lot about not only my individual job, but I had a chance to meet team members in other departments to learn how everyone works together towards the same goal as a whole team. Nahan is a large company, and there are a lot of moving parts that go into making a quality product. One of the most important things I learned so far is that Nahan’s success is due to the complete collaborative effort between all the members of the Nahan team. Communication is key for any successful business to thrive. Things like the monthly eNewsletter, (subscribe at the footer of any page of the website) and weekly collaborative meetings, allow for the teams to be informed and aware of each other’s ideas and important events that are in the works. They also ensure everyone is set up for success.

Today

I was excited to start my job, now a couple of weeks later, I’m excited to start my career. I’ve been set up for success thanks to the problem-solving and detailed oriented teams at Nahan. The training I received was given to me by some of the most experienced and knowledgeable members of the team. Thanks to this team, I was able to quickly find my spot among them in a position that I feel is best suited to grow my creative talents inside an advancing industry. Nahan has given me the tools to be the best asset I can be. There’s only up from here. As Mike Logar, SVP of Business Development best put it, “Nahan is rocket ship launching ahead and we’re just strapping in preparing for the ride.”

Bio: Before Nahan I was T.N.G. at several different places. Right out of high school, I decided I wasn’t ready or wanting to go to college, so I joined the Army. I learned things there I wouldn’t learn anywhere else. It gave me the tools and confidence to do anything I set my mind to. It was shortly after coming home from the military that I decided I wanted to be a welder. I loved the thought of being able to take an idea from my head put it to paper and then create it. It wasn’t long before I realized welding isn’t something I wanted as a career though. I then decided to enroll in business school and last December, I graduated with a Marketing Degree from the University of San Francisco. Now here at Nahan, instead of me creating with my hands I’m creating with my mind. In my free time I like to spend it on the course, playing very mediocre golf. I grew up hunting and fishing so when I get a chance to do that, you’ll either find me on a lake or in the woods. SKOL!

Humor in the Workplace: It’ll Get You Through Pretty Much Anything

Posted on by Camille Lehmann

Author: Ben Schemelin, Account Executive

Earlier this year I was blessed to be sharing some laughs with friends and former colleagues while we attended a retirement party for one of my mentors. We recalled humorous stories from two decades ago – jokes, crazy circumstances, our various quirks – so many fond memories came rushing back.

As we departed with full hearts and our sides aching from laughter, my friend handed over one last piece of business (and life) wisdom from his four decades in the industry: “You know, as stressful as our business can be, laughter will get you through pretty much anything.”

As I walked to my car that evening, I started to reflect on how critical laughter and joy is to a thriving workplace environment.

Humor in the Workplace – The Benefits

It is no secret that strong communication is critical to any successful business. For anyone who has had to sit through a dull presentation, it’s probably safe to say that your mind started to wander and your retention of the information being communicated began to fade with each passing moment. Compare that experience to one where a masterful storyteller wove an engaging narrative mixed with humorous anecdotes. It becomes easy to see how our natural deeper engagement in an entertaining storyline facilitates our ability to pick up other important details along the way. The same principle applies in other communications we engage in: the right mix of humor will draw people in and ideas are more easily absorbed.

There are numerous studies that show that a healthy dose of humor actually increases brain function, boosts creative problem solving, deepens interpersonal connections, builds trust/collaboration, and breaks down barriers between individuals just to name a few of the additional benefits.

Leaders who utilize humor effectively in their roles often foster healthier work cultures where employees are more at ease, have higher morale, and are more productive overall.

Laughter Really is the Best Medicine

The world renowned Mayo Clinic sites the researched physical and physiological stress relief that laughter has on our bodies. Our organs (namely heart, lungs, and brain) all see immediate, tangible benefits from a good amount of regular laughter. Tension and stress decrease as our bodies respond to humorous stimuli in the form of decreased heart rates and lower blood pressure.

The chemical response of our bodies over time to a humor-and-joy lifestyle can lead to improved immunity, natural pain relief, better coping stills, improved outlook on life, and deeper and richer connections with those around us.

In today’s crazy world, doesn’t that sound like a great prescription for a better, more fulfilling life?

Workplace Humor 101

With all of these benefits, there are some practical application items that we should all keep in mind:

  • Know Your Audience – The ability to “read the room” is key for any comedic endeavor. In my early 20’s I cracked a “Dumb & Dumber” type of joke at lunch during my first week of employment, and my two new colleagues looked at me like I had a horn growing out of my head. They didn’t know me, and I didn’t know them well enough – so it landed awkwardly. It may have gotten a chuckle six months down the road when we had an established rapport, but it’s always best to err on the side of caution if you think a wisecrack may not resonate with your audience.
  • Don’t Force It – Like the example above, don’t try to make a joke simply for the sake of being funny. Unless the sign outside your office reads “The Improv” – you are not being paid to be a comedian trying out cutting edge humor on colleagues. The best workplace humor should come organically and feel natural.
  • Laughing With, Not At – Self-deprecating humor can show you are relatable and do not take yourself too seriously, but humor at the expense of others is a completely different story and should be avoided. It’s always best for humor to be pointed at situations rather than people.
  • Keep it Clean – If you would not say something if HR happened to be walking past your office, it’s probably best to leave a quip on the cutting room floor of your brain.

Humor, laughter, and finding joy in the workplace every day can be an important pillar of a thriving business culture – as well as increasing job satisfaction. It’s one of the many aspects of Nahan’s culture that I’ve quickly come to appreciate and cherish.

It’s been said that the average 4 year old laughs 300 times a day, while the average adult laughs less than 20. I’d say it’s time for us to rediscover the simpler joys that can be found in our everyday lives!

What is one thing you can do to can bring an extra smile or laugh to someone in your workplace? Do it today – and make it a daily habit!

Bio: Ben Schemelin is a 28-year industry veteran and an Account Executive with Nahan. He’s passionate about taking a 40,000 foot view of projects, and then zooming in on the finite details to creatively problem solve, enhance workflows, and most importantly serve clients’ wants and needs above their expectations as a team. In his spare time, Ben enjoys motorcycling, grilling/cooking, woodworking, camping, fishing, & biking. He also likes cheering for the Green Bay Packers, much to the chagrin of his diehard Minnesota Viking-fan wife and daughter.

Direct Marketing Strategy: Direct Mail Testing

Posted on by Camille Lehmann

Author: Maggie Stack, Account Director

At least once a week, while doing homework, one of my kids will say “when will I ever use this in real life?” I like to point out to them how often I use my Algebra skills, but I never thought I would use science in my marketing career. As my colleague, Alan Sherman, mentioned in a previous blog, we use direct mail testing to determine the best direct marketing strategy. This is where science comes in. By following the steps of the scientific method with a continuous improvement mindset, we aim to exceed our clients’ marketing goals.

Purpose

When thinking about our clients’ direct marketing strategy, our question is always how can we improve results. The exact Key Performance Indicator (KPI) we are trying to improve varies by client, but it always means a better Return on Marketing Investment (ROMI).

Research

We start by reviewing current marketing efforts. Who is the target audience? What motivates them to respond? What tactics are currently being used? How do those tactics work together?

Hypothesis

Once our research is complete, we make recommendations for the elements or options we believe will improve results. Sometimes this is the choice to reduce the cost of a campaign while maintaining response and sometimes it is a higher cost option that will improve response. This could be a new data source, a new offer positioning, a new direct mail format, or addition of a complimentary digital tactic. In direct marketing, the options are truly endless. Once we decide on what will be tested, we can begin the experiment!

Experiment

The two most commonly used experiments in direct mail testing are a split test and a multivariate test. Split tests, or A/B tests, involve testing the same package except for the specific element to be tested. Multivariate testing involves testing multiple elements at the same time. The right one to use is based on several factors: budget, available quantity, quantity needed for the result to be statistically significant, and the number of items we want to test. Once the experiment is in the hands of the prospects, we wait for results.

Analyze Data

Depending on what we are measuring, results could take months to gather. There must be enough responders to be confident in the results. Analysis comes in the form of charts and graphs. Our goal is to always improve results, but sometimes we learn what does not work. As my high school science teacher would say after a failed experiment, “if you learned something, the experiment wasn’t wasted.” In direct marketing, the win in a losing test is that it leads to better, more refined hypotheses.

Conclusion

While there is a conclusion to every individual experiment, direct mail testing should never end.  We believe marketers should always be striving to improve their data, improve their messaging, and improve the tactics they use. And we love partnering with those that feel that same. Looking to apply a little bit of the scientific method to your direct marketing strategy? We are here to help.

Bio: Maggie Stack is an Account Director with over 20 years of experience in marketing services and direct mail production. When she isn’t discussing data and creative with her clients, you can find her and her husband cheering on their children in hockey, baseball, and dance.

Employee Spotlight: Janelle Kolle, Senior Recruiter

Posted on by Camille Lehmann

Author: Camille Lehmann

At Nahan, we are so grateful for our talented employees. I’d like to introduce you to Janelle Kolle, one of the newest members of our Human Resources team. Janelle joined us in April as our Senior Recruiter. We are thrilled that Janelle chose Nahan to use her recruiting talents, and we cannot wait to share more about her!

Janelle Kolle

Janelle’s Background in the Human Resources Field

Before joining the Nahan team, Janelle was a Human Resources Consultant with her own consulting company. During her six years of consulting, she worked with both international and local organizations. Janelle is very proud of the successes she had in her career as an independent Human Resources Consultant and being an integral part of hiring a variety of talented individuals – including a Rocket Scientist! (or Propulsion Engineering Scientist to be technical). While she is thankful for her time at her own consulting company, she is excited to be starting a new adventure at Nahan. Janelle describes her passion for recruiting as similar to being a matchmaker – being able to meet new people, getting to know them, and then helping them find their career marriage.

“I am glad to join a team of seasoned professionals to help grow the Nahan talent and work to attract local talent. I am happy to offer my experience to an organization that values a new perspective.“

Janelle Kolle, when asked what she’s most excited about in joining the Nahan team
Janelle and her family.

Beyond Nahan

When Janelle is not focused on Nahan’s talent, she first enjoys being a wife and mother. Additionally, she enjoys simple moments when she gets to watch TV uninterrupted, being outside hiking, camping, swimming, and fishing, as well as just laughing alongside friends. Janelle also loves a good opportunity to travel and credits both St. Lucia and her time living in Mexico as her favorite places to date! A few of her favorite adventures she’s experienced include swimming with sharks, cliff jumping, and RV’ing across the United States.

Janelle and her family on one of their many adventures.

“Some of the best advice I’ve been given is from a few books I’ve read over my life. Do your best so when you look back there are no regrets! Grow from your mistakes and even those cannot hold you back. It will all bring you to a place you most certainly will love.”

Janelle Kolle

Careers at Nahan

If you are interested in learning more about a career at Nahan, visit our careers page or contact us to learn more.

Bio: Camille Lehmann is on the Marketing team and started with Nahan in January of 2020. Camille is responsible for assisting in Nahan’s marketing strategies and goals. She graduated with her Master’s of Science in Marketing with a specialization in Project Management in 2020. In her spare time, Camille enjoys writing, going to coffee shops, and spending time with friends and family.

The Importance of Data in Direct Mail Marketing

Posted on by Camille Lehmann

Author: Alan Sherman, VP of Marketing Strategy

Quite often, when we work with clients in direct mail marketing, creative development is the first focus. But, just as in any marketing channel, who we target is just as important, if not more so for driving increased direct mail response and a successful direct mail campaign. For a full-service direct marketing company like Nahan, using data in direct mail marketing is a crucial component of an integrated success chain that includes strategy, data, creative and production execution.

Direct mail provides more data points to target against than any other marketing channel. The typical national data compiler manages over three thousand data points per person.*  Combine a multi-sourced wealth of data with sophisticated predictive analytics, and we can precisely rank prospects based on their propensity to respond (or other desired outcomes).

Let us take a look at typical data used by various direct mail industry clients. In the interest of time and space, what follows is not an exhaustive list.

Financial Services and Insurance – Credit Data

For financial and insurance clients, we see widespread use of credit bureau prescreened data – both in terms of trigger (credit or insurance inquiries by consumers) and broad market (often dictated by credit score and other data points) campaigns.

As a direct marketing service provider, Nahan partners with credit data agents, which can provide unique sources of value. Credit data agents typically receive and maintain real-time data from all 3 main credit bureaus, providing a comprehensive picture of all credit behavior across bureaus. More data across all 3 bureaus means more net qualified names, typically 15-20% more, and improved credit decisioning.

It also means more flexibility in terms of FCRA regulations, allowing for counts to be more easily run before actually pulling a file. Typically, when one pulls a complete prescreened credit file, one is obligated to make everyone on that list a firm offer of credit. Credit data agents have more flexibility in this regard. Custom models can make use of both credit and non-credit data for increased predictive power.

While credit data is usually the go-to data source for most financial and insurance acquisition mailers, it can often be supplemented by Invitation to Apply (ITA) data, which is primarily driven by a lifecycle event – such as college graduation, marriage, having children and buying a home. While ITA prospects are typically not as responsive, it is less expensive, and can be tested and paired with credit data as an effective supplemental data source.

Multiple Industries – Modeled Compiled Data

Compiled data is just that – data compiled from multiple sources and then linked to individuals and households. It’s typically used in travel, healthcare, retail, telecom, and auto direct mail.  There are a number of medium and large-sized data compilers that we partner with to provide the best data for our clients. Compiled data typically includes demographic, psychographic, and attitudinal data. 

Demographic data includes data elements like age, gender, income, occupation, and more.

Psychographic data is focused upon people’s interests and hobbies, often obtained via surveys, donations, and specialty lists.

Attitudinal data reflects attitudes and belief systems, typically from surveys and donations made to non-profits.

Compiled data is best paired with predictive analytics to identify the data elements that will give the greatest response.

Catalogers, Non-Profits, E-tailors and Others – Cooperative (Co-op) Data

Co-op data is customer purchase data collected from thousands of co-op members and maintained in a database. Typically, a member marketer must provide their customer data on a regular basis to join and participate. Co-op members include companies from the catalog, retail, etail, continuity, non-profit, publishers, finance, insurance, and business-to-business industries. Some co-ops focus on non-profit donation behavior specifically.

Co-ops collect over 1500 data elements for a given household and cover 190MM U.S. consumers. The depth and granularity of the data can vary by co-op. Given that customer behavior is often the most predictive of future behavior, this data is very powerful in its ability to predict the future response and purchasing.

Using marketer-provided customer purchase data, the co-ops use predictive models to find prospects elsewhere in the database with similar product and purchase behavior. Co-op data has long been a go-to data source for catalogers, replacing many of the more expensive specialty, “vertical” lists that exist, such as magazine subscriber files.

Business-to-Business (B2B) Data

B2B direct mail data used to come from two main data sources – Data Axle (formerly InfoGroup) and Dun & Bradstreet. They are still major players providing excellent data. Both, along with a continual flow of new players, now offer much more than the traditional data points like annual sales, number of employees, SIC code, and NAIC Code. Data points such as B2B buying behavior, public filings and linked consumer information all provide additional targeting insights. Because people change jobs much more frequently than they change addresses, B2B data is more challenging and labor intensive to maintain and keep up to date, resulting in a higher cost.

The Role of Analytics

The performance of all data mentioned here can and should be enhanced by predictive analytics. We simply can’t leverage any of these types of data to their full potential without the use of modeling to prioritize prospects. While a predictive model adds to the cost, it usually pays for itself in the first direct mail campaign with the increased direct response it produces. Depending on the circumstances, the model can be re-used until market conditions change. Machine learning and artificial intelligence have sped up the modeling process, and in certain cases, such as co-op data or credit models, new models may be built with every direct marketing campaign.

Our Data Role

Nahan has deep and long-time relationships with many types of direct mail data providers and list brokers. We can determine which source is the right fit for our clients’ objectives. Typically at a lower cost than our clients can obtain on their own. Our expertise ensures the best possible data at the best possible price. For any questions about data, please feel free to reach out to me at alan.sherman@nahan.com.

*Source: WebFX

Bio: Alan Sherman is our Vice President of Marketing Strategy. Alan enhances Nahan’s current value proposition with strategy solutions that support new/existing client relationships. For clients, he leverages market, customer, and competitive intelligence to build achievable strategies for omnichannel marketing success. His marketing plan strategies include targeted data, predictive analytics, testing and creative that drive ongoing client performance improvement. In his spare time, Alan enjoys spending time with his family, traveling, going to concerts, watching sports (he’s a fan of the NY Giants, Boston Red Sox and Celtics) and walking the dog, even though it was just out.

USPS Informed Delivery: A Great Way to Drive Increased Direct Mail ROI

Posted on by Camille Lehmann

Author: Nahan Marketing Team

If you are looking for a way to drive incremental responses and increased ROI from your direct mail campaigns, USPS Informed Delivery is a great way to do just that.

What is USPS Informed Delivery?

Informed Delivery from the United States Postal Service (USPS) gives consumers a sneak peak of their letter-sized mail (outer envelope or self-mailer image) before it arrives in their mailbox through a daily email that the consumer signs up for.

It consists of two main elements:

1) A large grayscale image of the piece or a 4-color representative image of the mailer.

2) A smaller, accompanying image that offers interactive marketing potential. Clicking on this image or on the “Learn More” call to action opens the URL associated with the campaign. It can also be used to open a marketer’s phone app for the recipient to call.

How Many People Are Signed Up for Informed Delivery?

As of 4/23/2021, the USPS reports that Informed Delivery has nearly 38 million users and a national saturation of over 22%.

Based on a 2020 Spring Mail Moment Study, the USPS reports that 50% of the audience surveyed had seen an interactive ad in the past 6 months. Of those, 74% have clicked on an interactive ad, and an astounding 63% had purchased from the website they accessed from the Informed Delivery campaign!

This presents a huge opportunity for marketers to drive incremental sales before the mail piece even arrives to the consumer’s home!

What Data Can I See as a Marketer with USPS Informed Delivery?

The following data is provided for Informed Delivery Campaigns.

  1. Density and Email Statistics (Number of users and % who elect to receive Informed Delivery emails)
  2. Email Open Rates (Number and % of emails opened)
  3. Click Through Rates (Number and % of people that clicked through on the digital content)

Nahan Can Help You Get Started

Our team at Nahan is here to help! We can provide input and guidance on setup, creative, measurement, and more with USPS Informed Delivery campaigns. Plus, as an extra bonus, the USPS is offering an Informed Delivery promotion later this year, so this is a great way to save on postage! Contact us to learn more!

 

Employee Spotlight: Doug Karls

Posted on by Camille Lehmann

Author: Camille Lehmann, Marketing

One of the aspects we pride ourselves on most at Nahan, is our top-notch team. We are so thankful to have employees that support our effort in building and maintaining an amazing team. Doug Karls, one of our production trainers, plays a significant role in this effort. I had the privilege to get to know Doug better, learn about his time at Nahan, and how he enjoys his time outside of work.

Doug Karls, Production Trainer

29 Years of Dedication to Nahan

Doug Karls began working at Nahan as a Helper in 1992. Over the years, he gained experience in several positions throughout the company, including a few years each as a Folder Operator, Cutter Operator, and Stitcher Operator. Doug then spent 14 years as a Shift Leader until becoming a Production Trainer in 2019. Since the opening of Nahan University in July of 2019, Doug has been an integral part of leading the program’s training initiatives. His longevity and dedication to Nahan is something he is proud of and he greatly enjoys how that has allowed him to learn about different departments at Nahan. Being a part of a company with an exciting vision for the future that continually strives for growth in all areas, is something that makes Doug excited about being on the Nahan team.

“My favorite part about my role at Nahan is helping new employees get the right training they need so they can achieve long term success as a Nahan employee.”

Doug Karls, Production Trainer

Life Beyond Nahan

Doug credits Michael Jordan, John C. Maxwell, and Simon Sinek as people who inspire him. Their work ethic, commitment, and leadership are qualities Doug admires and hopes to reflect in his role in training others at Nahan as well. In his free time, Doug enjoys watching the Vikings, Twins, and Wild teams play. Additionally, he likes to look for new smart home gadgets that he is sure he doesn’t need, spend time outside, and binge watch tv shows. In the future, Doug also hopes to travel to other areas of the world and eventually retire to Florida.

“The best piece of advice I’ve ever been given is to always ask yourself, ‘what did you learn today?’ You will find that you always learn something new no matter what.”

-Doug Karls, Production Trainer

Careers at Nahan

If you are interested in learning more about a career at Nahan, visit our careers page or contact us to learn more.

Bio: Camille Lehmann is on the Marketing team and started with Nahan in January of 2020. Camille is responsible for assisting in Nahan’s marketing strategies and goals. She graduated with her Master’s of Science in Marketing with a specialization in Project Management in 2020. In her spare time, Camille enjoys writing, going to coffee shops, and spending time with friends and family.

NEMOA Spring Summit Takeaways: 4 Trends to Watch in 2021

Posted on by Camille Lehmann

Author: Krista Black, Group Account Director

I had the pleasure of participating in the NEMOA (National Etailing and Mailing Organization of America) Spring Summit last week. As you can imagine, attending a trade show looks a little different these days, with visiting booths, attending seminars and networking all done virtually. I was pleasantly surprised at how smoothly the event was run and how impactful the content was even though it was presented under different conditions. I found myself wondering if trade shows might maintain some of this new approach in the future even when a higher level of normalcy returns – a hybrid model where attendees could choose to participate in-person or online – or a combination of the two.

This thread of the “new normal” went beyond how the conference was run. It was woven into much of the content – the trends and predictions for our industry for the year ahead – predictions of a permanent shift in consumers’ behaviors as well as strategies to reach them.

Here are a few of my favorite COVID-inspired trends to watch from the 2021 NEMOA Spring Summit:

1. Resurgence of Mail

While mail volumes declined during the beginning of the pandemic, over 2/3 of Americans continue to collect their mail EVERY. DAY. Additionally, 77% of Americans indicate that they have a high interest in receiving mail and 50% of Millennials surveyed see mail as being more important than it was three years ago1. Meanwhile, packages from online shopping orders were delivered to doorsteps in record numbers, training us to check the doorstep and the mailbox more than ever before to retrieve them. As more and more brands re-enter the mail channel, they can benefit from these newly formed routines.

2. Test and Learn Mindset

In these times of rapidly changing consumer behavior, marketers must be nimble in terms of channel strategy, target, offers, and creative. A test and learn mindset is more critical than ever and will continue to remain imperative to helping marketers determine what’s working, what’s not, and what changes need to be made.

3. Rise of Social Commerce2

Consumers are buying directly from digital ads on social platforms at incredible rates, helping fuel a 33% year-over-year increase in ecommerce sales2. Thanks to Elizabeth Drori, Chief Marketing Officer at Sperry, for introducing me to the phrase, “thumb-stopping content” when describing how to capture attention and engage your audience when designing social content. Thumb-stopping content has lured me in many times; I’ve purchased everything from snacks to socks while scrolling through Instagram. But of course, social ads are only one piece of the puzzle – by aligning social ad strategy together with mail, we can fuel increased interaction and purchase behavior beyond what either channel can do alone. In the future, these channels will continue to become more interwoven.

4. Getting Real with Your Audience

The pandemic forced many brands to share their story differently during Covid shutdowns when travel, photo shoots, and large-scale productions were brought to a grinding halt. The silver lining? Many brands found new ways to connect with their audience, often leveraging user generated content to deliver an authentic brand message. With the shiny veneer of high production brand assets removed from the equation, smart brands were able to connect with audiences in new and more “real” way and “humanize” their brands.

Our team invites the opportunity to connect with you to strategize on these trends and to talk through your direct marketing strategies now and into the future. Reach out to us to schedule a time to chat.

Sources:

1Engaging with Customers in the Time of COVID, United States Postal Service

2How you succeed in an environment of rapid consumer behavior change, Oracle

Bio: Krista is our Group Account Director and brings over 15 years of marketing and agency experience. She and her husband have two children. Krista enjoys volunteering as a manager for her daughters’ dance teams, spending time with family, and watching reality TV.

5 Advantages of Working with Nahan as a Direct Marketing Agency

Posted on by Camille Lehmann

Author: Melissa Fransen

We have many exciting things happening at Nahan!

In January, we announced an expansion of our services to include a full omnichannel suite of direct marketing services, including strategy, creative, data, analytics, and more! These new services are being offered as needed a la cart style or in a fully integrated approach. Where you need help, our team can plug in and bring our expertise to take your direct marketing initiatives to new performance levels.

For many of our customers, our business relationship will remain unchanged and we are proud to continue our relationship as a trusted print partner. For others, these new resources bring forth a whole new world of opportunity.

Our team has been thrilled with the buzz we’ve been getting in the marketplace regarding our new services and the excitement we’re hearing from our customers. We want to say thank you for all of the questions we have received thus far. Keep the inquiries coming!

Here are 5 advantages of working with Nahan as a Direct Marketing Agency.

1. We Are Direct Marketing Strategy Experts

For over 50 years, Nahan has been known as a world-class printer. We know direct marketing production inside and out. We know best practices, what works, postal efficiencies, and much more. With our strategy offering, we can work with your team to optimize your entire direct marketing strategy and/or plug in where needed. Here are some examples of topics you could expect us to cover and ultimately address:

  • Discussion of your current direct marketing go-to-market strategy
  • Understanding your top-line goals and provide recommendations for helping you achieve and exceed them
  • What do successful KPIs look like for you?
  • Introduction of omnichannel and integrated tools to provide incremental response and lowered cost per acquisition
  • What is your data strategy?
  • How we leverage a test and learn approach with data and creative to continually improve results

2. We Bring Design/Creative Expertise

When it comes to the design of your next direct marketing program, our design experts are at your service. Whether it’s building an entire campaign from scratch to helping with new, efficient format ideas, we bring an unsurpassed level of creative expertise to your direct marketing projects. We can help with design, copywriting, personalization, versioning, best practices, and more! Here are some examples of things we’d likely cover in a design/creative review:

  • Understanding your audience
  • Understanding what’s worked and hasn’t in the past
  • What is the action you want the recipient to take?
  • Reviewing the developed creative brief
  • Offer and supporting benefits development
  • Optimal design and content placement
  • Copy that engages, makes an emotional connection, and prompts action
  • Accommodating differences in how readers consume content
  • Communicating your unique selling proposition

3. We Can Help with Your Data, Targeting, and Analytics

Whether you are a seasoned direct marketer or are just getting started, our team can help with your data and targeting strategies. From list research in identifying your best target audience to predictive modeling tools, we love to help our customers with their data/targeting strategies. Topics surrounding data and targeting would include items such as:

  • Understanding your target market
  • Reviewing current and introducing potential new sources of data
  • Leveraging sophisticated analytics to boost response, cut costs, and lower cost of acquisition
  • Understanding your current CRM strategy and how we can enhance it
  • Leveraging your customer and prospect data to further enhance personalization

4. We Bring Analysis Experience

Once the mailing gets to the recipient, our team is equipped to step in to help you analyze results of your direct marketing campaigns. Examples of items we’d analyze include:

  • KPIs and what they tell us
  • What can be learn from what worked and what didn’t
  • Go-forward testing recommendations

5. We Take What’s Working (or Not!) and Build Upon It

The best part of working together is that you will realize . . .

Request a Quote

Are you interested in learning more about our direct marketing service offerings? Reach out and contact us today!

Bio: Melissa Fransen is our Marketing Manager. She started with Nahan in May of 2017. Melissa is responsible for Nahan’s marketing initiatives, which includes everything from conference planning to social media initiatives. In her spare time, Melissa enjoys spending time with her husband and enjoying time in the outdoors with family and friends.

Looking for a Unique Take on Direct Mail? Try the Peek Fold Format!

Posted on by Camille Lehmann

Author: Laura Karels, Lead Designer

Check out our spin on a traditional direct mail format with the peek fold format. You’ll grab your recipient’s attention with a personalized headline as the first thing they see when they pull this peek folded letter out of the envelope. The longer form allows for a traditional letter using direct mail best practices along with extra real estate for a branded or promotional panel.

  • Unique folded letter peeks a large headline at the top
  • 14” long form for additional real estate
  • Tip on card for a tactile feel
  • 6” x 9” envelope stands out in the mailbox
  • Options: Fold style can be incorporated on other size formats

Watch the short video below to see the peek fold format in action!

For more inspiration, check out our other format ideas, including a double gate mailer, iron cross mailer, and 5 panel rollfold mailer.

Bio: Laura Karels is our Lead Designer. She is responsible for all things direct marketing design—from format sketches to final art—and truly enjoys the creative process of helping clients develop winning direct marketing campaigns. In her spare time, Laura enjoys great coffee and cross-country road trips with her family. She’s also getting really good at finding humor in her husband bringing home yet another “project” vehicle.

Employee Spotlight: Elena Cunningham

Posted on by Camille Lehmann

Author: Camille Lehmann, Marketing

At Nahan, we pride ourselves on the quality and talent of our team members. Each department is comprised of amazing employees whose dedication is what makes Nahan great. Elena Cunningham, our Human Resources Manager/Business Partner, is one of our newer employees who make Nahan special. I had the privilege to get to know Elena better, learn about her time at Nahan and how she enjoys her time outside of work.

Elena Cunningham

Elena’s Career in Human Resources

Elena joined the Nahan team at the beginning of February and has proved to be a vital part of the Human Resources team in a short time. In coming aboard the Nahan team, she brought five years of experience as an HR Business Partner at a technology solutions company. One of Elena’s impressive career accomplishments includes creating and running the Human Resources department at her previous employer. The ability to build a needed and significant piece of that company and turn it into an effective and trusted department is an example of the talent Elena possesses. Bringing that skill and experience to Nahan has made her a great addition to the team. When asked what she enjoys most about her role at Nahan, Elena explained that she enjoys being able to work with people every day and the ability to be a helpful resource to them.

“My favorite part about Nahan so far is getting to know the staff and the excitement of continually meeting more of the team!”

Elena Cunningham

Life Beyond Nahan

In her daily life, Elena’s parents are two people who inspire her. She describes them as strong-willed people who never give up and always stay humble, despite the challenges in life. When Elena is not working hard on the Human Resources team, she enjoys spending time with friends and family, traveling, running, painting, and going to brunch. She hopes to travel to Asia, South America, and Europe someday soon, as well as complete a half marathon.

Careers at Nahan

If you are interested in learning more about a career at Nahan, visit our careers page or contact us to learn more.

Bio: Camille Lehmann is on the Marketing team and started with Nahan in January of 2020. Camille is responsible for assisting in Nahan’s marketing strategies and goals. She graduated with her Master’s of Science in Marketing with a specialization in Project Management in 2020. In her spare time, Camille enjoys writing, going to coffee shops, and spending time with friends and family.

USPS Promotions – A Great Way to Engage Customers and Save on Postage

Posted on by Camille Lehmann

Author: Jen Bender, Senior Account Executive

Client engagement with your brand, products, and services begins at the mailbox. The look and feel of the piece you are mailing needs to draw in the consumer and make them want to open the package. 

USPS Promotions provide a great opportunity to engage customers, while saving on postage. We recently shared the 2021 USPS Postal Promotions calendar, which highlights the upcoming postal promotions for this year. In this blog, we are featuring two promotions that have been of particular interest to many of our customers.

Tactile, Sensory and Interactive Promotion

The Tactile, Sensory and Interactive Promotion (TSI) encourages sensory engagement with the physical mail piece using technical advances within the direct marketing industry.  Categories that qualify within this promotion include – specialty inks, specialty papers and interactive mail piece design.

The addition of a visual or textural element(s) can create intrigue for the recipient.  The addition of these treatments – like soft touch or sandpaper on the envelope or the addition of a lenticular card on the letter – can boost client interaction with the mail piece.

Treatments can be applied to the envelope and/or the mail piece but must be both visible and distinguishable and must meet automation compatibility requirements. The TSI promotion runs February 1, 2021 through July 31, 2021 and approved pieces receive a 2% postage discount.

Emerging and Advanced Technology Promotion

The Emerging and Advanced Technology Promotion integrates direct mail with advances in technology.  This promotion incorporates Enhanced Augmented Reality, Near Field Communication (NFC) Technology, Virtual Reality, and other digital methods to enhance your direct mail piece.

Creating an omnichannel marketing experience for your audience can accentuate your marketing strategy.  For example, add your logo, image or icon to the piece to create an interactive experience for the client by featuring a new product or service. 

The Emerging and Advanced Technology promotion runs March 1, 2021 – August 31, 2021.  Approved mail pieces quality for a 2% postage discount.

Getting Started with USPS Promotions

Our team is happy help you learn more about USPS Promotions and how to get started. Reach out to your Sales Representative, Account Executive or Account Manager for additional details as there are rules and restrictions that apply.

Bio: Jen Bender is a Senior Account Executive at Nahan. Jen has over 20 years of direct marketing experience and she enjoys working with clients to bring their direct marketing initiatives to the next level. Jen and her husband have two children and as family, they enjoy cheering on the team her husband coaches. Jen also enjoys reading, writing, and music.

How To Build an Effective Direct Marketing Strategy

Posted on by Camille Lehmann

Author: Alan Sherman, VP of Marketing Strategy

How many times have we in business or marketing heard the word “strategy?” or “strategic?” or “strategic direction?”  It’s one of those common business buzzwords that we hear all the time, but when it comes to direct marketing, what does “strategy” really mean? Merriam-Webster offers up several definitions of “strategy,” but the one I think is most relevant to direct marketing is “The art of devising or employing plans towards a goal.” After all, successful direct marketing strategy requires effective planning – putting the components of a winning program together.

From Our Perspective, What is Strategy?  

Nahan provides Strategic Planning, which is most simply about enabling clients to achieve their direct marketing goals.  This means improving direct mail gross response, while lowering cost without corresponding drops in response. This can be a challenge, as adding package components, increasing package size or paper quality will often lift response, but add cost. Ultimately, improving upon both response and cost leads to an improved cost per acquisition and superior return on marketing investment. So how do we do this?

A Step by Step, Rigorous Approach Gets Results

We recommend initially approaching this from a macro level. Who will we target and why? If we are focusing on direct mail, what kind of package format is needed? What does our creative and messaging need to look like? What are our target metrics?

The answers to these questions can be found in a step-by-step approach to direct marketing performance improvement. We suggest beginning with a marketing assessment to best understand everything that has been done in the past, from creative, targeting, cadence and offers to the competitive landscape.

Based on our knowledge of data and analytics and an analysis of the marketer’s data, we will likely propose specific types of data and the right predictive analytic tools for data testing. On the creative side, although budget is usually a factor, when we can test more than one creative, we create more opportunities for success.

Finally, based on what we see in the data and from our knowledge of direct mail creative best practices, we design the creative, with the target audience in mind. The data analysis tells us quite a bit about our prospects. We develop messaging, the package design, articulate the offer, supporting benefits and Call to Action.

How Strategy is Rolled Out Against Data, Analytics, and Creative

The available universe is determined. Because we take a “test and learn” approach, a test plan that minimizes risk while testing creative, data, and analytics is developed. When results come back, we measure them and make recommendations for further improvements in targeting and creative. Feeling more comfortable in what works, we can invest more dollars in reaching more people, often expanding to an omnichannel campaign, particularly where we can simultaneously target the same direct mail recipients with online campaigns, can substantially lift results further.

A subsequent results analysis leads to additional improvement – ideally, a never-ending improvement process. Which is necessary, given that costs like paper and postage are always rising!

The Results

We can almost always improve response through our knowledge of what creative and data works, creative and data testing, and predictive analytics. We can also test less expensive materials to bring down package costs. When we work these “levers” in the right way, cost per acquisition drops.

Questions To Ask Yourself and Your Team

What are your acquisition goals for the year? Where do you think your program is working and where might improvement be needed? Are you testing creative and data on a regular basis? Do you rotate your creative to keep it fresh and performance up? If you would like to achieve better results or simply discuss your challenges and receive suggestions, give us a call.

Bio: Alan Sherman is our Vice President of Marketing Strategy. Alan enhances Nahan’s current value proposition with strategy solutions that support new/existing client relationships. For clients, he leverages market, customer, and competitive intelligence to build achievable strategies for omnichannel marketing success. His marketing plan strategies include targeted data, predictive analytics, testing and creative that drive ongoing client performance improvement. In his spare time, Alan enjoys spending time with his family, traveling, going to concerts, watching sports (he’s a fan of the NY Giants, Boston Red Sox and Celtics) and walking the dog, even though it was just out.

Direct Mail Design Best Practices: Personalization Matters

Posted on by Camille Lehmann

Author: Laura Karels, Lead Designer

Designers of all mediums have best practices they follow when creating their best product and direct mail designers are no different. One of the most important best practices in direct mail design is using personalization and using it well.

Direct mail personalization has come a long way from just using the recipient’s name and address. Digital print technology and highly targeted data has allowed marketers to personalize direct mail design in creative ways. Personalization is proven to drive better response rates and who doesn’t want that?!  

Ways to get personal…

Imagery

Images can be personalized based on segmentation data, business vertical type, location, and more. Visuals the recipient can relate to can be very powerful.

Offers

Targeting offers to a recipient’s consumer history or specific needs are more likely to get response from your direct mail. Response rates can increase up to 50% or more when targeting consumers on a 1:1 level. (thedma.org)

Geo-Targeting

One of the easiest ways to personalize and get impact is the use of maps and locations within the direct mail design and copy. This is also information that is part of the basic data—it can simply be pulled from the address block.  

Copy

The words you use can be personalized in so many ways. Using the recipient’s name, address, consumer history, business type, etc. in thoughtful ways within the copy can entice the reader and increase response. According to the ANA (formerly DMA) simply adding a person’s name can increase response by 135%!

Forms

If your direct mail format includes a form or response device, prefill out the form with the recipient’s data to make responding easier.

These are just 5 ways to use personalization within direct mail design but digital print technology has opened the door to so much more.

Check out this example of a mailer that was designed to contain 57 variable pieces of data and photos, resulting in increased engagement and a higher ROI per piece vs. previous direct mailers! Contact Us to see how we can help you effectively use personalization in your next mailing.

This is part of our Design Best Practices Blog Series. Look for more best practices in future blog posts.

BIO: Laura Karels is our Lead Designer. She is responsible for all things direct marketing design—from format sketches to final art—and truly enjoys the creative process of helping clients develop winning direct marketing campaigns. In her spare time, Laura enjoys great coffee and cross-country road trips with her family. She’s also getting really good at finding humor in her husband bringing home yet another “project” vehicle.

Employee Spotlight: Sara Stephanie

Posted on by Camille Lehmann

Author: Camille Lehmann, Marketing

Each department at Nahan is full of team members that make our vision of exceeding customer expectations come to life. One of our amazing employees is Sara Stephanie, a dedicated member of our Direct Mail team who runs the CMC 250 inline. I had the privilege to get to know Sara better, learn about her time at Nahan, and how she enjoys her time outside of work.

Sara Stephanie

15 Years of Dedication to Nahan

Sara started her career working in the retail and consumer industry, eventually leading her to the Direct Mail industry. After a few years at a mailing service company, Sara became a part of the Nahan team in the Direct Mail department and has been an integral part of her team for the last 15 years. When reflecting on her experience, Sara explains that she is proud of her constant growth in her role and the company. The knowledge she has gained over the years has been beneficial to her career and has added to the success of the Direct Mail team. Additionally, Sara credits the people she works with every day on her team as one of her favorite parts of her role.

“The best piece of advice I’ve ever been given is that you can achieve whatever you put your mind to.”

Sara Stephanie, when asked the best piece of advice she’d been given.

Life Beyond Nahan

In her daily life, Sara’s family inspires her to be the best person she can be and to try her best in everything she does. When Sara is not working hard on the Direct Mail team, she enjoys spending time with family and friends, taking her dog for walks, camping, fishing, and going to the beach. One of her biggest goals in life that she is always working towards is continuing to improve and become a better person. This is so apparent in her commitment to her Nahan team, and we are very thankful for her dedication.

Careers at Nahan

If you are interested in learning more about a career at Nahan, visit our careers page or contact us to learn more.

Bio: Camille Lehmann is on the Marketing team and started with Nahan in January of 2020. Camille is responsible for assisting in Nahan’s marketing strategies and goals. She graduated with her Master’s of Science in Marketing with a specialization in Project Management in 2020. In her spare time, Camille enjoys writing, going to coffee shops, and spending time with friends and family.

Employee Spotlight: Gary Wenner

Posted on by Camille Lehmann

Author: Camille Lehmann, Marketing

We are so thankful for our team of amazing and dedicated team members. Our mission is only possible with the talent of our employees, including Gary Wenner, our Master Electrician. I had the privilege to get to know Gary better, learn about his time at Nahan, and how he enjoys his time outside of work.

Gary and his family

Over Two Decades On the Nahan Team

Gary started his career by enrolling in the Electrical Construction program at St. Cloud Technical Community College. While working for Cold Spring Granite, he received his Journeyman’s License, which requires four years of experience. While working for Stearns County Facilities Maintenance, Gary worked to earn his Master’s License, which requires at least five years of experience. Shortly after, Gary saw an advertisement for the position of Master Electrician at Nahan, He applied, joined our team and he is a proud Nahan employee of 23 years. Over these two decades, Gary says that installing new equipment is one of the most rewarding challenges. The ability to have the time, tools, and resources to complete a job that meets the electrical code, is professional-looking, and lasts for years is one of the reasons he enjoys working at Nahan. Most of all, he enjoys the people he works with every day. As the Master Electrician, he gets to work with people throughout the company, and that involvement is something he greatly appreciates and enjoys about his role.

“The best piece of advice I’ve been given is to start each new day with an attitude of gratitude.”

Gary Wenner, Master Electrician

Life Beyond Nahan

In his daily life, Gary’s dad serves as a person that inspires him. His father’s legacy of being a hardworking, patient, and a kind person, as well as a good husband and father, encourages him every day. When Gary is not working hard on the Nahan team, he enjoys spending time with his wife, son, and daughter and doing activities such as boating, camping, snowmobiling, motorcycling, and traveling. Of the places he’s traveled, his favorite has been cruising the Caribbean and he looks forward to traveling more to farther destinations for longer periods in the future.

Careers at Nahan

If you are interested in learning more about a career at Nahan, visit our careers page or contact us to learn more.

Bio: Camille Lehmann is on the Marketing team and started with Nahan in January of 2020. Camille is responsible for assisting in Nahan’s marketing strategies and goals. She graduated with her Master’s of Science in Marketing with a specialization in Project Management in 2020. In her spare time, Camille enjoys writing, going to coffee shops, and spending time with friends and family.

Expanding Our Portfolio of Services – Introducing Marketing Services

Posted on by Camille Lehmann

Author: Alan Sherman

For almost 60 years, Nahan has been known for an emphasis on high quality production, distribution, and design. Our clients are a blue-chip group of direct mail and catalog marketers.

In a marketing climate that is increasingly competitive and further challenged by a global pandemic, we are building upon our success and offering clients a true end-to-end omnichannel marketing solution, driven by a team of experts across strategy, data, and creative.

Crafting a Solution Around What Works

In doing so, we are positioning our marketing services around what drives client success. In direct mail, response is driven by 3 top-line components: the data, creative, and the offer. Supporting and “orchestrating” all of this is the strategy, with an overall plan of action that often optimizes all three of these elements for best results.

Targeting Crucial for Success

Research indicates that the right data or list, is the single most important factor in prospect or customer response. An investment in direct mail is wasted against the wrong audience. Proper data selection, whether it is a targeted list selection or through the application of predictive analytics, is essential for success.  We can drive enhanced performance via additional, proven sources often priced at levels that clients cannot obtain on their own.

Creative Designed Specifically to Drive Response

Our skilled and experienced team is highly focused on applying a series of creative best practices that get respondents to take action. High performance creative is much more than small, iterative changes to an existing creative control. It means re-tooled responsive design, copy and often the introduction of new direct mail formats. This is where the big gains in response are realized.  Depending on the client, it may mean development of a rotation of creative controls, especially when targeting an audience more than once.

Hooking Them With a Well-Written and Properly Located Offer

The creative offer is what hooks potential customers. Offers themselves may sometimes be limited by what a client is able to provide, but how they are presented, messaged and supported by benefits is key to response success. A well-constructed offer with supporting benefits is compelling, hooks the reader, establishes credibility, reverses perceived risk, and includes a strong, urgent call to action.

Tying It All Together with Strategy

Well-developed strategy effectively brings these key components together. It may include analyzing past performance, scoping and ranking the right universe, putting an A/B or multivariate test plan together, providing guidance on the campaign, measuring the results and then applying the learning for continued, ongoing performance improvement. This may mean expanding the marketing plan, utilizing various approaches to reach the same people with multiple contacts across additional, integrated marketing channels. We have long known that omnichannel programs perform best.

An End-to-End Solution Makes for Cost Efficiencies and Higher ROI

Pairing some or all of your direct marketing efforts with high-quality production and smart postal strategies produces cost and time efficiencies, which leads to greater Return on Investment. We are already hard at work helping clients achieve better results for 2021 and are eager to help you be successful as well! Please reach out to me at alan.sherman@nahan.com if you would like to learn more about our marketing services.

Bio: Alan Sherman is our Vice President of Marketing Strategy. Alan enhances Nahan’s current value proposition with strategy solutions that support new/existing client relationships. For clients, he leverages market, customer, and competitive intelligence to build achievable strategies for omnichannel marketing success. His marketing plan strategies include targeted data, predictive analytics, testing and creative that drive ongoing client performance improvement. In his spare time, Alan enjoys spending time with his family, traveling, going to concerts, watching sports (he’s a fan of the NY Giants, Boston Red Sox and Celtics) and walking the dog, even though it was just out.

Success Story: Creating an Award-Winning Catalog for the U.S. Market

Posted on by Camille Lehmann

Author: Melissa Fransen

Creating an award-winning catalog is one thing. Having the first catalog you produce for the U.S. market as an international brand win a Gold Ink Award, one of the industry’s most prestigious awards… that is in a class of its own!

At Nahan, we feel honored and privileged to have been a part of this success with our customer TriSyle Group and their Madeleine catalog. I had the privilege to chat with Niels Degen and Rob McMahon of TriSyle Group to learn more about their catalog creation and their success story with launching the Madeleine brand in the U.S.

Madeleine’s Award-Winning Catalog

Background

The Madeleine brand is a very strong fashion brand internationally. As a part of their strategic growth initiatives, TriStyle Group decided to launch this brand into the U.S. with a catalog pilot test program.   

The pilot program consisted of two distributions of 100,000 catalogs each. Everything was planned very carefully for the entire pilot program and then something happened in the world that shook all of us – the pandemic started the same week as their first catalog dropped! Scary? Yes! But, I’m happy to report that all went well. In fact, the catalog performed 10% better than planned; moreover, was 6% more profitable!

“At TriStyle, we are very happy with our first steps into the US market and are looking forward to our future journey.”

Niels Degen, TriStyle

And even better news… the second campaign came in with even better results than the first one!

Creating an Award-Winning Catalog in the U.S.

When creating a catalog for the U.S. market, there are many things to consider from SKU assortments that appeal to the U.S. fashion market to U.S. paper selection to the size of the catalog itself to ensure it is spec’d to co-mail efficient sizes.

Rob walked me through the process of creating the catalog pilot program and how Kelly Marthaler, our Nahan Sales Representative, flew to London to review the details and to strategize on a successful catalog brand launch in the U.S. Every aspect of the project was planned carefully and strategically. One of the ideas that came from the meeting was a “mini catalog” within the catalog itself that featured a range of their hottest selling products featured at special pricing. The mini catalog featured a thicker paper stock than the rest of the catalog to help it stand out. The catalog also featured a few variable special offers, specific to each customer from “free shipping & returns” to “$25 off and a free gift scarf.”

All of these details and more contributed to this successful Gold Ink Award win. Winning pieces for Gold Ink Awards are chosen based on print quality, technical difficulty, and overall visual effect.

Follow Up to the Test Pilot

Due to the success of the pilot program, TriStyle Group has expanded their print marketing efforts to include follow-up catalog strategies and self-mailers.  

“I’d like to personally congratulate TriStyle Group’s team on putting together an award-winning catalog! Well done! And thanks for choosing Nahan as your partner for this project. We are very happy for you and your success!”

Melissa Fransen, Marketing Manager

Interested in Learning More About Launching a U.S. Catalog Program for your International Brand?

If you are in interested in learning more about our marketing services, let us know! Feel free to contact us today! Plus, check out the Madeleine website at the following link: https://www.madeleine.com/

Bio: Melissa Fransen is our Marketing Manager. She started with Nahan in May of 2017. Melissa is responsible for Nahan’s marketing initiatives, which includes everything from conference planning to social media initiatives. In her spare time, Melissa enjoys spending time with her husband and enjoying time in the outdoors with family and friends.

Top Five Nahan Blogs of 2020

Posted on by Camille Lehmann

Author: Camille Lehmann, Marketing

We so enjoyed writing our collection of Nahan blogs published in 2020! Keeping our customers up to date on industry trends and company culture is one way of our favorite ways to differentiate ourselves and be customer-focused. Thank you to everyone for reading our blogs in 2020, we look forward to sharing more content this year!

Check out our top five performing blogs below!

  1. Employee Spotlight: Dawn Volante Brown
  2. Nahan Named As a Printing Industry Best Workplace in the Americas
  3. Mixing PMS Colors
  4. Is Nahan a Printing or Technology Company?
  5. Employee Spotlight: Pat Nahan

We are excited to publish more great and informative articles in 2021! Be sure to check out our website this year for all the latest Nahan blogs. To be the first to know about new blogs, make sure to follow us on our LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram pages. If you have content that you’d like to see from our team in the future, feel free to contact us anytime and let us know.

Bio: Camille Lehmann is on the Marketing team and started with Nahan in January of 2020. Camille is responsible for assisting in Nahan’s marketing strategies and goals. She graduated with her Master’s of Science in Marketing with a specialization in Project Management in 2020. In her spare time, Camille enjoys writing, going to coffee shops, and spending time with friends and family.