Marketers have been hyper-focused on digital strategies over the past decade, overlooking the value of physical mail as a powerful marketing tool. Now that marketing messages, promotional content, and brand newsletters constantly flood our email inboxes, it’s harder to stand out and get noticed —or even read.
Direct mail offers a more powerful, effective, and longer-lasting impact than email. Recent studies have shown that direct mail marketing is making a comeback, as it provides a uniquely tangible and more personal way to reach customers.
Seventy-four percent of marketers believe that direct mail provides a higher response rate and better return on investment than digital marketing tactics, including email. As a result, many businesses are prioritizing direct mail in their budgets and incorporating it into their overall marketing strategy.
Let’s take an in-depth look at the idea that direct mail may be the best marketing tool for reaching potential consumers.
The Stats Don’t Lie
Direct mail has a response rate of 4.4% and continues to increase yearly, while email only has an average response rate of 0.6%. That’s a huge difference! When you send a direct mail piece to a prospect, you’re much more likely to get a response as opposed to sending them an email.
This, however, does not mean digital marketing has lost its value. Email marketing is still a highly effective marketing tactic when used effectively. The most successful businesses adopt an omnichannel strategy, combining both direct and digital marketing. This combination can boost response rates by 63%, while the return on investment sees up to a 60% increase!
Direct Mail Is Less Likely to Land in the Junk Folder
Direct mail is perfect for creating engaging and influential campaigns for your business. Through memorable mailers, personalized approaches, and the ability to drive action, direct mail proves time and time again to be an effective form of marketing.
Here’s why more marketers are turning to direct mail over email campaigns:
- Memorable: Receiving a piece of mail is very tactile and memorable. Consumers are more likely to remember a beautiful, printed piece in the mail that they can hold in their hands rather than yet another email from a crowded inbox.
- Personal: With direct mail, you can customize your messaging for each recipient, making the customer feel special and more connected to your brand. That level of personalization can be more effective than a one-size-fits-all email campaign.
- Creative: One of the biggest advantages of direct mail is that you can be creative in how you present your business. From paper stock and size, to colors and finishes, direct mail provides more design flexibility and style to better reflect your brand.
- Drives action: Studies have shown that direct mail produces more responses and conversions than email, making it a powerful marketing tool. Tailor-made mail pieces are more likely to drive customers to take action and convert, providing the extra motivation customers need to respond.
- Effective targeting: Get the right message to the right people with direct mail, making sure you use your time and resources wisely. Target specific demographics and behaviors, or focus on local zip codes.
Direct mail will continue to be an effective marketing tool for its attention to detail, impactful messaging, and lasting effects.
If you want to start delivering personal customer experiences that increase engagement and inspire brand loyalty, contact our expert marketing team to learn how to incorporate direct mail into your marketing mix!