Have you ever wondered how a direct mail marketing strategy could help your business? Well, believe it or not, good old direct mail is still one of the most powerful ways to reach new customers and keep in touch with existing ones.
It’s a great way to get people talking about your brand, drive traffic to your website, increase sales, and more!
There are many benefits that come from having a direct mail strategy for your business, especially since most marketing noise these days is focused online. So, using old-school tactics can really get you some serious visibility.
If you want to know what makes this type of marketing so effective, read on. We’ll tell you all about it right here.
1. A Direct Mail Marketing Strategy Is Cost-Effective
One of the most practical, and cost-effective ways to market your business is by direct mail advertising. It can definitely be a powerful asset when trying to reach out and get in contact with your ideal customer.
The general rule of thumb for running an ad campaign via direct mail marketing is that each piece should usually fall under $1, allowing you to send out bulk postcards or promotional flyers to capture your customer’s attention.
As long as you source the right printing company, you will be able to receive high-quality printed materials in large quantities at a very low price!
2. Easy and Fast and No Technical Know-How Required
Direct mailing is easy; making it perfect for anyone who isn’t tech-savvy. No one wants to have to hire a developer or IT team just for the purpose of designing and implementing a direct mail campaign.
This approach would definitely cost you more than what it’s worth. Luckily, there are plenty of DIY sites that can aid you in creating your own direct mailing postcard designs such as Catdi.com.
This allows you to create personalized ads at no extra cost! So save yourself the hassle and time by using these free services.
3. Statistics Prove That It Works
According to this article by the Direct Marketing Association: “98% of consumers questioned said they had taken action after receiving direct mail – such as visiting a website, phoning in or purchasing a product”.
This proves that even though we live in a digital age, direct mailing is still very effective. This medium continues to be one of the most tested and proven ways to capture your potential customer’s attention.
4. Your Customers Are Still Using It
If you’re like most people, you probably toss out junk mail without reading it; however, it’s interesting to note that 52% of consumers read their mail every day.
It’s even more impressive if you consider that Americans spend, on an average day, about 17-28 minutes reading email, with 30% checking email at least once per hour!
But why do these numbers seem so disproportionate? It’s simple really; there is nothing personal about an email message.
Our daily lives are inundated with emails from everyone from friends and family members, to newsletters and unsolicited messages from businesses.
In contrast, postal mail is a personal message from a particular business or individual, making direct mail more immediate and easier to digest.
5. It’s Cost-Effective in the Long Run
In today’s economy, it seems like everything is going digital. But that crazy thing is, that almost half of all US adults still prefer paper books over e-books.
It might surprise you to learn that even though paper book sales continue to decline by about 1% each year, there are actually more books being printed than ever before!
So if people are buying books without moving away from their comfort zones, why would they change the way they obtain information when it comes to advertising?
6. It’s No Surprise That People Love to Collect Things
Whether it be stamps, coins or even fruit, people love to collect things. We like to keep our possessions forever (or as long as possible), which is why marketers use this mindset to their advantage by offering incentives through direct mail campaigns.
According to the USPS, more than 55 million Americans are active members of collector clubs.
The average age of a collector in the US is 44 years old; with 75% of them being male and 25% female. It’s also worth noting that 78% of all collectors have attended college and 51% have earned a postgraduate degree!
These are the people who are shaping our world, so it only makes sense to target them.
7. It’s Personal
There is just something about receiving a letter that cannot be replaced by an email. A handwritten note or even a postcard shows that you put some thought into your direct mailing campaign.
It shows you made the extra effort to communicate with someone personally, which goes far in today’s world of indifference.
People appreciate being acknowledged by their favorite brands too, so this can definitely give you an edge if you have loyal customers. A personalized text message might also do the trick!
8. You Can Target Specific Demographics
Most businesses aren’t able to send out thousands upon thousands of advertisements at once. Therefore sending out a few hundred letters (or postcards) to specific demographics within your area is most effective.
It’s certainly more effective than sticking with mass-market advertising. It’s like watching a game of chess; think several steps ahead and you’ll be on the right track.
Direct mail allows you to do this, especially if you choose to send out letters or coupons that can only be used in your store.
9. Improved Data Collection
Everything is going mobile, and marketers are now able to collect demographic data from social media sites, making it easier for them to send the right message at the right time using direct mail.
Additionally, since people spend a lot of time online, they often use their smartphones when shopping online.
First, they Google their potential purchase before finally buying it from the website that has the best deal, and this is why Google started their own delivery service known as Google Shopping Express.
If you can’t beat them, join them!
10. It Builds Trust
Remember when we talked about how people love to collect things? Well, one thing they collect is memories, and your direct mail strategy should be designed with memory building in mind.
People want to relive experiences and emotions whenever they go shopping; and what better way for a small business owner to connect with his or her customers than by offering them something memorable…like coupons!
Remember those stamps we mentioned earlier? Now’s the time to use them- send out postcards with an unforgettable picture on them.
Don’t forget that keywords such as ‘exclusive’ and ‘limited time offer’ can also help impress customers and serve to build trust between businesses and customers.
11. It’s Inexpensive
Direct mail campaigns are relatively inexpensive, especially when you consider the benefits they provide. For example, did you know that social media marketing is only effective for 5% of your customers?
That’s a lot of money wasted on advertising that isn’t going to work!
With direct mail, however, statistics show that a 1-time targeted mailing costs an average of $38 while getting a one percent response requires spending $123 or more.
This makes sense since people usually bookmark websites that have the best deals on their favorite products, so it would be wise to advertise in this manner if your target audience spends time looking for deals while online.
12. It’s Easy to Measure
The beauty of using direct mail marketing is that it has several built-in benefits, one of which is that you can measure your return on investment with ease.
You see, the moment someone responds to your advertisements, all you have to do is follow up!
Since most people who visit malls are there specifically for shopping, you’re sure to get them caught in the act if they happen to be nearby when you bring out your mobile shop.
Use social media to determine where they like to spend their time and chances are they’ll spend some money at your once it catches their eye…and since social media posts last for only 6-18 hours, you’ll need to act fast!
13. It’s Personal
We talked about personalization earlier when we mentioned that companies are now spending more money on targeted advertisements than non-targeted ones.
Direct mail is one of the most effective ways to achieve this goal because it allows you to send letters and coupons directly to your consumers as opposed to casting a wide net with general ads which can be off-putting.
The key here is that if people receive postcards from businesses they’ve been affiliated with before, they’re likely going to feel a sense of loyalty towards them which would make them want to return.
Not only do personalized ads help create a positive first impression, but they also help a company develop a long-term relationship with customers!
With social media, forget about being able to post advertisements whenever you please – even if it takes a while for your message to spread there isn’t any guarantee that it will be successful!
With direct mail, however, since most flyers expire in just 3 days, you can change your advertisement as many times as you want until your desired response rate is achieved.
Let’s say for example that you want to attract more customers to your new ‘organic’ product line…it would make sense to send out flyers that tout the benefits of organic food.
Just mail them once or twice a week, and this is a direct mail campaign that is sure to pay off!
14. It’s Fun
You might be wondering why we haven’t mentioned social media yet, and the reason is that it isn’t as fun to use as traditional marketing where you can send out postcards and letters via snail mail.
In fact, direct mail campaigns have been proven to be 54 times more effective than e-mail marketing! So really ask yourself this: what makes people more likely to remember your brand?
Would it be being online or being offline? Using Internet ads or using traditional postcards? We think it’s pretty clear how much work goes into developing a website.
After all, you need certain skills like coding and SEO to make sure the site has adequate traffic, but our point is that traditional marketing has its benefits for both the business and the customer.
So with this in mind, it’s important to consider whether or not you should add this method into your campaign before exploring online strategies.
Tired of getting lost in a sea of competitors? Try Direct Mail Marketing! With more than 2000-years of success, direct mail is one of the most powerful ways to get people’s attention, even today!
So, Is Direct Mail A Good Fit For You?
In the digital age, it’s easy to forget about some of the more traditional forms of marketing and marketing tips. One such forgotten form is direct mail.
Though it may seem like an antiquated way to reach customers, direct mail can still be an incredibly effective means of communication and persuasion.
There are many benefits of having a direct mail marketing strategy, which we’ll explore in this post. So why should you consider using direct mail in your business?
Let’s take a look!
Direct mail allows for personalization: With digital marketing, you only have so much space to work with when it comes to personalizing your message for each individual customer. With physical mail, you can include all sorts of extra goodies that help.
You can also use a direct mail marketing strategy to boost sales by offering coupons or discounts for products or services that will entice new buyers into making purchases they might not otherwise make online or through other channels.
And because it’s delivered directly into someone’s hands (or inbox), there’s no need for them to search out information about your company – they already have it!
This means less time spent educating consumers on why they should buy from you instead of another company which saves both time and money while increasing conversions at the same time!
That sounds pretty good if we do say so ourselves…and we just did!
So let us show you how easy it is to implement these strategies yourself today by clicking this link now and checking out our blog!
