You’ve probably noticed that your mailbox is a little emptier lately – and it’s because marketers have largely written off direct mail as an expensive, antiquated and ineffective marketing tactic. But is it? With less paper to sort through, it would seem that a piece of paper with personalized messaging sent straight to your physical address would catch your attention. Bombarded with hundreds of digital ads per week across social channels, websites and digital displays, we’ve become numb to them – but a piece of direct mail? Now, that’s pretty unique!
In 2021, the U.S. Postal Service saw the second lowest advertising mail volume since 2007 – with 66.2 billion units sent. That’s about one piece of advertising mail every two days. Compare that with a single visit to Facebook – you may see 20 ads as you scroll each time you log in. Marketers are realizing that direct mail has become a viable brand communication channel, for the simple reason that there is less competition, and that consumers are far more likely to look at or read a piece of physical mail than to click on a digital ad.
How much more likely? Marketing Sherpa surveyed 2,400 consumers to learn what advertising channels they trust for making purchasing decisions. A whopping 76% said they trust direct mail over digital channels.
What’s more, according to the 2018 Data & Marketing Association (DMA) Response Rate report, direct mail had an average response rate of 9% for house lists and 4.9% for prospect lists. Among younger consumers (ages 18-21), the response rate for direct mail is 12.4%. Compare this with the average clickthrough rate of 1.19% for digital ads, and you can understand why direct mail is making a comeback.
Why is receiving a piece of direct mail so alluring? There are several reasons:
- It’s unique: Fewer marketers are investing in direct mail these days, so if you leverage this channel, you’re likely to stand out. Plus, the noise on digital channels is loud. Many consumers simply scroll right past ads as they navigate social channels and websites. By contrast, the DMA reports that 2% of direct mail recipients either read or scan the mail they receive.
- It’s less intrusive: Digital ads are in your face, and there’s no escaping them. They can also be unsettling in their timing and accuracy. Try searching for a new mattress on Google, and for the next several days, you’re sure to be pummeled with mattress ads, even if you’ve already made a purchase. With direct mail, you receive one ad, and you can read it or toss it in the trash – it’s up to you. No one will know whether you read it or not, and you won’t receive a barrage of mail from competitors.
- Strong ROI: Historically, marketers have associated direct mail with high costs and low ROI, but that’s simply false. A 2018 direct mail report revealed that 57% of consumers open addressed mail envelopes, 48.5% look at what it is, 24.5% keep it to read later, and 1.6% of the recipients put it in the open for display.
- Science: Not to get too technical, but consumers trust direct mail because they can touch it and feel it. Neuromarketing experts discovered that the tactile nature of a direct mail piece has a positive correlation with our ability to recall the content.
How to Create Impactful Direct Mail that Drives Conversions
So, how do you leverage direct mail in your campaigns today alongside digital ads, display ads, email and other marketing tactics? One way is to leverage Tactile Marketing Automation (TMA) print-on-demand and fulfillment technology, which can be integrated with popular marketing automation systems such as Eloqua, Marketo and Salesforce. TMA enables you to send personalized direct mail with QR codes and links to personalized websites as part of a comprehensive campaign. PFL is one provider, and you can learn more about how it works by listening to this episode of DemandGen Radio.
Regardless of what methods you use to send direct mail to consumers or prospects, it’s important to keep these three tips in mind:
- Know your audience: When sending direct mail, segmentation is key. The USPS reports that 88% of Millennials look through their mail and find the information they receive by mail more useful than what they receive via email. They’re also more likely than other age groups to take action. Perhaps your older prospects would be more responsive to an email or TV ad, and you can save your tangible mailers for the younger folks.
- Personalize your outreach: Salesforce reports that 63% of millennials and 58% of Gen Xers will share information with companies in exchange for personalized offers and discounts. They actually WANT to receive your offers – and are likely to accept them if they get one in their mailbox, particularly if it’s personalized and relevant. Be careful to personalize as much as you can – the timing, the format, the message and even the offer. Personalized calls to action convert recipients 202% better than non-personalized calls to action.
- Follow up & measure: Direct mail can make a cold prospect a warm lead, so follow-up is critical. Now that you’ve gotten their attention and they recognize your brand, a call or email could be quite effective at pushing them over the edge to conversion. Just as you would any digital or display ad, make sure to measure the success of mailing, so you can fine tune it for future sends.
Maybe you put your direct mail strategy on the backburner, but now could be a great time to consider reviving your direct mail programs. After all, as marketers it’s our job to use creative forms of communication that are out of the box, or in this case, out of the mailbox.
The post Direct Mail Is Back, and Here to Stay – Here’s Why appeared first on DemandGen.
