Want Better Results? Include Direct Mail

Marketers intuitively understand what surveys have told us for years: Direct mail ROI rises dramatically when direct mail is part of an integrated, multichannel marketing strategy.

According to NAPCO Research, response rates from direct mail campaigns increase by 41% when used as part of an integrated marketing campaign compared to mailings not integrated with other channels. ROI rise nearly 63%.

Sound good? There's more. The research found that when direct mail is personalized and tightly integrated into the channel mix, it results in the following:

• 62% increase in mailers reporting "good" or "very good" response rates.
• 80% increase in those reporting "good" or "very good" ROI.

How many channels should you integrate? Research by Demand Metric looked to see what marketers were doing. Half of the respondents reported using between three and four channels. Just over half (56%) include direct mail. 

When channels were compared, direct mail was considered one of the most effective. Next to events, "integrated, branded, personalized direct mail" was cited as the "most effective channel, with 78% of respondents citing it as "effective" or "very effective." Non-branded, non-personalized direct mail was cited as "effective" or "very effective" by 61% of respondents.

Which direct mail formats were most commonly used?

• Postcards — 53%
• Letters — 52%
• Dimensional mail — 42%
• Oversized postcards — 29%
• Oversized letters — 9%

Regardless of format, 52% of respondents reported that adding direct mail to their multichannel mix delivered "moderate to major" improvement to their overall campaign performance. That number jumps to 89% when direct mail is personalized and tightly integrated into the channel mix.

Direct mail's effectiveness does vary by market segment. While it is effective in the technical markets, for example, it is highly effective in reaching the financial and C-Suite markets.

Multichannel marketing campaigns are highly effective tools, but just as Popeye grew even stronger when he ate spinach, these campaigns grow stronger when you add direct mail. Try it and find out for yourself.