Does Direct Marketing still have a place in the marketing mix?

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Direct marketing? It might have seemed like direct mail was a dying art. However, recent research has found that the ‘diamond in the rough’ of luxury branding is actually to be found through your letterbox. The printed media has always been perfect for telling stories, but it also enables companies to denote brand quality, through paper quality, texture, colour and even scent. It has some of the best targeting options available and personalisation really is the ‘key to the door’.

Targeting your audience

The mature consumer has always been in receipt of direct mail and responded to well targeted trusted brands through this type of marketing approach. However, it was thought that Millennials (or generation Y) were only engaged with the digital world and unreachable by such ‘analogue’ techniques. However, it’s precisely because they are ‘digital natives’ that receiving something well targeted in the post stands out. In fact, ‘92% of people felt that they concentrate better when reading a hard copy, rather than an email’ (The Guardian). Therefore, a personalised, well targeted, quality piece of direct mail can really reach this group.

Be Personal and Authentic

According to the American Marketing Association ‘Direct mail has a higher response rate than it did a decade ago’. This is likely because there is now less competition. So the real question is how can businesses take advantage of this?
There are other strong reasons why getting consumers to engage physically with a brand is likely to have a stronger effect on them. It’s widely understood that physical contact results in a sense of ownership over an item, due to the way the brain processes an emotional response to messages (or brands). This is where direct mail can gain an advantage over email marketing.
We’ve successfully utilised ‘luxury’ targeted direct mail to help our clients stand-out as an authentic brand and business, as the ability to stand-out is far higher now than it has ever been. If you need help creating an engaging direct mail campaign, or equally want to get some advice on how to make your marketing GDPR compliant, contact us today.