Pull, Peel, Pop: Direct Mail Made to Be Played With

When was the last time your direct mail asked someone to do something before it asked them to buy something?

• Pull this.
• Peel that.
• Open here.
• Scratch this.
• Spin the wheel.
• Lift the flap.
• Keep unfolding.
• Pop this up.

There is something wonderfully different about marketing you can physically interact with. Instead of simply looking at a message, the recipient becomes part of the experience. And that can buy you something every marketer wants: more attention.

The trick is making sure the interaction isn't just a gimmick. The best interactive direct mail uses movement, discovery and surprise to help tell the story, reinforce the message and ultimately drive response. So, let's play.

Pull It

Pull tabs are simple, but they can create a great before-and-after moment. Pull the tab and an image changes. A message appears. A problem becomes a solution. Something moves.

Best for: Automotive, home improvement, healthcare, financial services, product launches and any campaign where you want to demonstrate transformation.

Example: A window company could show an old, inefficient window. Pull the tab and it transforms into the new replacement window while revealing potential benefits and an offer for a free estimate.

Why it works: The recipient causes the change. Instead of telling them the story, you let them reveal it.

Peel It

There is something almost impossible to resist about a sticker or removable label that says PEEL HERE. You know you are going to peel it. Use that curiosity. Underneath could be an offer, personalized message, prize, QR code or the next part of your story.

Best for: Retail, restaurants, loyalty programs, fundraising, events and promotional campaigns.

Example: A restaurant mails a piece with three peel-away circles: Dinner? Drinks? Dessert? Each reveals a different offer, but one encourages the recipient to bring the mailer in to redeem a special bonus.

Why it works: You're turning the offer into a discovery rather than simply printing it on the front.

Scratch It

Scratch-offs have been around forever. And we still scratch them. Why? Because we want to know what's underneath. That tiny moment of uncertainty is powerful.

Best for: Retail promotions, automotive, casinos, restaurants, grand openings and event marketing.

Example: Instead of giving everyone the same “20% off” postcard, create several possible rewards. The recipient scratches to discover theirs and scans a QR code to redeem it. Now you've combined tactile interaction with measurable digital response.

Why it works: The reward isn't simply given. It is revealed. And apparently, we really like revealing things.

Spin It

Add a wheel to a mail piece and suddenly you've created something people don't just read. They play with it. A rotating wheel can reveal different products, answers, statistics, destinations, offers or personalized information through a die-cut window.

Best for: Travel, education, financial services, healthcare, product comparisons and campaigns with multiple choices or messages.

Example: A tourism campaign could invite recipients to spin a wheel to discover their ideal weekend: Foodie, Adventure, Relaxation or Family Fun. Each selection reveals an activity and drives them to a corresponding online itinerary.

Why it works: The recipient controls the experience, and the format lets you communicate multiple messages without overwhelming the design.

Bonus: This is the kind of mail piece that may get passed around the office. And that's free additional engagement.

Lift It

“What's under there?” That's all you need. A flap lets you hide information in plain sight and creates a natural way to organize your message into a series of discoveries.

Best for: Education, healthcare, nonprofit, B2B, product introductions and campaigns that need to explain several benefits.

Example: A college recruitment piece could have flaps for Campus Life, Academics, Housing and Your Future. Prospective students lift the areas they care about instead of being confronted with a wall of information.

Why it works: It gives recipients some control over how they explore the content.

Unfold It

This is where print can really show off. Gatefolds. Accordion folds. Map folds. Iron cross folds. Endless folds. And all the wonderfully strange folds your bindery department gets excited about.

Every fold is another opportunity to reveal information. An endless fold is especially fun because just when the recipient thinks they have reached the end... Nope. There's more.

Best for: Storytelling, product launches, higher education, tourism, nonprofits, events and campaigns with a sequence of information.

Example: A nonprofit could use an endless fold to follow one donation through its impact. Each turn reveals the next step until the final panel presents the CTA: Help us continue the story.

Why it works: The physical format controls the pace of the message. Instead of showing everything at once, you create a sequence.

Tear It

Sometimes destroying your direct mail is exactly what you want the recipient to do. Perforations can turn part of the piece into a coupon, ticket, reminder card, bookmark, membership card or something intended to be shared.

Best for: Events, retail, restaurants, nonprofits, referral campaigns and anything with a take-one/give-one strategy.

Example: A fitness center could mail a piece with two perforated guest passes: one for the recipient and one labeled Give This One to Someone Who Makes You Exercise Harder. Now your recipient isn't just responding. They're helping distribute your marketing.

Why it works: The interaction has a practical purpose and can extend the reach of the campaign.

Open It...and Make Something Pop Up

Now we're having fun. Pop-ups immediately change the experience because suddenly a flat piece of paper becomes dimensional. A building rises. A product appears. A character stands up. A package opens. A scene unfolds. You don't expect it, and that's precisely the point.

Best for: High-value B2B prospecting, product launches, real estate, hospitality, fundraising, milestone celebrations and campaigns where the potential value of the response justifies investing more in the piece.

Example: A commercial real estate firm could send prospects a flat mailer that opens into a dimensional building with the message and CTA incorporated into the structure. Try putting that directly into the recycling bin without showing the person sitting next to you first.

Why it works: Surprise creates attention, but dimensional pieces can also create something people display, keep and share.

Make Them Share It

This may be the most overlooked benefit of interactive direct mail. We usually calculate response based on the person we mailed. But what happens when that person says: “Hey, look at this.”

Now your mail piece has reached two people. Maybe five. Maybe an entire department. This is especially valuable in B2B marketing where multiple people may influence a purchasing decision.

A clever pop-up sitting on someone's desk, an unusual fold being passed around a conference table or a funny tear-off being handed to a coworker extends the life and reach of the piece. You mailed to one person. You don't necessarily have to market to only one person.

Don't Make Me Work for Nothing

There is one big caution with all of this. The interaction has to pay off. If you make me pull, peel, scratch, spin, lift, unfold and stand on one foot just to discover that you're offering 10% off, I'm going to be disappointed.

Every action creates anticipation. Reward it. Reveal something interesting. Make me laugh. Teach me something. Personalize the result. Give me an unexpected offer. Continue the story. Show me something I couldn't see before. Most importantly, connect that experience to what you want me to do next.

Before You Mail It, Play With It

When you're developing your next direct mail campaign, don't just ask: What should it say? Ask: What could the recipient do with it?

• Could they pull it?
• Peel it?
• Scratch it?
• Spin it?
• Lift it?
• Unfold it?
• Tear something off?
• Make something pop up?

And when they do, could that physical action make the message more memorable, the offer more compelling or the piece interesting enough to show someone else? Direct mail has something most marketing channels don't.

You can touch it. Don't waste that advantage. Give people something to discover. Give them something to play with. And most importantly, give them a reason to respond.

The preceding content was provided by a contributor unaffiliated with Printing Impressions. The views expressed within may not directly reflect the thoughts or opinions of the staff of Printing Impressions. Artificial Intelligence may have been used in part to create or edit this content.