Go beyond direct mail

Direct mail advertising is a form of marketing where physical literature or promotional materials are sent to prospective customers through the post. In a world that is increasingly dominated by digital marketing and emails, direct mail marketing is one of the most effective ways to engage people and achieve a positive response.

Used as part of a multifaceted marketing strategy, direct marketing services can go a long way to increase brand awareness, promote products, services and offers, encourage feedback, and inspire audiences to take action.

Different types of direct mail include:

• Letters
• Postcards
• Brochures
• Catalogues
• Magazines
• Tabbed mailings
• Parcels and bespoke items

As inboxes become increasingly inundated with marketing emails, a physical postcard, brochure or magazine can often better resonate with audiences that have become exhausted with digital media.

Here are some key direct mail statistics to keep in mind:

• On average, direct mail delivers a £14 return on investment for every £1 spent
• The average UK customers spends close to £600 as a result of direct mail advertising
• Consumer-focused direct mail generates nearly £27 billion worth of business each year
• 60% of consumer-focused direct mail is opened, while 40% is read
• Business managers open 82% of the direct mail marketing they receive
• 56% of consumers have made a purchase after receiving a piece of direct mail

Source: DMIS Response Rates Survey

These figures illustrate the benefits of direct mail marketing, how it can garner a strong response from potential customers, and why it stands out amongst the abundance of email marketing campaigns. Simply put, people today enjoy receiving personalised mail, particularly when it offers something of real value.

According to research by the Data & Marketing Association (DMA), the direct mail marketing success rate averages out at approximately 9%. Comparing the difference between direct mail and email marketing, the widely accepted average response rate for cold emails is between 1% and 5%.

This demonstrates that with the right direct mail-piece, targeted towards an appropriate audience, these campaigns can be very successful in attracting attention, raising awareness and getting people to act.

Yes. As part of our end-to-end direct mail solution, we provide a dedicated printing service. This includes 6 powerful in-house digital printers, capable of printing thousands of postcards, letters, flyers and more, with personalisation elements as and where required.

If you’re working to a tight deadline, we will work with you to discuss your options and make it happen.

We also work with lithographic print partners for brochures, die-cut items, large volume work and for any projects where litho printing could provide cost efficiencies.

The types of direct mail printing we can offer include:

• Postcards
• Leaflets and flyers
• Colour brochures
• Promotional cards
• Catalogues
• Magazines
• Bespoke packaging

The cost of our DM360 Direct Mail service is based on a range of factors:

• Whether you require an end-to-end solution, a single service, or something in-between
• How soon you need your campaign to be printed, fulfilled and delivered
• How many items you need to produce and deliver as part of your campaign
• Format and speed of delivery services

Each campaign is bespoke and a dedicated account manager will work through every element to provide you with an accurate direct mail quote. We are always upfront when it comes to costs, so there is never any confusion or misinterpretation.

Across every campaign, we promise to minimise our direct mail prices wherever possible to help customers maximise their ROI. Whether this is advising on the most practical way to format and design your mail-pieces, or selecting the most cost-effective approach to print, fulfilment and postage, our focus is ensuring your campaigns are produced and delivered as efficiently as possible.

Although we do not design direct mail campaigns on your behalf, we can offer a design advisory service. This is dedicated to guaranteeing that the design you have proposed is practically possible, and whether any subtle changes can lead to substantial savings in the overall cost of your campaigns.

For example, if mail-pieces are even a couple of grams or millimetres larger than certain thresholds, this can greatly increase the cost of printing and posting these items. By working in collaboration with you, we can identify ways to bring the size of your items down without compromising on your messaging, so you save across the rest of your campaign’s journey.

Yes. As part of our complete direct mail marketing service, we can compile direct mailing lists on your behalf. Through our data sourcing and management service, we gather customer data from trusted sources, including Experian Data, to ensure that your campaigns are relevant, targeted and 100% GDPR compliant.

The key difference between mail and direct mail is that, while mail can refer to any kind of physical correspondence, including bills, invoices, invitations and home deliveries, direct mail is a specific type of promotional activity typically used to encourage a response from recipients.

Simply put, all direct mail is a form of mail, but not all mail is direct mail!

At DM360 Direct Mail, we don’t place limits on the number of items our clients can send through their direct mail campaigns. We have the technology, processes and experience to handle anything from small, local drives, to campaigns covering entire towns and regions.

However, depending on the volume of items required, and our workloads at the time of request, this could impact delivery turnaround times.

The ROI of a direct mail campaign is calculated by dividing the net profit of your campaign by your overall campaign costs, and then multiplying this by 100 to get your ROI percentage.

Today capturing these values to determine the ROI of your mailings is simpler and more accurate than ever, thanks to the use of QR codes, personalised URLs and online voucher codes. Read our insight for more on how to measure the success of your direct mail campaigns.

Yes. Both our machine and hand fulfilment services are conducted in-house, either by our 6 powerful, state-of-the-art machines or the capable hands of our dedicated fulfilment professionals. We can also take care of arranging the transportation of these items to our third-party postage partners, including Royal Mail, The Delivery Group and FedEx.

There are several essential steps required to launch a successful direct mail campaign:

• A complete, compliant mailing list, either purchased from a third-party provider or utilising information on your existing customer base

• A defined target audience, including a complete, compliant address list or postcode areas

• A compelling message that aligns with the intended purpose of your campaign

• A strong design and layout that inspires your audiences to take action

• A chosen direct mail format, whether that is a short letter or postcard, or a more comprehensive brochure or magazine

• A means in place to track or measure the performance of your mailings, such as QR codes or pURLs

• Relationships print and delivery services to produce and send your campaigns, or a complete, end-to-end partner like DM360 Direct Mail

Fundamentally, any business can find success using direct mail marketing. However, some of the most frequent users of this channel include:

• Estate agents

• Franchise communities

• Restaurants and takeaways

• Marketing agencies

• Publishers

• Retailers

• Travel and leisure companies

• Non-profit organisations

• Educational institutes

• Healthcare services

• Government and local authorities

Direct mail offers numerous advantages over other marketing channels, including email and digital advertising. These include:

• Higher engagement and response rates

• Cost-effectiveness

• Strong returns on investment

• Greater brand recall among consumers

• Easier for readers to digest and process

• Higher levels of trust

• Stays in people’s homes longer

• Strong performance among Millennial and Gen Z audiences

Useful best practices to apply for your direct mail campaigns include:

• Conduct thorough research to identify your ideal audience, and to find where these reside in your target areas

• Ensure your calls-to-action are clearly defined and obvious for recipients

• Use attractive visuals

• Keep language simple and overall copy precise

• Personalise mail pieces to speak more closely to your audience

• Use tracking mechanisms such as unique URLs or QR codes to measure effectiveness

• Work with an experienced team such as DM360 Direct Mail to maximise the efficiency of your mailings and keep costs to a minimum