Differentiate your direct mail and email communications...
...by including a personalised map image with the content individually tailored to each recipient

Unleash the power of 1-to-1 marketing with individually 'map personalised' direct mail and email communications. Along with your sales message, each communication can now include a colourful personalised map. Not just a generic map showing where you’re located, but a totally unique one-of-a-kind map showing how, for example, your customer or prospect gets from their home or office to your front door.

These attention-getting variable maps break through the clutter of generic mail and email and deliver information needed to find you, locate other locations, or see where the closest offers unique to each person can be found.

Recipients of communications containing customised maps have been shown to generate a 40% higher response than those who receive a static map or no map at all. Source: April 2006 article in Graphic Arts Monthly - The campaign used a control group that received only name and address personalisation. Recipients of the customised map generated 40% higher response rates and went on to spend twice as much on boating merchandise at the store.  See Ordnance Survey Case History

Tech4T can create individually personalised map images for inclusion in your loyalty, product launch, event or 'welcome' mail or email campaign, from just a few hundred to tens of millions, each generated from attributes in customer or prospect data and using any number of rules on what to display for each recipient.

What are personalised maps (or what is termed, variable mapping)?

Personalised maps are small individually customised map images, tailored to each recipient of your mail or email communication. What is displayed on each map is totally variable and driven by information known about that recipient; reflecting interests, preferences, past purchases (and where obtained), anything you like!  For example, maps could display:  

* Your office, or the nearest store, hotel, stockist, etc., in geographic proximity to each customer or prospect's location

* Closest venues to their home or office location  

* Reference sites where your product or service is used

Are variable maps essential to your marketing?

If your marketing can incorporate location based information, then personalised maps will help you win new business. When communicating with prospects or customers, if your business has some kind of geographic basis with regard to where your products or services can be obtained, or if you are running an event or inviting people to visit an attraction, there is no better way to deliver this information than by using individually personalised maps.

These would be included in direct mail and email communications, or could feature on 121 microsite web pages.

How do I choose what to display?

If the information can be located on a map, then it can be used; whatever you feel is relevant and will generate interest and response. You can include points and/or stores of interest, individually selected based on previous trading or product interests, and integrate location-based offers, tailored to the individual. Redemption bar codes can also be included

For instance, an information service provider may wish to show residents the nearest X places to eat or drink based on the distance between the consumer's home location and each restaurant.

Maps could also be linked to promotional activities and competitions - such as 'find the pot of gold' - where each map shows several locations close to the consumer's home where the gold is located, and asks the recipient to pick the location number from the map to try to win. This generates increased response.

Customer example

A large financial services company wanted to send a 'welcome pack' mailing to several million customers to launch a new incentive scheme for selected retailers.

Working with their digital printers, the challenge was to include an individually customised map in each mailing piece, with each map image being embedded within the personalised letter created using a digital printing process.

The map was to show each customer's location, and, based on varying drive-time rules, displaying a pre-defined number of individually selected retailers.

We developed the analysis and mapping application, and generated the maps in just a few weeks, whilst at the same time creating statistics for every individual in terms of the nearest outlets that were displayed.

Using each consumer's sales transactions following the mailing, the client could then determine which, if any, of the retailers shown on the map, benefitted from an increase in trade.

What's possible with variable maps?

We can develop almost any kind of map and apply whatever rules you wish to vary the locations displayed. Maps can be generated for any country in the world.

Symbols can be varied based on categories in your data, such as industry type, and we can change the map backdrop, limit points based on customers, prospects, retail or trade outlets, etc., optionally constrained by territory or other parameters, and vary the output size and map zoom level so that your promotional campaign gets the best possible results.

We can also include pie and bar charts to show the trading preferences (or history) of each individual, as well as embedding any amount of variable text within or around the map image to help entice the recipient to take action. Barcodes for product redemption can also be created - ideal for loyalty marketing.

'Nearest' locations can be selected based on straight line distance, drive time, or driving distance, and custom legends can be created as part of the map image to provide more details - i.e. the name, address, telephone, email and website of locations featured on the map, and even include special offers that may be offered by some of the outlets displayed.

A few individually personalised map applications - all helping increase loyalty

• Introducing a new service using welcome packs that include a personalised map. This could be to help increase market penetration, sales value and frequency or to improve loyalty for affiliates  

• Launching a new retail outlet or trade counter, and showing the prospect its location in relation to their home

• Introducing new stockists to your customer or prospects, or showing nearest branch, store, office. Ideal for franchise operations

• Showing the 'nearest' accommodation, entertainment, activity, places of interest to visit, car parks, drop-off/pick-up location, shop, trade centre... to each and every individual on your database. Ideal for travel brochures - printed and online - where places of interest are shown with respect to the proximity of the accommodation

• For membership directories, network services, etc., showing the location of members in relation to other members or to the consumer

• Inviting prospects to an event (conference, seminar, exhibition, show), with each map showing the event location in relation to that of the individual.

• 'Pick one' competitions where each individual map shows X locations where 'a prize' can be found

• Showing the location of nearest medical support to the consumer - doctor, hospital, dentist, clinic...

• 'Nearest schools to properties' - ideal for estate agents, or nearest new properties, show houses, etc.

Variable mapping - can you work with my agency or printers?

Yes. We work closely with many of the leading printers, creative agencies and direct marketing service suppliers. Just put us in touch with your account manager and we will do the rest.  Email details to map@tech4t.co.uk

What are the benefits of working with Tech4T?

Tech4T have been creatively using data to drive personalisation for over 20 years. Our systems can cope with an almost infinite number of rules to trigger what to display, and the close relationship we have with some of the largest mapping, cartography and data companies - including Ordnance Survey and TeleAtlas - allows virtually any level of detail to be included for the UK or anywhere in the world.  

• We have the capability to produce any number of individually personalised maps, with a fast turnaround  

• Short runs from just a few thousand map images for campaign cell testing can also be produced  

• All maps are fully licensed for publishing - by mail, e-mail and for display on microsites  

• Optional special filter effects can be applied to raise interest further and enhance presentation  

• Map locations are positioned using Postcode or even full address for maximum accuracy  

• Dynamic map content can include information stored against each of your customers, prospects, etc., and/or data held in external files associated by geography (drive-time, drive distance or straight line distance) or other relevant criteria

Tech4T also offer a complete range of data improvement, merge/purge, enrichment, profiling and transaction analysis services to prepare data for map personalisation, plus we can assist with print and email production through our partners.

Need to see a specific example map?

Email map@tech4t.co.uk or give us a call on 01733 890790. We will then let you have a few suggestions as to which type of maps may be best suited to meet your specific goals and also talk through the data needed to vary the map content and provide an idea of cost.

See Ordnance Survey Case History