ace hardware | direct mail
Annually Ace Hardware sends over 119 million direct mail pieces to their 58 million+ Ace Rewards members. Most mailers are digitally printed and art is created with variability in mind as customers receive tailored mailers depending on their region and shopping history.
Above is an example of one mailer version that is customized based on the region in which a customer lives. Of the 7-12 mailer versions released monthly, several are typically varied by region or by purchase history requiring several sets of artwork to be created.
Creative Brief | Data Merge | Process Creation
In 2022 I was brought to the Direct Mail team to help streamline the efficiency of the creative process from beginning to end and ensure high levels of accuracy while reducing time spent creating creative briefs as well as designing. After gathering information from all involved parties I designed a proprietary system that allowed Ace Rewards Business Partners to submit a creative brief using a visually-formatted Excel Spreadsheet that directly fed their input into our InDesign files through Data Merge thereby eliminating any back-and-forth and insuring complete accuracy in file creation, naming, and export for print. This new layered process eliminated an average of 20 hours spent per project freeing up the design team to create excellent work rather than wasting time deciphering a Word Document Creative Brief and constantly double-checking for accuracy. I was honored to receive the 2023 Creatives in Their Element Award for the success of the rollout of this new system.
Targeted offer direct mailers
Use the arrows to preview some examples of targeted offer direct mail pieces I’ve designed!