Postal Mail Volume Decline = Opportunity
Okay, I’ll admit it, I love direct mail marketing. I look forward to going home at the end of the day, seeing my family and then looking at and opening my daily mail. I also love emerging media, but mail makes us, subliminally, feel important. Someone is trying to contact you and wants your attention. They are trying to convince you and educate you that their insurance, olive oil, magazine, steaks, wine or clothing is better and they’ll give you a deal to prove it to you.
Thus, when I continue to read that mail volume continues to decline I don’t panic. Why? Because it allows those of us who have had much, much success with the medium look even better. That’s because we have less clutter and fewer competitors to worry about. We understand how to test, how to sell the offer and how to measure and apply our discoveries to the next effort.
Personally, I still have a lot of success with direct mail — both for my companies and for the consulting work we do for others. I have seen a downward trend from many, but have also seen those who commit to testing succeed and grow despite the economic worries that surround us.
Now is the right time to mail and test. Make sure that your work is tied back into the web, microsites, email and the like, but still mail. And, if you are doing two-step campaigns, do not forget about testing your follow-up material and approaches.
July 5th, 2009 at 10:38 am
Grant is 100% correct in his comments. Fewer people direct mailing presents a tremendous upside for the rest of us who choose to use “best practices” in our direct mail programs. Seeking professional services firms that specialize in direct mail may even more important in getting direct mail to work harder. Remember, “the fish haven’t left the pond, we just need to fish harder.”
July 8th, 2009 at 5:26 pm
I have asked by several small businesses if direct mail is worth the investment. My research has told me that most direct mailers mail to 10 to 20k homes for a set fee. However, I have yet to ascertain what kind of hit rate my clients can expect. Is it 2 or 3% which is considered very good in the telemarketing world? Any comments would be appreciated.
July 8th, 2009 at 5:47 pm
Agree 100%. If you’re looking for a one-time quick fix, mail may not be the best option. But if you’re looking to test your way into a response-generating vehicle that can last for years, direct mail still one of the best bets going. Given the advances in personalization, data quality and variable print technology, would expect even greater opportunities ahead.
July 9th, 2009 at 10:12 pm
Hit rates or response rates are great for forecasting, but the true measure of success is found in your return-on-investment. I had a client that mailed 10,000 videos to prospects (yes, I am THAT old) and received only 5 responses. Horrible, most people scream, but one order turned into a $50,000,000 sale. A very good (and profitable) ROI to say the least. Great segmentation, relevancy through meaningful offers and testing will help you to determine what’s deemed a success and what is not.
July 19th, 2009 at 1:11 am
Very interesting article, however, I think a decline in mail is a relation to the economy and the company’s that still use DMM are the one’s that are seeing a significant ROI.