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And you thought Direct Mail was dead.

November 01, 2011 by Ekaterina Moustafina
4 comment

Do you remember what you did yesterday evening right before opening your home door? Exactly: you opened your mail box. And if you are just like most of us, you probably pulled out a huge amount of colourful papers with some grey bill envelopes sandwiched in-between. I ended up with a handful of flyers and it got me thinking: if I alone receive so many of these in one evening, what are the numbers throughout the country. Hence if the numbers are so big, there must be a reason why businesses are still using direct mail.

ImageAs a matter of fact just in the US alone more is spent on direct mail than email and mobile search combined. Even in a developed country such as the US, not everyone has a computer, but everyone has a mailbox. Think that email is cheaper? According to DMA 2011 Statistical Fact Book a catalog lead costs $47.61, while email comes in at $53.85 per lead, and, what is more, the response rate to direct mail has consistently been three times higher than email.

Still not convinced direct mail is alive and kicking?! When you open your mail box, what do you look at first? In between your bills and bank statements, a beautifully designed piece of direct mail has that strong presence and compels you to look at it.

Even before putting those mailers in the recycling, I scan them quickly to see if there isn’t something interesting I am missing out on and make myself a mental note to search it online afterwards. It’s in your hands and it takes only a second to view the content. A direct mail piece is an invitation: would you ever send a marriage invitation by email? We really hope not. Direct mail is still a great communication tool and, with the right design and idea can achieve fantastic results.

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Comments


Jim David
November 14, 2011
Thanks Ekaterina for pointing out how marketers need to take a closer look at direct mail in their marketing mix.
Reply


Ekaterina Moustafina
November 14, 2011
> Thanks Ekaterina for pointing out how marketers need to take a closer look at direct mail in their marketing mix.
Thanks Jim, it is an effective marketing tool indeed and should not be overlooked.
Reply



Jay
December 02, 2011
So true, Ekaterina. We here at ChoosePrint.org have some great videos that support your points. We all need to get the word out about the value and power of print.
http://youtube.com/ChoosePrintTV
Reply


Anton Deinekin
December 02, 2011
> So true, Ekaterina. We here at ChoosePrint.org have some great videos that support your points. We all need to get the word out about the value and power of print.
> http://youtube.com/ChoosePrintTV
Jay,
Great content on the ChoosePrintTV youtube channel. Thanks for sharing.
Reply


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