A commitment to digital marketing should not exclude consideration for direct mail to be a powerful complement to any marketing campaign. In fact, there are ways to make your postcards, mailers and brochures effective interactive tools. For example, if your campaign needs a high-touch response, a postcard with a QR code linking to video highlights may just be the added boost needed to get a great ROI. Today’s variably printed materials can be embedded with an incredible array of response technologies, including magnetic content, individualized information and barcode scanning. Interactive options for a printed mailer, for example, could be a QR code or other mobile barcode, activated by a smartphone, for sending a message via Snapchat or WhatsApp. Besides have the ability to carry the same message both in print and digital delivery, marketers have the ability to time the mail delivery in-home to coincide with electronic message delivery (e-mail or text). Barcode tracking systems provide marketers with a great degree of certainty when, how and where a postcard is delivered and e-communications can be timed accordingly. Personalization goes beyond just using the recipient’s name in the address block; coupled with other data, a call-to-action like a pURL or barcode should take the user to specific and relevant content, or it may be quickly discarded. Marketers can also take this a step further, by using unique, one-time only codes or non-shareable microsites and landing pages to ensure only the targeted recipient receives the offer. A disadvantage of a purely digital marketing approach, especially on mobile, is that marketing messages may be unwelcome on a personal device like a smartphone. If the targeting is off and the message is not relevant to the user, a negative response could be swift and, with social media, vicious. The rewards of a positive response, however, could be what makes your next campaign a hit, creating a great ROI and building better customer loyalty. Written by Gary Pageau