Direct mail never died, it’s more alive than ever
Mark Twain said “The rumours of my death are greatly exaggerated.” If direct mail could talk, we’re sure it would say the same thing.
Those marketers and business owners who are worried because of the rumours that direct mail is dead, killed off by email, can relax. We’re calling fake news.
As increasing numbers of marketers turn to email for its cost advantages, direct mail is emerging as a far less cluttered channel. The consumer, under siege from email, has tuned out. Inboxes are now adept at spotting spam from a hundred paces away and the marketers message ends up in the junk folder, where it lies unseen, opened and uncared about. The good news is those same consumers are still opening letters.
Research by the Direct Marketing Association in the USA found that direct mail achieves a 4.4% response rate compared to 0.12% for email. Overall, it found that direct mail’s response rates can be anywhere from 10 to 30 times higher than digital.
In the UK, a study undertaken by the UK Royal Mail, The Private Life of Mail, found that “Giving, receiving and handling tangible objects remain deep and intuitive parts of the human experience” – and this directly led to a better effectiveness that digital.
Their US counterparts, the U.S. Post Office discovered that study participants had similar attention on both digital and physical ads, however, people that saw the physical ad showed more excitement and a greater level of desire for the offer.
In Australia, direct mail is increasingly effective because it’s not as competitive as other channels. Direct Mail Corporation has deep experience in managing direct mail campaigns for some of Australia’s most trusted brands.
Give our friendly, expert team a call on 1300 337 100 to discuss your direct mail campaign needs.