Questions to Ask Before Ordering Video Mailers

Video mailers are more than printed media with built-in video screens. They’re direct mail pieces designed to improve communication so important messages are easier to see, hear, understand, and remember.

That’s what has helped them prove to be so much more effective than standard direct mail.

When a recipient opens a video mailer, the screen automatically starts playing. Instead of relying on printed text to deliver a message, it explains an opportunity, tells a story, demonstrates a product, introduces a team, thanks a donor, invites someone to an event, or makes a sales pitch in a video that feels more personal.

As an experience, it feels like a personal video presentation delivered directly into the recipient’s hands.

That said, the best results with video mailers come from answering the following questions before production begins.

Who Should Receive Your Video Mailer?

The target audience should be clearly identified before anything else is decided.

For instance, video mailers are often used to distribute messages about high-value products, services, and opportunities because they create a stronger experience than a standard printed mail piece.

Recipients may include prospects, executives, donors, patients, recruits, event invitees, channel partners, current customers, or account-based marketing (ABM) targets. The stronger the recipient list, the better the results of the campaign are likely to be.

In other words, a video mailer doesn’t need to be sent to everyone. In most cases, it’s more effective to send a highly targeted campaign to the right audience than to send a broad campaign to people who are less likely to care.

Since the audience affects the message, design, video, call to action, distribution plan, and follow-up strategy, it helps to know exactly who should receive them and why those people matter.

What Is the Goal of the Campaign?

Video mailers can support many different types of campaigns.

They may be used to introduce a company, promote a product, schedule sales meetings, support a product launch, invite people to an event, thank donors, raise funds, explain a healthcare message, recruit highly sought-after individuals, or connect with hard-to-reach prospects.

To produce the best results, the purpose of the campaign should guide the entire mailer.

For example, if the goal is to schedule meetings, the mailer should quickly explain why the meeting is worth the recipient’s time. If it’s fundraising, the video should help the recipient feel connected to the mission. If it’s an event invitation, the mailer should make the event feel important and easy to respond to.

Without a clear purpose, a video mailer can still feel impressive, but it may not produce the desired result.

Because of that, it’s important to decide what the campaign is meant to accomplish before production begins.

What Should the Video Say and Show?

The video is one of the most important parts of the entire campaign.

That said, a video mailer shouldn’t rely on novelty to produce results. Instead, it should do meaningful work like explain, demonstrate, introduce, inspire, or clarify something better than print can do alone.

For example, the video might show a product in action or explain a solution for a sales campaign. For a nonprofit campaign, it might tell a donor story or show the impact of a gift. Or it might explain a treatment, program, or patient experience for a healthcare campaign. And for a recruiting campaign, it might introduce the culture, leadership, team, or opportunity.

What’s more, the video should also get to the point quickly. A recipient may be intrigued by the screen, but the message still needs to earn their attention.

Effectively, while the print message on the mailer supports the campaign, the video should be the star of the show. It’s what makes the communication feel more relatable, complete, and memorable. It’s also why video mailers have proven to perform so well for so many purposes.

What Should the Printed Content Include?

To perform most effectively, the printed part of a video mailer should support the video, not compete with it.

Print is useful for information the recipient may want to scan, save, or refer back to after the video plays. That may include key benefits, product details, event information, program highlights, contact information, QR codes, website links, phone numbers, next steps, or a short call to action.

Also, the printed message should be clear and easy to read.

On top of that, a video mailer can easily become less effective if the print tries to say too much.

Without a doubt, the best approach is usually to let the video carry the main message and use the print to reinforce the most important points, or provide other helpful information in support.

Before ordering video mailers, it’s important to decide what belongs in the video and what belongs in print.

What Action Should Your Target Audience Take Next?

Every campaign should make the next step clear.

After watching the video, should the recipient schedule a meeting, scan a QR code, call a sales representative, request a sample, visit a landing page, attend an event, donate, respond to an invitation, or share the mailer with another decision-maker?

Clearly letting a target audience know what to do next is valuable. To be effective, a call to action shouldn’t be complicated, and it should be easy to understand.

Also, since recipients may show the mailer to a colleague, spouse, board member, department leader, or other person who influences their decision, the next step should still be clear to simplify the entire process for their group.

What Will Be Your Follow-Up Strategy?

A video mailer can open a door, but follow-up often helps move a campaign forward.

Before sending video mailers, it’s helpful to decide who will follow up with recipients if they don’t respond right away, when they’ll follow up, and what they’ll say.

The follow-up should also connect naturally to the video mailer.

For example, a sales representative might call after the mailer is delivered and reference the video. A nonprofit team might follow up with donors after they receive a campaign piece. An event team might send a reminder after the invitation arrives. A healthcare or product team might direct recipients to a landing page with more information.

Video mailers usually create stronger recall than standard mail, and good follow-up helps turn that attention into conversation, response, or action.

How Many Should You Order and When Should They Be Sent?

Quantity and timing should be planned carefully.

Some campaigns need a small number of video mailers for selected prospects or VIP recipients. Others may require larger quantities for product launches, fundraising campaigns, event invitations, recruiting campaigns, or sales message distribution.

It may also make sense to send your video mailers in phases.

A staggered send can help manage follow-up as well as test response, balance demand on sales teams, or align with product or service availability. For example, one group may receive the video mailer first, followed by additional groups later.

Timing also matters because delivery may need to coordinate with meetings, events, product launches, donor campaigns, conferences, or internal training efforts.

Before ordering, decide how many mailers are needed now, whether more may be needed later, and when each group should receive them.

Who Will Handle Addressing and Distribution?

Video mailer campaigns often involve more than production.

There may be mailing lists, address verification, personalization, postage, and staggered sends to coordinate. If the campaign includes multiple segments or phases, those details become even more important.

We can help with video loading, addressing, mailing, warehousing, staggered sends, and full distribution service.

That can be helpful for companies who want their campaign handled from production through delivery, especially when the timing, recipient list, or follow-up plan needs to be carefully managed. With our experience and expertise, we can help manage those details carefully from production through delivery.

With that in mind, it helps to know whether your team will handle distribution internally or whether you would like us to help manage the details.

What Timeline Are You Working Toward?

Video mailers are custom projects, so timing should be discussed early.

The timeline needs to account for design, screen selection, video preparation, graphic files, proofing, production, video loading, addressing, mailing, and delivery.

For example, if the campaign is tied to a trade show, product launch, sales meeting, donor campaign, recruiting window, conference, or event, the deadline should be clear from the beginning.

It’s also important to think about follow-up timing. The mailer should arrive when the sales team, development team, recruiting team, or event team is ready to respond.

The earlier the details are known, the easier it is to create a mailer that supports the campaign without unnecessary pressure or rushed decisions.

Final Thoughts on Your Plan Before You Order

Video mailers have proven to be extremely effective. That said, the process from manufacturing to distributing them will typically go much better when the answers to the questions in this post are clear before production begins.

That means knowing who should receive the video mailer, what message they need to hear, what the video should communicate, what the printed content should present, and what action your target audience should take next.

It also means planning the quantity, mailing schedule, follow-up strategy, and distribution details early.

When those answers are clear, a video mailer becomes more than an impressive piece of direct mail. It becomes a stronger way to communicate with the people your company, organization, or campaign needs to reach.

If you’re planning a video mailer campaign, we can help with strategy, design, video loading, production, addressing, and full distribution service.

If you’d like to experience a video mailer in person, click this link to request a FREE SAMPLE.