USPS Deliver Magazine
delivers lots of ammo
for direct marketers

Okay folks; let’s put aside snide buzzwords like “snail mail.” The United States Postal Service that contributes so much to the success of so many deserves better. True, it can’t get to the target with a click of the “send” button, but it can do a lot of things that email can’t do alone.

Deliver Magazine is one of the nice things USPS does six times a year for direct marketers. Each issue is a valuable resource of ideas, insights and techniques for marketers. For example, the July 06 issue is 30 pages of fast- reading content- rich material. It contains articles on strategy, targeting, customer retention, refining customer targets, and changing demographics.

Any emphasis on the mailing of printed material as part of the marketing mix is purely intentional. (Come on, that’s their business!) The refreshing thing is that any bias is supported by facts and presented with objectivity.


Here’s a taste of just a few of the goodies you’ll find in the July issue:

Jeanne Bliss’s opinion column, “Customers in Captivity” debunks the customer loyalty myth. “It’s not about the “stuff” we give.” she says. “More importunately, it’s about doing business with us and about how important they are to us.”

Jennifer Haupt’s article, “Perfect Harmony Sells,” makes the case that loyalty programs based on price reductions or rewards don’t work.” In the B-to-B world,” she says, “you need to develop long-term relationships where you treat customers as partners.”

Another article tells how the Pfaltzgraff Co. used Yankelovich Research findings to guide their marcom by helping them identify eight different groups of customers, differentiated by values, world perspective and motivations.

Marketing guru Seth Godin, interviewed by Scott S. Smith, suggests that in today’s world, customer needs have already been met. Your product needs to satisfy their wants, and these wants are subjective and irrational.

And that’s just a sample of the great content. The July issue also announces a contest to show what we can learn from failed campaigns. The editors want to hear about the half-baked strategy or the lamest client pet project you’ve ever had the joy (?) of experiencing ---and what you leaned. They’ll feature the best (of the worst) entries in an upcoming issue.



Deliver is a pub that’s worth your time. It should be read by every one who has anything to do with marketing. And if you’re in business, that’s everyone. To subscribe go to www.usps.com/deliver.