My husband rarely opens the mail. This is not a complaint; it’s just a fact.

But over the weekend we received a direct mail piece that enticed him enough to not just want to open it, but actually act on it.

The piece was an invitation (of all things) to an designer gala at a luxury jeweler in central Ohio where — mind you — my husband once bought a piece of jewelry some 20+ years ago.

My husband simply does not buy jewelry. Again, not a complaint, just fact.

So for him to open up the invitation was stunning to me. The copy on the outside wasn’t particularly appealing –  it simply says “Designers’ Gala.”

What, then, I inquired, made him grab it and open it?

“I dunno. It just looked very high-end,” he said.

Mmm. Interesting.

Here’s a scan of the front and back side (imagine it folded in half and addressed in the white space).

According to this oldie-but-goodie feature story from DM News, this type of high-end direct mail piece timed around the Thanksgiving season for this particular industry is well worth the $4-5 per-piece investment (and maybe even more $).

My take?

While my husband did, indeed, open the direct mail piece because of its high-end feel; and while he did, indeed, consider going to the event, at least momentarily …

… the piece could have been made even stronger with the addition of benefit-driven copy on the outside flap and relegating the “Designers’ Gala” to a watermark or graphic element.

Personally, I’m not a fan. Depending on the recipient, such luxe packaging with an invitation and a separate insert with a gift-card-looking thingy could be considered very UN-green, indeed.

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