Question: My boss asked me to come up with some ideas for mailers we can send to prospects to promote our product offerings. I’m used to working with digital media. Does anyone still read mail? Does it even work? — Mailing It In
Dear Mailing:
YES, it works! Of course, it works differently based on your audience and what you’re trying to communicate. At DMW, we often recommend a multi-touch direct mail campaign to reach prospects and convince them to take action. Direct mail for lead generation often outperforms all other media channels, particularly for our health care clients such as Medicare plans. But it’s important to also blend in the right mix of digital. Direct mail usually affords more real estate to promote product features, benefits, and an offer, but digital ads are great to link to a landing page or website to expand your story.
Direct mail is also an effective “digital driver” — directing your prospects to a website. These shoppers are often much stronger leads than those arriving from a Google search or digital ad.
Cheryl Biondi, VP Creative Director at DMW, had this to say, “As an old-school direct marketer who cut her teeth on direct mail, my response is a resounding YES — people still read direct mail. Take catalogues for example. Why do retailers still bother with them? Think of the journey. You might look through and discover something you just have to have, and then what? You go online to place an order.”