In the digital realm, personalization in advertising is extremely important. Many people grow frustrated with advertisements that are not personalized and tailored toward them. On the email side of digital, LinkedIn Pulse reports that advertisers will typically see a 20% lift in revenue when they personalize their advertisements. Direct mail is also a perfect opportunity to personalize your advertisements to customers, as it has the highest response rate and return on investment of any marketing channel. Let’s take a look at how you can personalize your direct mail advertisements and utilize that channel to reach your target customers.
The Stats Behind Using Direct Mail To Reach Your Target Customers
Personalized direct mail is among the most effective ways to reach your target customer base. Not only do people read their direct mail each day, but most Americans look forward to seeing what is in their mailbox every day. Many customers prefer to learn about products and services through direct mail.
- According to the Direct Marketing Association (DMA), the response rate of direct mail for retail is 5.3%, compared to just 0.6% for email.
- A study conducted by Epsilon showed that 77% of consumers sort through their physical mail as soon as they receive it, with 44% scanning through it immediately.
- The DMA found that 73% of consumers prefer being contacted by brands via direct mail, compared to just 18% who prefer email.
- Research by Experian shows that 80-90% of direct mail is opened, while only 20-30% of emails are even opened.
- A survey by Gallup shows that 36% of consumers feel that direct mail is the most trusted form of marketing communication.
- The Data & Marketing Association states that the median ROI of direct mail campaigns is 29%, higher than paid search (23%) and online display advertising (16%).
- A study by the USPS found that 47% of millennials check their physical mailbox regularly and enjoy checking their mail.
The research shows that direct mail is a way to reach customers, as it is still a trusted form of communication. It also has a much better response rate and return on investment than digital marketing campaigns, ranging from social media advertising to email marketing.
How Do You Personalize a Direct Mail Campaign?
Research Your Target Demographic
Personalization is an essential part of direct mail marketing that starts when you start your customer research process. In addition to finding a targeted audience in a certain geographic area, you want to carefully research your target audience during the list generation process. Many direct mail campaigns can be tailored by the following types of demographics:
- New home ownership or new home rental: This demographic might likely yield new customers for your business, as these are new people in an area in need of products and services.
- Income and other wealth demographics: Generating a mailing list based on financial status can help you target a campaign if you offer luxury goods and services.
- Family demographics: Targeting families can work particularly well if you are a dentist or healthcare provider.
- Vehicle Ownership: If you are using a mailing list and are an automotive dealer, finding families with an older vehicle can help target those who might be looking to purchase a new vehicle.
There are multiple ways to find ideal candidates for a direct mail marketing campaign that will help your business reach the right customers.
Crafting Your Value Proposition
You can further personalize your direct mailing campaign by creating a unique value proposition for your customers. Be sure to analyze your competition to see how they are positioning themselves in the industry. This will allow you to differentiate your offering and make your selling proposition truly unique for your customers.
A sales copywriter can help your business craft a value proposition that focuses on the benefits of your product or services. Speaking to the emotions of why your target audience needs your organization’s products and services will help you get better ROI on your direct mail marketing campaign. For images, a professional photographer can help you take pictures of your business’s products or services to add a personal touch. Lastly, a designer can help you tie the messaging and imagery together in your direct mail marketing campaign.
Timing and Executing Your Campaign
Direct mail tends to receive better responses when it is received in the middle of the week. Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays have the best response rates according to research done by various groups, with Tuesday being the best day. Direct mail that is received at the beginning of the week or on weekends, might not get looked at right away. Every Door Direct Mail tends to go out in one day, so this will help you time which day you send it.
Make Sure Your Business Is Prepared To Handle Direct Mail Responses
When the direct mail marketing campaign goes out, you might be trying to attract website visits, phone calls, or physical foot traffic to your business. If you are sending out a direct mail campaign, here are a few things to consider:
- Have a dedicated phone number and dedicated representative for your business to handle incoming calls from the direct mail campaign.
- Make sure that your organization has a landing page on your website if you are utilizing direct mail to bring people to your website.
- For foot traffic, make sure that your business has some signage in place that aligns with the direct mail value proposition that you are going to be sending out.
These tips will help you leverage direct mail responses for people who are receiving your value proposition.
Is Personalized Direct Mail Expensive?
When you are setting up any sort of marketing campaign, two questions come to mind. You are likely worried about the cost of your campaign and the expected return on investment. In terms of expense, your cost will vary depending on how many households you are trying to reach. You can send 50,000 pieces of mail for just $.29 per household. Digital marketing is about on par with cost. You will likely spend $14.50 per thousand impressions on Facebook or Google Ads depending on your industry, but with direct mail, the response rate is better.
Let’s say that you are a retail business trying to increase sales through a marketing campaign. On digital advertising, you are likely to get a conversion rate of 2.5% to 3%, but with direct mail, the response rate will be higher than 5%. With a higher response rate, you will get more sales and thus have a better return on investment with your direct mail campaign.
Can You Use Personalized Direct Mail With an Omnichannel Approach?
Direct mail marketing and digital advertising have been used separately for a long time to reach a larger audience, but now these two marketing strategies are being used in tandem. Direct mail is an effective way to target individuals with relevant messaging and offer a more personal experience for the customer. With digital advertising, you can also reach a wide audience and drive conversions.
With the rise of marketing automation, it’s now easier than ever to tie together your direct mail campaigns with digital advertising. By collecting customer data and using tracking codes on your mailers, you can identify which customers are most likely to respond to your direct mail campaigns. Once identified, these individuals can then be targeted through digital advertising, whether through email, social media, or search engine ads. This approach ensures that you are not only targeting a larger audience but that you are reaching the right people at the right time with the right messaging. Overall, this combination of direct mail and digital advertising allows for a more personalized, efficient, and ultimately successful marketing strategy.
The effectiveness of direct mail combined with the efficiency of digital advertising is a winning formula. By combining these two techniques, you are increasing the chance of your message being heard by a broader audience. This also creates an opportunity for you to track your return on investment through data analysis and optimization. By constantly monitoring and adjusting your approach, you can ensure that your campaigns are always engaging your customers, wherever they may be. Ultimately, integrating direct mail and digital advertising not only allows for a more robust marketing campaign but also results in a more positive customer experience, which is the key to any successful business.
Work With Every Door Direct MailⓇ For Personalized Direct Mail Marketing
If you are looking to reach more customers with targeted marketing, consider using Every Door Direct MailⓇ. You will find customers that are within your targeted geographic area and you will be able to effectively penetrate the market with personalized direct mail postcards and flyers that are targeted towards your customers.
