Are your clients looking for a way to make their ads to stand out from their competitors’? Have they considered direct mail ads? According to a study by Lob, direct mail is “invaluable for marketers looking to break through the digital marketing noise.”

Customers Still Respond to Direct Mail Ads

The Numbers

Lob surveyed more than 2,000 U.S. consumers over the age of 18 about their views on direct mail ads. Here’s what they found:

72% of consumers open direct mail immediately upon receipt (or as soon as they retrieve their mail)
85% read all their mail at some point
62% of consumers have been inspired to take action by these ads

What does Lob mean when it says consumers took action based on direct mail ads? Multiple things:

43% of consumers who took action based on mail ads visited the advertised brand’s website
31% bought an advertised product or signed up for an advertised service
31% visited one of the advertised brand’s retail locations to check out one of their products
28% were prompted to conduct a search on the advertised brand, product or service online
26% looked up reviews about the advertised brand, product or service

Did you notice how 80% of these actions are done online? With direct mail ads, you can still get all the benefits you typically associate with digital advertising.

Consumer Opinions on Direct Mail

Those numbers aren’t sheer luck either. According to Lob, 44% of consumers between the ages of 18 and 34 say that direct mail “is an important way for brands to build relationships with them.” These consumers grew up in a digital age, so they’re used to digital ads. They want something that sticks out.

More good news: That percentage is the lowest out of the three age groups Lob surveyed. 51% of 35- to 54-year-olds also say that direct mail is important for relationship building with brands. And 50% of consumers over the age of 55 agree.

Not only do direct mail ads influence recipients, 51% often share the ads they receive with their friends and family.

What Consumers Want from Direct Mail

So, why do consumers appreciate direct mail ads so much? Well:

Consumers love that the ads are personalized: About 53% of consumers expect ads that arrive in the mail to be personalized to them in some way
The ads feel more important than email ads: 45% of consumers agree
Consumers are often introduced to new brands via direct mail ads: 49%

Overall, “Direct mail is an excellent channel for new customer acquisition to build awareness and loyalty,” reports Lob. “Invest in new customer acquisition campaigns and ongoing retention campaigns to grow CLTV and ROI.”

How to Make Your Client’s Ads More Affective

According to Lob, if you want consumers to pay attention to your client’s direct mail ads, they should include:

Offers or promotions: 73% of consumers agree
The address of a local location: 60%
An image of an item they recently viewed online: 59%
The name of an item they recently viewed online: 58%
Their first and last name: 51%
A personalized URL: 42%
A QR code: 37%

In regard to what types of direct mail ads they like receiving, they prefer:

Catalogs and Magazines: 36% of consumers agree
Letters and Envelopes: 21%
Brochures (Pamphlets or Booklets): 21%
Postcards: 17%

Further Research

Still worried your client may not see how effective direct mail ads could be for their business? Look up their target audience’s profile on AudienceSCAN on AdMall by SalesFuel to show your client what percentage of their target audience was motivated to take action by ads they received in the mail within the last year.

Photo by Rinck Content Studio