Does direct mail still work? Let’s look at a dozen reasons why I confidently say YES!
Second only to a personal introduction from a friend or family; direct mail may be the single most effective marketing tool in a company’s marketing toolbox.
1. According to Gallup, 41% of Americans of all ages look forward to checking their mail each day. Though older generations are more likely to say they enjoy getting mail, 36% of Americans under 30 also feel this way.
2. USPS tells us 58% of the mail American households receive is marketing mail. Although fewer people exchange letters in the digital era. Since the direct mail industry accounts for almost 60% of the mail US households receive, this stat reinforces the previous one. If people mostly get marketing mail and are still looking forward to it, that’s great news for you.
3. Again according to the USPS; the average American household receives 454 pieces of marketing mail per year.
4. 59% of US respondents say they enjoy getting mail from brands about new products. That’s according to Epsilon.
5. 42.2% of direct mail recipients either read or scan the mail they get according to the DMA (Data & Marketing Association). Email might be cheaper, but it’s easily ignored. Direct mail will get read, or at least scanned by your target audience. The DMA, reveals that 42.2% of direct mail recipients go through the material you send. Only 22.8% say they don’t read it at all.
6. Advertising mail is kept in a household for 17 days on average. If you were wondering why direct mail works, here’s your answer. If mail sits around for 17 days, all members of the household have plenty of time to review it and take action.
7. Direct mail recipients purchased 28% more items and spent 28% more money than people who didn’t get that piece of direct mail. I don’t know how the USPS knows that one, but it sounds good and who doesn’t trust the post office?
8. 73% of American consumers say they prefer being contacted by brands via direct mail because they can read it whenever they want. Again, that’s according to Epsilon.
9. 50.9% of recipients say they find postcards useful. The fact they don’t come in an envelope means virtually all postcards get read. Combine this with DMA’s stat that half of consumers find postcards useful and you’ll understand why postcard marketing is possibly the most effective direct mail method available. According to the DMA
10. Up to 90% of direct mail gets opened, compared to only 20-30% of emails according to the DMA. My own personal research shows that “up to” number can be interpreted in many ways depending on the message and presentation, but for this discussion, more mail gets opened than not.
11. Only 44% of people can recall a brand immediately after seeing a digital ad compared to 75% of people who receive direct mail. In addition to higher open rates, direct mail also leaves a better impression on consumers. According to Marketing Profs’ direct mail statistics, three-quarters of consumers are able to recall a brand after receiving a piece of direct mail.
12. I love this stat. Direct mail requires 21% less cognitive effort to process than email. That’s according to the Canada Post. And I’ll refrain from making jokes about Canadians since the last time I did, my cousins up there took offense. But it is yet another perk of direct mail. It’s much easier for consumers to understand than email, contributing to the longer-lasting brand recall associated with direct mail. The absence of additional clutter surrounding email makes direct mail simpler to process than email.
When people read an ad sent via email, they can often get distracted by other open tabs or pop-up ads. But when they read direct mail they can focus solely on that task and that task is you! Marketing Profs tell us 57% of email addresses are abandoned because the users receive too many marketing emails.
Getting through to customers via email can prove challenging. When consumers start receiving too many unwanted emails they simply abandon that email address and create a new one. It costs them nothing and it makes a lot of dead leads for marketers. Direct mailing lists, however, are more reliable. After all, people don’t move their house because their mailbox is overflowing.
All of this evidence means one thing – Direct mail is still one of the most powerful marketing tools to be found in your marketing toolbox and TargetLeads is your professional team to help you utilize that tool. We help carriers, agencies, and agents just like you reach out to your perfect prospect and begin a profitable relationship.