COVID-19 threw a wrench in many marketers’ plans, especially when it comes to lead generation. Though events are postponed (or moved to a virtual format), marketing teams are still expected to generate qualified leads. For most demand gen teams, fewer events = fewer leads. So naturally, marketers are turning up the volume on digital tactics. Unfortunately, it’s resulting in a lot of digital clutter. Prospects are now inundated with digital touchpoints at every interaction. How can marketers break through the noise during the pandemic?

They have to start thinking outside of digital-only. I’d suggest tactile marketing automation (TMA). TMA is the thoughtful integration of direct mail with your marketing automation platform or CRM, in order to send customers highly targeted, personalized, and trackable direct mail based on their digital behaviors.

Keep reading to learn how you can apply this strategy to your own direct mail efforts, even while prospects are working at home.

Blend efforts with an existing campaign

It’s likely you already have automated marketing campaigns in place. Incorporate the ask for address confirmation into the email campaign flows and lead prospects to a landing page to submit their address. Offer and clearly communicate an appropriate level of value to the prospect in return for their address. Pair relevant thought leadership with a treat to enjoy while reading, or let prospects choose from a variety of gifts. Make sure to mention their home address is being collected for one-time use and won’t be stored long term. This will increase their comfort level in sharing their information.

Use SDRs and BDRs

Your S/BDRs are already having discussions with prospects as a part of their sales cycle, so it’s not a huge lift for them to ask a prospect to confirm their preferred mailing address.

When the pandemic started, out of experience, I can tell it’s best to pause your own tactile marketing efforts to save money, much like many other organizations. For instance, our BDR team sequenced 2,000 prospects with email and phone only. The feedback wasn’t great. Less than 1% of prospects booked a meeting with our team. This was a massive hit compared to the response rates we’d had prior to COVID-19.

We went back to the drawing board to create a new campaign. Since people are working at home, we needed to reach them there, too. So in just a few days, the team created a new model for gathering preferred addresses so we could leverage TMA. It worked brilliantly. We sequenced 1,000 prospects and secured 10x more meetings. In fact, 22% of prospects who confirmed their address booked a meeting.

Have your S/BDRs find home addresses through public online sources and ask for confirmation. When we switched from asking a prospect to provide an address to asking for confirmation of the address we’d identified, we had a 250% increase in response rates. We also recommend having the S/BDR explain what the address will be used for and what the prospect can look forward to. Something like, “I’d love to send you some of my favorite snacks to enjoy while we talk next.”

Use a data matching service

With just a small bit of information about your prospects, you can use a data matching service to obtain their preferred mailing address. Because your company representatives are already in talks with prospects, a personalized direct mail experience from your organization won’t be an unpleasant surprise, but rather a welcome one.

Marketers are adjusting their campaigns in a world with coronavirus to deliver on lead-gen efforts. As vendors continue to inundate prospects digitally, tactile marketing automation can help you break through the clutter to deliver unparalleled, personalized experiences with your brand. Let your brand be a bright spot in someone’s day and hit your 2020 marketing goals as a result.