In last week’s Creative Spotlight, we commented that unlike past years, the majority of November direct mail creative did not have a holiday look and feel, even the DM that landed in mailboxes right before the cyber five week. There’s been a shift in direct mail received in the past week – and we say “hooray!” The world needs jolly right now!
The bulk of direct mail received last week was from the apparel and accessories categories. Following are several examples featuring uplifting, holiday-inspired covers.
We’ve seen a surge of small formats in the mail since spring. Last week was no exception, especially for gift brands and brand launches. The following are gift brands that were in the mail with 6×9 digest catalogs last week.
The following brands launched with small format direct mail last week.
6X9 DIGEST CATALOG
6X10.5 DOUBLE GATEFOLD
For holiday, pages with price-point themes resonate with consumers who are keeping an eye on a budget.
PAPER PIZAZZ!
We always stress that marketing money is best spent on reach. But as this is a blog about creative, we’ve got to mention unique executions. Most brands don’t have the budget for bells and whistles like the following examples that we’ve seen in the past few weeks (and from a response standpoint, they are not necessary). But it’s always fun to look.
Like last year, Amazon embraced direct mail with a 7.25×9.5, 92-page, perfect-bound toy catalog filled with activity pages. While we can admire the (expensive) creative, from the timing of the delivery to the inaccurate targeting, Amazon ignored direct mail best practices. For more on this topic, see our blog post Amazon Misses the Mark with its Holiday Toy Catalog.
Women’s apparel brand Splendid included a double gatefold in the center of their 40-page catalog. Of all the fancy paper executions mentioned here, this one is the least expensive. And filled with product as these pages are, they are also hard-hitting selling pages.
An elegant piece outside and inside, the Perricone MD envelope was designed with typography in a metallic ink and was sealed with a gold metallic seal. When unfolded, the envelop became a unique star shape.
MESSAGING ABOUT 2020
Brands are messaging about the challenges of 2020 in so many ways, from subtle body copy descriptions to more prominent founder letters. And then there’s our favorite holiday apparel brand Shinesty that attacks the topic with their signature over-the-top imagery and headlines.
Shinesty creative gives us the laugh we all need this year!
Christmas is still three weeks out. Tune into the Creative Spotlight blog again in a week or so for a look at more direct mail nudging consumers to buy.
