AccuLink wins PICA Awards

Tweet PRINTING EXCELLENCE IN THE CAROLINAS RECOGNIZED

March 6, 2010 (CHARLOTTE, NC): The Printing Industry of the Carolinas, Inc. (PICA) recognized AccuLink of Greenville as a 2009 PICA Awards winner. Since 1966, the PICA Awards have been the premier symbol of excellence for the graphics industry in North and South Carolina. The PICA Awards demonstrate a company’s commitment to excellence in graphic communications.

AccuLink received four Best of Category Awards in Business Cards, Combination Finishing Techniques, Digital Printing: Booklets, and Foil Stamping, as well as two Special Judges Awards in Digital Printing: Books and Printer's Self-Promotion: Campaigns.

Winners were announced March 6, 2010, at the 43rd Annual PICA Awards Banquet, held at the Embassy Suites Golf Resort & Spa in Concord, North Carolina. The PICA Awards program is open to all printing companies in the Carolinas.

The Printing Industry of the Carolinas, Inc. (PICA) is a trade association representing the graphic communications industry in North and South Carolina. North Carolina ranks as the 14th largest state print market in the United States with $4.4 billion in sales, 889 total printing establishments and 25,709 employees. South Carolina ranks 31st in the nation with $1.8 billion in sales, 337 establishments, and 10,208 employees. Headquartered in Charlotte, NC, PICA has been serving the print industry for over 75 years. For more information, visit http://www.picanet.org/.

Four of the most important things to consider when sending a direct mail piece

Tweet Here at AccuLink, our clients rely on the expertise of our outstanding MPQC certified mailing department to make sure we meet or exceed their expectations of success of their mail campaigns. In order to do that, certain “rules” must be followed. Doug Mewborn, head of our Mailing Department offers these important tips:

1. Message needs to be catchy, clear and concise to draw the recipient’s attention. All mail is faced in the same direction when placed in mailboxes by the postman. Therefore, a person taking mail from their mailbox always looks at the address side of the mail. If it is a bill or something that is of interest, they put it in a pile. If it is “solicitation mail” they may or may not keep it. One major key in encouraging a person to at least turn it over to see the pretty picture (which many people insist on using on the back side of a direct mail piece) is to have a catchy marketing phrase or tag line on the front address side of sufficient size, color, content to catch the attention of the recipient. This tag line must register with the recipient within 1-2 seconds or the piece will probably get tossed in the garbage with its message on the back or inside gone forever.


2. Size of a marketing piece matters. Most mail is either a #10 size envelope or smaller. If a marketing piece is made larger (such as 6" tall by 11.5" wide, which will not increase postage on standard mail) then this piece will stick up and out from the stack of mail coming out of the mailbox. This improves the chance of being seen.
   
3. Timing of a marketing piece matters. I’ve always felt the best day to have a piece in a recipients mailbox is Tuesday. This is usually the slowest mail day of the week. This improves the chance of being seen. Tuesday delivery is sometimes hard to accomplish, however. DDU mail drops along with “requested delivery dates” on the mail bundles often helps accomplish this.


4. Official looking mail is out. Preparing marketing mail to appear to be an “official” type of mailing went out with the hula hoop. Rather than pretend the piece is something it is not, just be up front – sell what you have – not Savings Bonds.