Are Shared Mailers Good or Bad?

Are shared mailers good or bad? Are they just junk mail or do people read them? Should I be advertising my business inside one of these?

What is a Shared Mailer?

A shared mailer is any direct mail piece where you are sharing the cost of the postage with the other advertisers in order to get into more homes for less cost.

Examples of Shared Mailers

Examples of shared mailers include: Valpak, Money Mailer, Clipper, all those big glossy ads that come with your newspaper, the newspaper itself, and just about every magazine are all examples of shared mail advertising options.

AKA: Shared mailers are also known as: group mailers, coupon mailers, coupon packages, coupon magazines, envelope mailers, marriage mail, amongst other names. 

So let's take and unbiased look at what makes these guys good or bad and then you can decide if it is a good fit for your business.

Advantages to Shared Mailers

1. Cost per home: by their very nature they are very cheap per home because you are sharing the cost of postage.
2. Interest: Group mailers have an inherent value to them because they represent so many different types of businesses. Consumers love the consolidated information. It can be like going to the mall right at your kitchen table.
3. Frequency: Shared mailers usually have a set frequency ranging from weekly to quarterly. All legitimate group mailers are on some sort set schedule. Of course, you can setup your own frequency schedule with custom solo mailings, but I am still going to give this option credit for doing it right when it comes to frequency. 
4. Are mailed: The very fact that shared mailers are mailed make them valuable. People love mail and respond to it.
5. Digital Integration: Many shared mail companies like Money Mailer and Valpak have fully integrated a digital component to their offering. Participants in their mailer have their ads posted online at www.moneymailer.com, distributed to a network of other coupon sites, and are also included in their mobile coupon app which has social media share capabilities. 

Disadvantages to Shared Mailers

1. Cost: Whoa, hold on Steve, you said cost was an advantage! Well, let me clarify; The disadvantage may be cost....per lead. You see, with shared mail your ad ends up in the hands of many unqualified prospects. This is called waste! if you exclude all the waste then you are left with a true cost per QUALIFIED home. The more niche your business the bigger the disadvantage this is to you.
2. Targeting: Similar to above. With shared mail you are on a train moving in a set direction and you have no say in where the train goes. You hop on or hop off, that's it. Targeting via custom mailing list is one of the most critical components to a successful direct mail campaign. Poor targeting will also generate a lot of activity with junk leads or poor quality customers that end up costing you money!
3. Image: Believe it or not there is a bit of a stigma with shared mail pieces. Even the magazines that try to come off like they are not just a bunch of pages filled with ads. Everyone know that they are. Like with any advertising, you get what you pay for. Go with the cheapest shared mailer, like penny saver, and your company will get a reputation for being cheap. Don't be surprised when you don't get calls for a $50,000 kitchen remodel from a penny saver ad.
4. Competition: Shared mailers almost all allow in multiple advertisers from the same category. Now you have built in competition with every prospect. It then comes down to the sales people taking the call. 
5. Attention: With so many ads to look at yours will not get nearly as much attention as it would if it were a solo piece mailed out. This is especially true with coupon magazines. You can get dizzy just turning the pages. Envelope mailers like Money Mailer do a better job of solving this problem.
6. Size: Every shared mailer has its limitation on the size of the ads. Limited space means limited room to showcase your company.
7. Open rate: If it never gets opened then your ad is never seen. Enough said. 

Why Direct Mail Postcards May Be Better Than Shared Mail

1. You get ALL the response: No competition alongside your ad so you get ALL the calls and responses.
2. Your ad is guaranteed to be seen!: No package to open
3. Your company image is improved and credibility established: Ads delivered on quality high gloss cardstock make a lasting impression!
4. Better targeting: the mailing list is one of the most important aspects of your mailing. Why waste money on unqualified prospects. Use a highly targeted mailing list to get more of your best customers! You chose where the train is headed!
5. Showcase your business more effectively with larger cards (6x11) or even brochure style mailers (8.5x14)
6. Timing: Custom postcards can be mailed out as often and whenever you like. Set your own schedule. You chose when the train arrives.
7. Better response rates: All of the items above contribute to a better response rate on your mailings. 10-20x the response rate is not unusual. 

At the end of the day, the decision on whether or not to use a shared mailer comes down primarily to who your IDEAL customer is. Secondary to that are the factors of the shared mailer demographics (list), price, frequency, timing, & quality/image of the vehicle. Generally, categories that MAY do well in a shared mailer are restaurants, automotive, beauty, home services, some health, & certain types of home improvement. Each of these should be tested though against a highly targeted custom mail piece and then you can calculate the ROI and go from there. They may both work in which case you do both. 

If you are consdering a local shared mail option and would like a second opinion, give me a call. I can review maps, rates, demos and the delivery vehicle itself at no charge to you. One call could save you thousands.