Young consumers embrace direct mail

Sometimes it seems that young people are always staring at their phones. Nevertheless, digital marketing may not be the best way to reach them: when targeting Gen Z and Millennial consumers, direct mail’s response rates and return on investment suggest it is far more effective than the web and social media advertising associated with their screens.

In fact, a slew of research is demonstrating the effectiveness of direct mail in getting Millennials and Gen Zs to respond to calls to action. Entrepreneur Magazine recently did a piece on the trend with some specific examples and links to the research. We found this observation especially interesting:

"One of the most attractive perks to baking offline marketing into your online practices is that physical mailboxes are far less cluttered than their digital counterparts. According to research, the average household gets 454 pieces of mail annually. By contrast, Tech Jury research suggests most consumers can expect 120 emails to land in their inboxes daily. In other words, the odds of someone opening unsolicited mail are much higher than of the same person scouring an email."

A major media outlet recently profiled the value to marketers of catalogues, published an article entitled, "Millennials are more interested in catalogues than your grandmother is." Its key findings:

• Catalogues are a great way to grab shoppers, especially if your target is Millennials.
• The Data & Marketing Association confirms the response rate for catalogues has increased during the past few years.
• The reasons include less mail being sent and because Millennials happen to like catalogues even more than other age groups do.

Researchers have dubbed the challenge "sticky value," which basically is the ability to recall ads you have seen after the fact. Ask yourself, what was the last mailer you received in your mailbox? Now ask yourself, what was the last ad you saw on Facebook?

The sticky value or brand recall is often much higher with traditional marketing (print/mail), especially because there is a "touchable" brand experience with which to engage. It is common sense: One's mailbox is remarkably uncluttered these days compared to the overwhelming volume of digital ads and emails.

Higher response rates from direct mail campaigns, postcards and catalogues will lead to stronger revenues. Nothing like a strong top line to drive bottom line results.

In order to stand out and have your brand remain top of mind for more than a few seconds, you should strive to create lasting impressions through impactful marketing that gets remembered.

Whether you are looking to produce a postcard to a local audience, a follow-up mailer to your own list, or a catalogue targeted to look-alike consumers who resemble your best customers, please contact us.