First, let's clear something up: fax marketing is not dead. What is dead is fax spamming – you know those annoying pitches for Caribbean vacations and Internet deals. Those types of faxes are equivalent to telemarketing, both of which are highly regulated.
Regardless, fax marketing is a viable, effective and ultimately valuable marketing tool, and if you have the means, then it's a great asset to your company and efforts.
Because the method is highly regulated, your fax marketing campaign will be successful. You're only going to attract subscribers that really want to hear from you (opt-ins are now required for fax marketing).
(For more tips on fax marketing, check out our blog and don't forget us!)
1. Get an idea
Similarly to SMS marketing, fax marketing is limited to its medium. As a best practice, fax marketing is most effective when it's restricted to a single page. So, develop an idea based in the parameters. What can you sell, push or promote on a single page? Also, think about what sort of action you want your customers to take.
2. Outline benefits
Remember that with marketing, you're allowing your customers to make a choice as to whether they want to do business with you or not. What are the benefits, bonuses or incentive for customers to opt-in to your fax marketing campaign? Will they receive exclusive deals or be the first to hear about breaking industry new? Whatever your benefits are, ensure that you promote them.
3. Set up metrics
Email, SMS or social media marketing is far easier to track and analyze than fax marketing. Every time there's an action online, there's a record of it, and since there's a record of it, it's easier to analyze. With fax marketing, metrics are a bit different. For some of the important data, you need to manually monitor it, say, with a tracking code.
Regardless, it's imperative that you track this data. Try monitoring the unsubscribe rate, conversions and bounce rate.
4. Set up a sign-up widget
How will people know that you have fax marketing available? Telepathy? The best way to inform your customers and future subscribers is on your current channels. Promote your campaign on your website, email marketing, SMS marketing and social media. Also, don't forget to remind customers of this service in your company's email signature and point-of-sales depots.
5. Design carefully
Hooray! You have an entire 8 ½ x 11" sheet of paper to design your heart out. Well, it's not that easy. Unfortunately, just like any other marketing medium, you need to remember what you're working with. With faxes, you have this wide expanse of space to with what you will. But, the issue is to restrain your urge to design every inch of it. The best fax marketing design practice is to lay off on the graphics and images. Keep your message clean and simple. Just as many people have updated their computers and smartphones as those who haven't updated their fax machines.
6. Test
A standard practice for any marketing strategy is testing. What testing does is ensure that your design, push, and method are all viable and working. Without testing, you'll run into a whole slew of problems, some of which include, poor transmission quality and customer reception. If you already have a fax marketing subscriber list, then send test faxes out to them before sending out your actual promotion. If you're not that lucky, then consider faxing internally and among friends. You'll be able to see how dynamic and consistent your fax actually is.
7. Send!
The easy and most rewarding part. Sit back and imagine fax machines humming all over the world.
8. Review
Take the metrics that you've already established and take a close view at the results. Without reviewing, you'll never learn what you've done well and what you've done wrong.
Ready to try fax marketing for yourself? Sign up and use our fax marketing app to grow your business.
