April 2, 2012
OK, so a growing number of experts agree that direct mail excels at maximizing brand awareness and leading consumers to the digital waters. But how might marketers use mail in 2012 to persuade consumers to actually partake and purchase their products and services?
A 2011 study of African-American consumers conducted by the Hunter-Miller Group offers some clues. The research found that participants were more likely to open or read mail specifically addressed to the consumer (i.e., no impersonal “to our friends at …” addressing). Study participants also favored envelopes and postcards featuring an impactful message about new products or services that have specific benefit to the consumer.
“Especially with postcards, we are finding that people are most likely to pick it up and read both sides if it’s personalized,” says Pepper Miller, president of Hunter-Miller.
“There’s definitely a trend going on from broadcasting to narrowcasting,” says Dan Kohn, vice president of corporate marketing for mail solutions provider Pitney Bowes. “More and more, in every media, mail leads the way in moving toward more targeted, more personalized, and more tailored relationship building. That’s something that we can do better now than ever.”
Of course, this isn’t news to Duct Tape Marketing president John Jantsch. A small business consultant and longtime direct mail advocate, Jantsch predicts that direct mail should definitely remain in your multichannel mix. “With each passing year it gets cheaper and better to use direct mail,” Jantsch says. “It’s the one advertising medium that you really can control.”
Want to know more about what technologies will make mail even more relevant in 2012? Read “Modern Mail.”
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