Do's and Don't's of Direct Marketing

Direct Marketing is no easy task, but here are some helpful tips you can use for your business...

1. DO…understand your prospect.
Remember: It’s not about you! If you don’t understand what’s important to your prospects, how they make decisions, what their goals and expectations are and how you potentially fit into that equation, you’ll be lucky to even achieve vendor status—let alone become the partner needed to be effective.

2. DON’t…be like everyone else. In this information age, your prospects are being bombarded and, therefore, desensitized to marketing messages. If your messaging and design does not stand out in the crowd, you’ll be left out of your prospects decision-making process.

3. DO…keep it simple. The fundamentals of Direct Response Marketing still apply:
- You need a good list
- Messaging needs to be relevant to the prospect
- Prospects need to be “touched” multiple times
- Timing is important
- Design and messaging need to be unique
- You need a compelling offer

4. DON’t…look for the magic solution. When meeting with a prospect in the early stages of qualifying and quantifying a DRM program, there is always an expectation that you are going to show up with the magic solution in your back pocket. It sounds odd saying it and probably an illogical expectation, but it’s very real. There is no such thing as a magic solution. If someone promises one, they’re lying.

5. DO…put yourself in your prospect’s shoes. Understand that one size does not fit all. The importance of profiling and segmenting
your targets into multiple buckets cannot be overstated. With technology in personalization, it is possible to customize your messaging to different prospects ensuring you are hitting the hot buttons that will motivate them to action.

And the Award Goes To...

Allied was awarded Vendor of the Year at the New England Society for Healthcare Materials Management's (NESHMM) 37th annual dinner on October 21, 2009. This award is given to the organization that is being recognized for providing the highest level of support to the NESHMM and to Materials Management functions within the Healthcare Industry.

NESHMM's mission is to provide Healthcare Material Management Professionals with timely education on industry best practices and encourage peer networking, as well as, sponsor forums for the exchange of useful information.

For more information on The Allied Group and our document inventory management services, please visit our site!

Supply Chain Management Solutions

How much time do you spend focusing on your supply-chain as opposed to growing your business? Let the experts at The Allied Group take away that burden so you can focus on what you do best: growing your business.

At The Allied Group, we can assist you with true 3rd Party Logistic solutions that will positively impact your efficiency, and in turn your bottom line. Our warehouse management system allows you to outsource with confidence and help you with:

* Cross-docking of products, samples, parts, supplies and literature
* Decreasing operating costs
* Reducing staffing levels
* Concentrating on core competencies
* Improving customer satisfaction

Business experts all over the world continue to emphasize the need to improve supply-chains to improve productivity and profitability. Does your system measure up?

The Allied Group has resources that help you control the 7 key aspects of supply-chain management; planning, sourcing, production, assembly, packaging, inventory control and distribution. Because we do all this in-house, under one roof, we can offer a streamlined process that ensures superior efficiency and superior results!

For more information on the Fulfillment Supply Chain Process, contact us today!

Blood Drive for Children's Hospital Boston

September 14, 2009: The Allied Group and the Courtyard Marriot in Foxboro Massachusetts sponsored a blood drive for Children’s Hospital on September 14, 2009 and we would like to thank the 35 donors who participated in this drive! Children's Hospital Boston's Blood Donor Center is an independent collection facility serving the needs of the pediatric patient's in the Longwood Medical Area.

If you are interested in donating blood to the Children's Hospital Blood Donor Center, or would like more information, then please visit the Childrens Hospital.

Company Information: The Allied Group is recognized as one of the area’s top direct marketing agencies and leading provider of one-stop marketing management, document and information management services, all done under one roof. We have complete solutions for printed and electronic document/workflow processes, marketing services including client acquisition and retention programs, billing, and sophisticated fulfillment management.

And the Award Goes too...

August 10, 2009 - Allied receives two PEAK Awards for its design and print work.

We are pleased to announce that The Allied Group was recently recognized with two Awards of Excellence by Print Solutions Magazine for its design and print work on a Student Viewbook created for the University of Hartford, and a Search Fulfillment Mailer created for Brandeis University.

The Allied Group specializes in printing services that can be used in marketing campaigns for all industries. Our printing services include commercial printing for direct mail, annual reports, posters, pocket folders, and much more!

We also handle digital printing & On Demand printing!

Allied Desktop Calendar

The Allied Group is well-known for being a top direct marketing agency, but they also give-back to the digital community, and is happy to provide you with a free desktop calendar!



Why a desktop calendar?
- Be GREEN and cut costs by eliminating the need for paper calendars
- Virtual notepad lets you capture your tasks
- A centralized place to access your calendar and a simplistic way to organize it

Allied Supports Children's Hospital NSTAR

On Sunday, June 14, 2009, The Allied Group came together to sponsor the Children Hospital's annual NSTAR WAlk in Boston. The purpose was to support the hospital's work toward aiding and treating injured and sick kids.

The Allied Group had a booth at the occassion, and gave away freebies to those who stopped by, including pedometers and backpacks for those individuals who were participating in the event.

For more news from The Alllied Group, click here!

Who they Are

The Allied Group was founded in Providence, Rhode Island in 1946. The primary document production facility is still located in the original building at 333 Bucklin Street.

During the 1980’s Allied (then Allied Business Forms) expanded into inventory management services. By producing forms less often and storing them at our warehouse, we were able to give clients “just-in-time” delivery without worrying about running out.

Starting in the early 1990’s, Allied greatly diversified and added new products and services through growth and acquisition. These included: Commercial and digital printing, promotional products, on-line Internet solutions and mailing and fulfillment services.

Today, Allied is recognized as one of the area’s top direct marketing agencies and leading provider of one-stop marketing management, document and information management services, all done under one roof. We have complete solutions for printed and electronic document/workflow processes, marketing services including client acquisition and retention programs, billing, and sophisticated fulfillment management.

For more information please visit www.thealliedgrp.com