Chapel Hill Archives • Our Town America, Inc.

Des Moines Volunteer Wins $3,000 from Marketing Franchise | NBC

Written by Brittany N. Johnson

2023 New Mover Survey Winner Beth Vitiritto, Our Town America Marketing Drawing

NBC Hello Iowa — A local Des Moines woman known for giving back is getting more than she ever expected in return. Beth Vitiritto, who relocated last year, has become quite a familiar face in the Ankeny community. Beth inspires the younger generation in her everyday work as a teacher, serves on the Iowa board, frequently contributes to local causes and volunteers whenever she can. Beth is the kind of person who pours her all into everything she does and deserves the world but would never ask for it. The type of person who, even when faced with cancer, woke up every day with a positive attitude and a smile. So, when Beth’s name was drawn to win $3,000 amongst tens of thousands of people nationwide, it seemed more like Good Karma than luck. New Mover Welcome Package The drawing Beth entered is the Our Town America Annual New Mover Survey Drawing. She was entered by providing feedback on local businesses who welcomed her into the Des Moines area through Our Town America’s New Mover Package. The package welcomes residents who have just moved into their new neighborhood and introduces them to nearby reputable businesses with free one-time-use housewarming Gift Certificates. Little Ceasars Ankeny, Portofino Italian Ristorante, The Chicken Coop, and ACE Hardware were among the businesses that welcomed Beth to the area. “I used a Gift Certificate right away and took a friend out to lunch!,” Vitiritto said. Beth says that Our Town America’s Welcome Package played a significant role in helping her feel immediately connected and informed about the community. “The support network is incredible,” she says. “From local businesses to community events, everything is designed to help newcomers integrate smoothly and feel at home.” “Our package helps people get settled in, find their way around and get connected with local businesses,” said Tim McGrath, Our Town America of Iowa franchise owner. “In addition to being an aid for new movers, our franchise is a marketing resource for local businesses. We’ve been helping businesses thrive by bringing them new customers for over 50 years,” said McGrath. “It’s a feel-good business that I’m proud to be a part of.” Community Impact Local TV show Hello Iowa hosted Beth, McGrath, and Little Caesars Ankeny store owners Katrina and Brad Loney in-studio to hear this heartwarming story. As expected, Our Town America presented Beth with her $3,000 winnings and, to nobody’s surprise, Beth’s students and friends joined the event to support her. In the spirit of supporting the local community, on behalf of Beth and her late father, former Ankeny Chief of Police for 30 years, Our Town America donated $500 to the Ankeny Police Foundation. Additionally, Katrina and Brad of Little Caesars Ankeny, who are also known locally for their volunteer efforts, donated $500 to the John Stoddard Cancer Center on Beth’s behalf as well. Our Town America and Little Caesars of Ankeny are honored to have had the opportunity to give to someone so deserving. Press play below for the full Hello Iowa interview. Our Town America supports small businesses across the nation 365 days per year. Iowa businesses looking to gain new customers, can contact franchise owner Tim McGrath at (515) 240-6845. Businesses in all other U.S. states can contact Our Town America HQ at (727)345-0811 to be connected with your local representative. Brittany N. JohnsonBrittany is the head of Our Town America’s corporate marketing department. She specializes in digital and print media, social media, and public relations. […]

How to Build a Direct Mailing List that Converts

Written by Brittany N. Johnson

How to Build a Direct Mailing List That Converts Our Town America

An accurate direct mailing list is very important if you want to effectively market your company to both potential and current customers. In the age where digital advertising is very prevalent, studies show direct mail can give your company a distinct and meaningful competitive advantage. In 2019, the U.S. Postal Service teamed up with Temple University to prove this. The study found that printed ads, like direct mail postcards or letters, are the best way to create an emotional connection with a customer. There are various options available for business owners who are looking for an accurate and effective direct mailing list, and they each offer different things. The first, and cheapest, is to build a list yourself. This is done manually by plugging in the address of your business and choosing area routes, streets, and blocks to target. Putting together this type of direct mailing list is challenging and time consuming, and you also have to consider additional costs involved from start to finish including design, print and postage. The most common way of acquiring an accurate direct mailing list is to purchase one from a company that specializes in them. These companies use data to create lists that can target different ages, purchase preferences and even professions. Figuring out the right target audience for your specific business is often a challenge. However, targeting people who have recently moved to a new home is a great way to narrow down your direct mailing list. This method gets your business in front of people who are looking for their new go-to stores, restaurants, hair salons, dentists, etc. near their new homes – a critical target audience for any business hoping to create loyal, long term relationships with customers Our Town America uses a new mover mailing list backed by decades of data that saves businesses time and money. Our associated new mover program takes the guess work out of direct mail and reaches those people who are new to town before they establish a connection with any of your competitors. Our Town America’s new mover direct mail lists are incredibly accurate, making the process more efficient and cost effective. For example, each month, Our Town America gets lists of every individual who has filed some sort of address change in the past 30 days. Our Town America then takes that list and filters out any duplicate names and addresses creating a direct mailing list that is about 95 percent accurate. While mailing lists are never perfect, Our Town America works to make sure its new mover mailing list is as precise as possible, eliminating wasteful spending. Our Town America doesn’t stop once the list is complete. The new mover program includes designing, printing, and shipping each direct mail piece. This amounts to a stress-free process for any busy business owner who doesn’t have the time to stick labels and stamps on hundreds of postcards, or the expertise to design those postcards. Direct mailing lists can be an excellent way for a business of any size to attract new customers and build brand loyalty. Our Town America’s direct mail marketing program is THE all-inclusive program that gets results for businesses while saving valuable time and money. Are you ready to stop wasting time and money on self-starter direct mail marketing campaigns so you have more time to spend on running your business and building meaningful relationships? We’re here to help at Our Town America. For more information, visit ourtownamerica.com today. Brittany N. JohnsonBrittany is the head of Our Town America’s corporate marketing department. She specializes in digital and print media, social media, and public relations. […]