Direct Mail Remains A Key Tactic For Connecting With C‑suite Execs

BY Kathy Crosett
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A significant number of business owners believe direct mail doesn’t work. If that sounds like your clients, it might be time for some re-​education. A new Multichannel Marketing analysis, undertaken by Demand Metric and funded by PFL, shows direct mail has the ability to connect with specific audiences, especially members of the C‑Suite, and the format generates a solid ROI.

Multichannel Media

When your clients start a new promotion or release a new product, they should be thinking about how many media formats to use. Research shows, that of those who buy three or fewer media formats, 61% experience good or very good response rates. Of marketers who use seven or more media formats, 77% have good or very good response rates. Often, the mix includes a direct mail drop.

Direct Mail Impact

Direct mail delivers the second highest effectiveness score (78%) when marketers integrate, brand and personalize their message. Currently, over 50% of businesses regularly use postcards and letter formats for their direct mail messages. However, they report that dimensional mail, pieces that might contain a product sample or possess another unique feature, score the highest brand effectiveness score (89%). Only 42% of marketers use dimensional mail, likely because of cost.

Around 80% of marketers in this study say direct mail shows its strength to influence potential buyers when it’s used in a campaign with other media formats. To keep costs down and increase effectives, businesses use marketing technology to personalize content on their direct mail pieces.

Target Audiences

It’s not easy to connect with any audience today, but members of the C‑suite may be the most challenging. Marketers in the Demand Metric study reported eye-​popping results when they add direct mail to a multichannel campaign. For every target audience, direct mail and events came out as the top two formats. Specifically, 67% pointed to email as the second most effective format, behind events, in terms of making an impact on C‑suite members. 

Timing of emails also proved important. Frequent direct mail messages worked better for sales and marketing and end user audiences. For C‑suite members, the best direct mail frequency is the one that triggers based on the individual’s needs.

To learn more about how direct mail influences specific audiences, check out the AudienceSCAN profiles. These profiles are available in AdMall from SalesFuel.


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