Variable Data Printing

Almost every business processes some amount of customer data such as their last purchase date, past item purchases, color preferences, product interests, geographic location, age, gender, etc,. Variable data printing allows marketers to use that data to create highly personalized versions of a printed piece that will resonate with a customer or prospect.

You’ve probably received a direct mail advertisement in the mail that caught your attention because it had your very own name emblazoned across it. But personalization doesn’t have to consist of just text. Sophisticated marketers know that “data'' can include pictures, graphic illustrations, maps, QR codes and much more that can be used to produce a highly personalized printed marketing piece that can greatly increase customer response rates. Imagine that you visited the website of a car manufacturer and downloaded a brochure for a “red, 2 door sedan”. Of course you had to enter your email address when you downloaded the brochure. Marketers can now use both the data captured as you browsed the car company’s website as well as other data Google (and others) have collected about you to generate a highly targeted followup sales brochure personalized to your interests. Within a matter of days a brochure can arrive in your mailbox that showcases the model and color of car you searched for and might include imagery that closely resemble your own demographics in terms of:

● Gender
● Age
● Whether you have kids or a dog
● The region you live in
● Hobbies and leisure activities

This type of variable data printing is often called one to one marketing because it speaks directly to you, “one on one” with the right message, at precisely the right time in the buying cycle.

Research has shown that variable data printing yields much greater response rates. While a traditional mail campaign might have an average response rate of about 2%, highly personalized mail campaigns can often achieve response rates as high as 6% or more! In fact, that same research revealed that “59% of shoppers who have experienced personalization believe it has a noticeable influence on purchasing.”