Bookmark Marketing Strategies

Bookmark marketing? Who would have thought it? The fact of the matter is a well-developed bookmark can have a substantial influence on branding and direct-marketing efforts. Though they're typically regarded as placeholders, the repetitiveness of bookmarks makes them an ideal way to place your message front-and-center each and every day. The key to a successful bookmark marketing campaign is careful planning, so read on to learn bookmark marketing strategies that work.

Identify your goal

Before you can do anything else, you have to identify the goal of your bookmark marketing campaign. You could print bookmarks as part of a branded effort, as part of a PR campaign or even as part of a direct-marketing campaign.

Branding and PR are very similar — the only difference is that a PR bookmark will typically include coverage for a charitable cause (and how you've helped it). They elicit feelings, emotions and thoughts. Direct-marketing bookmarks have to do even more: They must motivate response. Identify your goal, and move on.

Brevity matters

Understand that people who use bookmarks are interested in reading the books in their laps, and not the bookmarks themselves. Keep your message brief, clean and to the point. A short headline that conveys your message will be noticed every time your audience opens a book and will work through repetition to have long-term impact.

Add value

Adding value to your bookmarks can greatly increase your response. Coupons for products and services are great incentives to keep your bookmark around. Upcoming event calendars, sports schedules and other information unique to the interests of your audience are all great additions to any bookmark. Perhaps our cat lovers would like to know about cats in famous literary works! If you can add value and make it interesting, your bookmark stands a much better chance of achieving marketing success.

Distribute wisely

It's imperative to get your bookmarks in front of the right audience. For some organizations, this can be easy: A library might ask local elementary schools to hand out free bookmarks with a reading program schedule to students, or a minor league baseball team might hand out free bookmarks at a game. Consider who your organization is targeting, and how to reach them en masse. A well-targeted sales letter package might be the answer.

As you can see, bookmark marketing is a creative way to consistently reach your target audience. Though it's often overlooked, bookmark marketing plays into an exceptional marketing strategy and provides a channel to connect with your customers on an intimate level that your competitors are missing.

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