8 Reasons Why Direct Mail is More Effective Than Email Marketing
1)Direct mail does not require opt-in
Unlike email and text messages, you don’t need to get permission from the recipient to send direct mail. This means that you can contact a customer even if they are not subscribed to your mailing list or have unsubscribed (therefore it is advisable to also obtain the postal address of the contacts on your email list).
2)Direct mail never ends up in the junk mail folder
“Okay, they might be leaked by third parties,” says Roger Buck, former director of marketing and new product development for The Flesh Company, “but it has a higher chance of success, and it is also virus-free.”
3)Direct mail continues to work long after it reaches the recipient.
It’s just like hanging ads on your customers’ fridge. “A lot of people have told us that they had our advertising on their table for months,” notes Andre Palko, Technifold president in the US “Although they did not act immediately, they kept us present until they were ready to take action. That permanence, that ability to attract attention, is not possible with an email.
4)Remains effective even when the original recipient has moved
“If you send an email to someone who no longer works for a company, they will return the message. If you send a postcard, the person who now occupies the position will see it and it will have served as an introduction “, adds Palko.
5)Direct mail doesn’t have to compete for the recipient’s attention
Email is an effective tool, but it can be overwhelming for your target audience. The Radicati Group company found in 2014 that professional users sent or received 121 emails a day. This number is expected to rise to 141 in 2018. According to Larry Bradley, owner of Proforma Sunbelt Graphics, “The overwhelming number of messages received at work is a real hurdle for email marketers as it is not easy to distinguish between spam and legitimate emails. The result is that a high percentage of messages sent to companies are never read. On the other hand, no one gets the same amount of advertising in the mail as they did a decade ago, which is a unique advantage of direct mail. “
6)Certain offers do not have an email hook
There’s a reason that a business is much more likely to receive a loan offer by mail than by email. Business-to-business decision makers rely more on direct mail than email, especially when it comes to high-value products and services. These emails can also include a wide variety of content that builds trust, something that is not possible (or reasonable) in an email. It is true that links can be sent, but with direct mail , that content is immediately presented to the reader in a tangible way.
7)Direct mail can reach high-level officials
How can you make an email look important? Aside from writing a compelling case, any other method is contrived. Direct mail offers alternatives that, given its characteristics, manage to avoid filters: kits, three-dimensional advertising, creativity in the presentation … Palko has used everything to send letters, from metallic envelopes to lunch bags, covers for lists of packaging or bottles for medicines. According to him, “they are not only fun, they also get the mail opened.” Although this type of advertising can be more expensive, it also reaches opening quotas of up to 100%. When the goal is to get mail to command posts, this is invaluable.
8)Direct mail drives online and social media marketing
It is often believed that now that we have social media and mobile marketing, direct mail is no longer necessary. But it does not take into account how the contacts made by these means originate in the first place and often it is thanks to printed mail. Saying that the only channels necessary are the mobile environment and social media is like suggesting when buying a home that the foundation is not necessary. Without printed material it is much more difficult to establish contacts on the internet. Don’t let digital marketers steal from your customers on false premises. Establish a dialogue about the advantages of direct mail over digital and when it is appropriate to use one or the other. Take the initiative and let your direct mail show what it can do.
