Is that a letter from Hogwarts? Unfortunately, no… Hey, but it still might be something interesting and enjoyable, like your favorite store notifying you about a big sale coming soon or a discount flyer from a local spa. When you receive these types of promotions in your mailbox, it means that these businesses went for an old but effective strategy of advertising called direct mail marketing. If you’re a business owner as well, we recommend taking this lesson and learning more about the practice that can greatly benefit your brand.
To assist you with finding information, we prepared a brief guide into direct mail campaigns, their peculiarities, tip on how to organize them, and more.
What is Direct Mail Marketing?
Let’s start by getting into the definition and the main terminology to answer the question “What is direct mail advertising?”. Here’s a complete definition and all related terms you need to know.
Direct Mail Advertising Definition
A direct mail marketing refers to a strategy of sending out tangible advertising materials, a.k.a. direct mailers, to prospective clients at their places of work or straight to their homes. It’s a type of direct marketing that enables companies to interact with prospects and consumers offline, usually by mail.
Professional marketers that use this strategy can send printed mailers, real mail, parcels, corporate merch, or other types of promotional mailers that we’re going to explore further in the article. Overall, it is a useful strategy for making a deep connection with leads, current clients, and prospects.
What is a Direct Mail in Marketing?
A direct mail is a promotional material in a physical form sent directly to customers through a postal service or a third-party mailing service that specializes in this type of advertisement. There are a lot of direct mail types and forms that marketers can use to promote brands, product and services.
Here we gathered the primary direct mail formats used in marketing so you can check and take notes for your direct mailing advertising.
- Postcards
One of the most commonly used types of direct mail. It’s easy to use, low-cost, and useful for quick offers, announcements, or reminders.
- Letters
This format is considered to be more formal in direct mail advertising. Marketers often opt for letters for fundraising, special offers, or formal correspondence. They typically include specific information.
- Brochures and Catalogs
These provide a detailed overview of goods and services. Brochures provide a summary of the products, while catalogs provide far more information. Both types are commonly used by retailers to introduce their assortments of products to the target audience.
- Dimensional Mailers
Using distinctive shapes or packaging, these three-dimensional marketing mailers are meant to draw attention. They are called “dimensional” because instead of being a flat piece of paper, they have some 3D or pop-up elements. They work in high-impact campaigns and are frequently utilized with important customers or prospects.
- Flyers
A direct mail flyer is used extensively in local distribution campaigns or as inserts for promotional materials. Flyers and leaflets are considered low-cost, lightweight materials among marketers, which makes them favorable for businesses of different industries.
- Newsletters
Printed newsletters are used to inform customers about company news, advancements, or industry information, enabling recurring communication and fostering brand loyalty.
- Self-Mailers
Folded letters that don’t need an envelope are referred to as self-mailers. These can be booklets or trifold brochures. This is a rather simple and cost-effective way to run promotional campaigns.
Direct Mail Advertising in 2024
Marketers still love direct mail marketing in 2024 because it’s a powerful tool to use for brand promotion and communication with clients. According to Association of National Advertisers (ANA), direct mail has an open rate of 80–90%, while average email open rates are 20–30%.
Other statistics also show that direct mail advertisement is effective for businesses when it comes to return on investment and other rates.
- The best ROI across all media is 112% for direct mail, followed by SMS (102%), email (93%), and sponsored search (88%).
- According to direct mail data from PostGrid, 70% of consumers believe that direct mail contacts are more intimate than internet ones.
- 35% of the respondents made a purchase after receiving direct mail items.
- After receiving an offline mail, 70% of consumers felt inspired to finish an online task.
Why Direct Mail Works in 2024
Even though this strategy might seem kind of old-fashioned at the first glance, direct mail marketing works in 2024 just as good as its digital analogue. Here are the reasons why it’s effective and why you should invest in this type of promotion.
- Memorability
The feeling of a human touch is what makes direct mail more memorable. A thoughtfully composed message can evoke emotions and help with establishing what feels like a more personal connection with your audience. Contrasting to generic messages, it works especially well when you add personalization to your mail, e.g. address a receiver by their name if you know it.
- Tangible Results
Direct mail marketing has a response rate that is 30 times higher than that of email, the most effective digital channel. As part of an integrated campaign, it can increase ROI by 20%.
- Uniqueness
Even though this strategy is effective, in the digital era, far fewer businesses allocate funds for direct marketing. The rarity of businesses using direct mail makes it beneficial for you, allowing to stand out from the crowd.
- GDPR Compliant
Direct mail does not require customers’ express permission, in contrast to emails, which must adhere to GDPR norms and regulations and request permission from the recipient. In order to deliver the mail to the customers, you must take their legitimate interests into account.
- Limitless Creativity
As we mentioned, a direct mail isn’t just a piece of paper; it can have various forms with intricate designs and creative messages. There are countless ways to amuse and excite recipients when they receive direct mail.
Direct Mailing Marketing vs Digital Marketing in 2024
Direct mail marketing is still effective in 2024 because it appeals to clients’ human sense of connection, which makes it seem less spammy and more distinctive. At the same time, because delivery and feedback times are slower, it is more costly and labor-intensive than digital methods.
Comparing direct mail with email, it’s safe to say that the latter is still a more popular method in 2024 because of affordable prices and speedy worldwide audience outreach. Using email marketing services from professional providers like Flowium enables brands to segment their consumers and provide customized messages that have a high conversion rate because of advanced tracking and customization.
Since both marketing funnels are a crucial part of an omnichannel marketing strategy, we recommend using them as complementary to each other and not mutually exclusive.
Benefits of Direct Mailing
As a result of implementing the strategy and carrying out your promotions through direct mails, you can receive the substantial advantages of direct mail marketing.
- Impactful Campaigns
Compared to digital promotions, direct mail in physical form can’t simply be ignored. There’s no magical button allowing to clean mailboxes by deleting all the unread messages, and no spam folders. Even if your receivers check their mailboxes rarely, sooner or later they’ll need to go through it, increasing the probability of response and conversion.
- Targeted Marketing
Direct mail advertising is a very powerful tool for reaching a specific audience, since it enables firms to target particular demographics or geographic areas. Businesses can improve their chances of turning prospects into customers by customizing their message for the target audience.
- Measurable Outcomes
By putting phone numbers or unique QR codes on the mailers, direct mail advertising enables companies to monitor the effectiveness of their campaigns. In this manner, companies assess the success of their initiatives and make any necessary improvements.
- High Return on Investment
When done right, direct mail advertising can yield a high ROI. By focusing on the correct audience and developing an engaging message, businesses can boost sales and achieve a noteworthy response rate.
Drawbacks of Direct Mailings
Naturally, just like any other marketing channel, direct mailing has drawback that you need to be aware of before implementing the strategy. Here’s the list of those that business owners and marketers should find solutions to if they want successful campaigns.
- Higher Costs
Compared to other digital marketing methods, direct mail is typically more expensive because it requires more money for direct mail printing, design, and delivery.
- Longer Lead Time
Direct mailings require time to prepare and deliver, which adds to the execution and response timeframes.
- Lower Targeting Precision
Direct mail can reach highly targeted groups, but it lacks the levels of segmentation and personalization that digital channels like email marketing can offer.
- Response Uncertainty
It can be challenging to monitor the efficacy of direct mail marketing. In email marketing, the tracking, analytics and reporting are carried out by email marketing platform, and each email has a tracking pixel which allows measuring campaign results fast and easy. While in direct mail advertising, marketers need to add special elements to enable response.
- Smaller Outreach
Unlike digital marketing, direct mail is geographically restricted and does not allow one to reach a large audience in other nations.
How to Do Direct Mail Marketing
Organizing the implementation of this strategy can be difficult without the help of expert direct mail marketing companies. To assist you with the task, we’ll share some useful tips for direct mail marketing.
- Define your target demographic
It’s critical to establish your target demographic prior to launching a direct mail advertising campaign. This will assist in figuring out the best way to contact them.
- Create a captivating direct mail campaign
The direct mail piece’s message needs to be succinct, clear, and powerful. It ought to highlight the advantages of the given good or service and provide an obvious call to action. The design should also have a polished and striking appearance. Make it in line with the company’s branding with top-notch photos and graphics.
- Customize the message
Adding a personal touch to the direct mail piece might make it more effective. This might be accomplished by mentioning the recipient by name or attending to their particular requirements or worries. 52% of receivers expect direct mails to be personalized.
- Send a follow-up
Getting in touch with the receiver again can help you get more chances of engagement. You can accomplish this by sending out a follow-up direct mail piece, calling, or emailing.
- Combine with digital marketing
Statistics show that the response rate can be improved by over 60%, website visits by over 60%, and leads by over 50% when digital and direct mail are coordinated.
Direct Mail Advertising Examples
Let’s look at some direct mail examples from brands that successfully employ this strategy for advertising.
Direct Mail Flyers from Kohl’s
One of the most effective ways to attract new clients by direct mail marketing is sending them mail flyers. To catch the receiver’s eye for sure, these promotions need to include some sort of incentive. Usually, businesses use flyers to notify customers and prospects about active sales and offered discounts. Some of them can even be used as a coupon that you need to show at the store to get a discount.
Of course, you also need to add creative imagery to your offer, like Kohl’s did in this direct mailer example. The company used a mailing flyer to inform the audience about their upcoming back-to-school sale while also showcasing related products.
Postcards from Things Remembered
As part of its client re-engagement effort, Things Remembered, a retail business that specializes in personalized gifts and keepsakes, issued a postcard. The timing of this direct mail postcards promotion aligned with the holiday season, when shoppers are looking for unusual and frequently personalized presents.
Direct Mail Letter from AT&T Mobility
AT&T Mobility LLC is an American telecommunications firm that is often referred to as AT&T Wireless. As part of their client acquisition strategy, AT&T Mobility sends out a direct mail letter offering its streaming service.
Dimensional Mailer from Lindenmeyr Munroe
These invites, which were customized for each recipient using variable data, were sent by Lindenmeyr Munroe to welcome back customers to their neighborhood store after initial lockdowns due to the epidemic. Pop-up cards can be intricate, but this dimensional mailer example is straightforward and reasonably priced.
Self-Mailer Direct Mail Campaign by DSW
Leading supplier of branded shoes and accessories, DSW Designer Shoe Warehouse has a variety of shoes and accessories for men, women, and children. The brand celebrated the birthdays of VIP loyalty club members by sending them direct mail postcards in this example of direct mail campaign. A $5 birthday discount offer and a QR code for easy shopping redemption are included in the postcard.
Final Thoughts
When trying to reach their target demographic, businesses can find great success with direct mail marketing. Now you know that a lot of businesses use this strategy in 2024 to boost sales and foster customer loyalty. Given its many advantages like better response rates, elevated brand recognition, and tailored messaging, we also advise adding this practice to your promotional arsenal to enhance the effects of your email marketing strategy.
On our blog, you can find more interesting articles about major funnels of omnichannel marketing including email and SMS marketing, social media promotions, and more. Check out our previous posts to be more all-rounded in the sphere of marketing.
