In the last several blog posts we have talked about how “today’s marketing professionals are faced with an ever expanding marketing mix”(Post #2) and that “effective communication typically includes a cross functional approach”(Post #3). In other words, utilizing multiple channels of communication (direct mail, brochures, flyers, email, text messages, and social media) is more important than ever if you plan to effectively engage your target audience and grow new revenue streams.

Imagine what this means for the organization who has made a commitment to their shareholders to run a highly efficient lean organization. Not to mention, the impact on the marketing professional who is expected to be both an expert in the traditional forms of marketing and the new marketing options invented nearly every day. In today’s fast paced, information driven economy, time has become the scarcest resource – hands down! So finding ways to make the most out of your time and become more effective and efficient, is not only the job of the organization and marketing professional, but also of your service provider.

To develop this idea a little more, let’s focus on one marketing strategy – direct mail, specifically post cards – and how the process of procuring these highly valuable marketing pieces can be improved. Traditionally, you probably engaged your printer at the point you needed ink/toner on paper for the direct mail piece. Most likely, you call or email your print provider with project specifications and then wait to hear back. This process can sometimes be time consuming and inefficient.

Consider all the technology and self service applications that help you do your job faster. Wouldn’t it be nice if you could do the same with post cards? Wouldn’t you like to be able to log into a system, enter you product specifications, even try out different ones to see what is most cost effective, upload your artwork and mailing list, click save and then move onto the next project? You could, because with a convenient self-service like that, you could knock out your post card project in less than 3 minutes! Those are the types of improvements that are going to allow you utilize all the different marketing strategies and tactics that will help you grow your business in 2011.

If you would like to learn more about how we can save you time, or are looking for ways to integrate your print media with emerging technologies, we would love to talk. Improvement starts with education, and DocuStar has the experience and know how to help you reach your goals in 2011.