Loyal customers are a marketer’s best source of new sales and referrals. That’s why smart marketers treat their best customers like gold, and why earning customer loyalty is the goal of every smart marketing strategy. Except at Toyota. Their recent direct mail campaign to a loyal Toyota customer broke many of the rules of effective direct marketing and harmed a 25-year customer relationship. Here’s why this campaign failed and what Toyota should have done instead.

Savvy direct marketers are using data and digital printing technology to develop engagign creative approaches and compelling direct mail campaigns that are almost fully customized to the individual recipient. Here are five ways to use data to develop great direct mail creative.

When marketing to current or lapsed customers, it’s essential to use your knowledge of the customer — gleaned from database analysis — to deliver a direct mail package or email that acknowledges and capitalizes on the customer’s relationship with your organization.