Direct mailers are often overlooked when companies are designing their marketing campaigns. Companies focus on social media and email marketing and, in doing so, often sell their campaigns short. Direct mailers that utilize envelopes enhance technology driven efforts to reach consumers, and do so in a few integral ways.
Direct Mailers Bypass Flooded Inboxes
Depending on what a consumer has signed up for, there is a good chance that they get a dozen or more email marketing pieces a day. They often get so many of them that Gmail, Microsoft 365, and other email platforms now corral these emails into Spam, Clutter, or Promotions folders. Once in these folders, consumers either forget they exist or simply check delete all without even looking. Simply put, email marketing pieces are no longer effective because of the large number that exist. An option that was once used because it reached consumers faster and cost less is now working against companies that use them.
Direct Mailers Provide a Novelty
As stated, email marketing is now the go to and digital information typically floods consumers. Direct mailers, however, are now a little less expected. Consumers aren’t as used to receiving direct marketing envelopes as they once were, and receiving a hard copy is now more of a novelty.
In fact, a study in 2015 showed that consumers were more likely to sort through their mail and actually look at every piece as soon as they received it. And 98 percent of people surveyed did this every day. That doesn’t happen with email.
Direct Mailers Offer a Personal Touch
Sure, an email marketing piece can include someone’s name thanks to any basic management mailer software. However, someone’s name doesn’t save the piece from instant deletion. Email marketing pieces often lack the personal touch that a direct mailer can provide.
Companies can coordinate direct mailers with the seasons, sending seemingly personalized holiday cards in green or red envelopes. After years of receiving cards like this, most people are less inclined to just immediately throw them out. Their built-in cues cause them to respond to these types of direct mailers and they are more inclined to open them and feel personally cared for by the company.
The personal touch also extends beyond holiday mailers. They come in varying shapes, sizes, and weights that pique a consumer’s interest. Email doesn’t do that. They all come in a one-size-fits-all package. Picking up a piece of mail that is an irregular size or has a different weight to it is more likely to entice a person to open it and take a look even if they know it is a direct mailer.
Five years ago, everyone was ditching direct mailers and physical envelopes for email marketing. This was one of the worst marketing ideas for many companies. By ending direct mailing campaigns, many companies lost out on a great way to connect with potential consumers in a way that email simply couldn’t. If you were one of those companies, and are looking for a way to reconnect with current and potential consumers, consider picking direct mailers back up. They may just provide the personal touch your potentials are looking for.
