Your customer’s direct mail is not effective if their recipients don’t read it. The first thing that direct mail needs to do is get noticed. This can be a real challenge. Direct mail is a very effective tool when done correctly. Do you help your customers stand out? The golden rule is list, design, and offer, generally in that order. However, if you stop to think about it, there is a reason for the golden rule. You need to help your customers send mail to the people who want it. Here are 5 ideas to get your direct mail campaign noticed: 1. Variable data messaging: Target the message to the individual or to grouped personas. 2. Use color envelopes: Color is inviting and not used often enough. 3. Use stamps: Many direct mail pieces use indicia’s for postage. 4. Use larger pieces: They can use up to a 6 x 10.5 self-mailer or a 6.125 x 11.5 postcard and still pay the lower letter size postage rate. 5. Add fun taglines: Get recipients excited about what they are going to find in the envelope.

A lot of ink has been spilled over the years about the critical role paper selection plays in direct mail marketing campaigns. This blog post isn’t about that. For one thing, it’s a big subject that deserves entire webinars, conference sessions, and content pieces. And samples, lots of them! So size, weight, finishes, sustainability, and of course, budget will have to wait. For another, I want to talk more broadly about recognizing how paper can be sustainable as well as inspiring. As something of a papertarian, I know how paper can fire up the imaginations of marketers, creators, and consumers everywhere. But up until a few years ago, I didn’t know much about the positive story about paper as a renewable resource. Sure, I recycled as much as possible personally, but there was so much I had to learn When the Paper + Packaging Board was established, I started to follow its promotional campaigns. I especially liked “How Life Unfolds,” which offered information and guidance to the public about paper and packaging usage and recycling. The video ads were especially effective in providing ideas for recycling everything from pet food bags to mail. And the Faces of the Forest series gave quick profiles about people in forest management at ground level. That’s a perspective often missed in discussions about sustainability. I’ve written previously about the Temple University studies about how advertising is more effective on paper compared to digital channels, often making it a smart choice. Combined with more awareness about innovations in paper vs. plastic (and its environmental impact), it became more apparent to me that paper is a responsible choice as well.

Gains in Scholastic’s children’s book publishing and distribution, as well as international groups, offset declines in the company’s entertainment and educational solution units, resulting in a 1% increase in revenue in the quarter ended November 30, 2025, with sales rising to $551.1 million. Lower costs, which included a reduction in discretional overhead expenses in the children’s book publishing and distribution segment as well as lower distribution costs, helped to boost operating income to $82.9 million from $74.7 million a year ago, an 11% increase. In the children’s publishing group, trade sales increased 7%, to $110.4 million, Scholastic reported in its financial announcement, helped by the release of the 14th title in the Dog Man series, Big Jim Believes, and continued success in the Hunger Games and Harry Potter franchises. Book fairs revenues were $242 million, up 5% from the prior year period, Scholastic reported, driven by increased fair count and revenue per fair.