Different Strokes for Different Folks:
Choosing the Right Design & Size for Custom Envelopes
When you receive something in the mail, don’t you usually get curious about what’s inside when the envelope is customized? Although there is nothing wrong with plain, standard-sized envelopes – from a marketing perspective, there is lesser chance of your mailer being thrown directly in the trash if you have a good-looking envelope. The more curious the recipient becomes when looking at the envelope, the higher the chance of your mailer to be read. In the next sections, we will take a deeper look at how you can boost your print marketing campaign by designing and printing the right custom envelopes.
Preparing Your Print Marketing Campaign
Before designing the envelope or looking for a business envelope printing company, you should first prepare your print marketing campaign. With the popularity of digital marketing, why would you even bother launching a print marketing campaign? Because printed materials are tangible. When you meet a prospective customer, you can always mention your business name and website – but how can you be sure that it will be remembered or taken note of? When you hand over a crisp business card, meanwhile, that person is bound to get in touch with you should the need arise. If your website or social media accounts are included in the business card, a person can easily look you up and learn more about what you have to offer as a brand.
Printed marketing materials like notepads, envelopes, door hangers, postcards, greeting cards, letterheads, and magnets are items that can be used, so people would want to actually receive them. Compare this with spam mail that nobody wants, and you can see just how effective printed materials are for marketing. Flyers, brochures, menus, door hangers, catalogs, posters, stickers, and labels also make for a more impactful marketing material because reading something that’s printed on paper instead of seeing text on a screen leaves a more lasting impression in someone’s mind. In other words, when something is printed out instead of viewed on screen, there is better name recall – something that bodes well for your brand or business name.
When preparing your print marketing campaign, it’s good to have an official logo designed for your business first. You can go for a do-it-yourself method when designing a logo, or have a professional graphic designer do it for you. Once you already have a logo, list down the items that you want to include in your print promotional campaign. First on the list would be business cards, followed by brochure, flyers, menus, letterheads, envelopes – choose ones that would work well for your business. Then, design the individual printed materials in such a way that it complements the colors of the logo, as well as the overall look that you would like to create for your brand.
Which Size Should I Go for when Printing Custom Envelopes?
If you decided to include letterheads and business envelope printing in your print promotional campaign, how can you design the envelopes? Again, your corporate logo should be incorporated in the design. The design of the envelope should match the design of the letterhead. Size-wise, you can go for the popular #9 envelopes, #10 envelopes, A7 envelopes, or custom envelopes.
Here are your specific options:
- #9 envelopes measuring 3.875” x 8.875”
When you print envelopes, you can go for the return envelope size which is more popularly known as #9 envelopes. These are perfect for housing small postcards which can double up as discount coupons or vouchers. When sending such materials out in the mail, make sure that the design of the envelope is compelling enough to attract the recipient to actually open what’s inside.
- #10 envelopes measuring 4.125” x 9.5”
The standard letter envelopes are more widely known as #10 envelopes. These can hold 8.5” x 11” paper if it is folded thrice horizontally, which is a quite popular folding option.
- A7 envelopes measuring 5.25” x 7.25”
A7 envelopes can capably hold greeting cards of the same or smaller size. This is the perfect envelope to choose if you are mailing out holiday greetings to your customers.
If you want to have custom envelopes made, go for ones measuring 6” x 9”. These are invitation size envelopes which work great for mailers with the same or smaller dimensions.
Go bold when you print envelopes by going for 9” x 12” sizes – which can easily fit a non-folded 8.5” x 11” letterhead. This is suitable for when you want to send out neat, crisp letterheads to customers or clients.
- 10” x 13” custom envelopes
Another business envelope printing option that you can go for is the 10” x 13” size. It’s the biggest size so far, which can fit a standard-sized folder.
For the material for envelope printing, you can take your pick from texture linen or smooth paper stock. The textured linen envelopes are classically elegant and are made from bright white 70# paper stock. The smooth envelopes are made from bright white 70# paper stock, which will perfectly contrast a dark-colored letterhead or envelope design.
Business Envelope Printing & Design Tips
Whether you end up choosing #10 envelopes, #9 envelopes or A7 envelopes, it is important to design them in such a way that the overall look fits the color scheme and design of your company letterhead and logo. Check out these tips on how you can effectively design and print envelopes for your print marketing campaign:
- Keep in mind the goal of your marketing campaign.
Before deciding whether you must use #10 envelopes, #9 envelopes or A7 envelopes, you should first come up with a great envelope design. Remember that the average mom, for example, receives dozens of printed marketing materials in the mail in a single week. How can you stand out from the rest? How can you tempt the receiver to even open, much more read, what is inside the mailer that you sent?
For business envelope printing, it all boils down to your marketing campaign. What is your message in the first place? If you’re in the real estate business, you might want the recipient of the mailer to give you a call so that you can generate leads. If you have an online store, you might want to include the phrase ‘promo code inside’ so that the recipient would know immediately what you have to offer. If you’re selling an e-book, you can use something like “Open ASAP to learn the secrets of…” Make the message succinct and direct-to-the-point, but still indicate that you are selling a product or a service.
- Always end with a call-to-action.
You cannot create a perfect and effective envelope printing marketing campaign in just one try – you need to make several attempts at it to find out what really works. After ensuring that your marketing goal is obvious and well-stated, end with a call-to-action. The marketing message can be the teaser but remember to end with an impactful call-to-action. You can start with a teaser printed on the envelope, then end with a call-to-action inside – it can be a postcard, a letterhead or a greeting card. Even if you are using a custom-sized 10” x 13” envelope and you have a huge space to work with, keep the message in front minimal so that your marketing material will not be thrown straight to the trash can.
- Make sure that the color and design stands out from all the other materials customers receive in the mail.
Again, the average homeowner will receive dozens of mailers in a span of one week. How can you make sure that you are sending enough marketing materials, but not too much that it feels spammy? Go for a six-week break in between sending marketing materials. It’s okay to send them out more often if you are giving personalized greetings or holiday greeting cards to customers – but any more than that and you might end up having a frustrated bunch of customers.
If it is your first time sending out these mailers, make sure that the envelope and corresponding letterhead is designed in such a way that it stands out from similar marketing materials. You may want to skip the white linen envelopes and go for colored ones – or have a bold-colored design on the envelope, especially if you are in the creative industry. Still, base the design and choose hues which are suited to the image that you would like to project for your brand. Be it creative or conservative, what’s important is for the overall design to blend with the exact look and image that you are going for.
- Leave the upper right corner of the envelope blank for stamps.
You don’t want stamps to cover any important information on your envelope, so make sure to leave the upper right corner blank.
Keep these things in mind when launching a business envelope printing campaign. Remember that the envelope will be the first thing to draw the attention of the recipient – so it must have enough of a presence to make someone want to read what is inside.
How to Look for the Best Printing Company to Print Custom Envelopes
Lastly, how can you look for the best printing company? For envelope printing, you can go for digital or offset printing. Digital printers use desktop digital printers. The challenge when printing envelopes is the shape of the paper itself – whether it’s rectangular or square. This means that you should look for an envelope printing company that has plenty of experience in creating marketing envelopes. They should have a good selection of sizes to choose from, as well as paper stock.
For offset printers, the advantage is that you will get professional-looking results. These printing companies use state-of-the-art printing presses that can process envelope printing in a manner of minutes, especially once the design has been set. Quality-wise, offset printing delivers more vivid colors. For business cards and other printed products with a complicated lamination process, offset printing is also the better choice.
Aside from the printing method, you should also check on the experience of the company that will print envelopes for you. How long have they been in the business? Do they offer a reprint guarantee? How about downloadable templates or an online design tool that you can use when you print envelopes? Instead of hiring a professional graphic designer, such tools and templates will save you a lot of time and money.
Also check on the quality of support that they offer to customers. Do they have a lot of good reviews? Do they have popular brands as clients? Can they also print brochures, letterheads, business cards, and other printed promotional products? What about the price, the minimum order, and the turnaround time? If you need 100 pieces of A7 envelopes, for example, can they deliver the finished products to your doorstep within 24 hours? You might have to pay extra for rush printing services but if you have no deadline to beat, the typical turnaround time is 2 to 3, 3 to 5, 5 to 7, or 7 to 10 business days. You might have to do very thorough research but by looking for the answers to these questions, you can have the best company to print custom envelopes for you.
A Final Word about Envelope Printing
Envelopes and letterheads are just parts of an overall print marketing campaign. These should be designed right at the onset of your marketing campaign to ensure that all the elements suit the image that you would like to have for your brand. By sending out high-quality envelopes with content that’s targeted to your market, you can create a print marketing campaign that is effective. No matter which product or service it is that you are offering to your clients, these printed promotional materials will enhance brand recall and contribute to the overall growth of your business.
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