January 2018
The rebirth of Print Direct Mail
By Team Ink
The rebirth of direct mail (DM) has been slowly gaining pace over the last few years, and is now playing a prominent role within marketing strategies. A well-designed, personalised mailing piece has the potential to cut through the noise and make an impact on the end user, fuelling growth across the print sector.
The world of print direct mail has changed drastically since its heyday, with SMEs through to FTSE100 companies reaping the benefits. Advancements in printing technology and rich data, through to personalisation and measurement has meant that print DM campaigns offer more innovation and proven ROI than ever before.
How is print reshaping the world of direct mail?
Print technology has gone a long way in paving the way for new and innovative ways that businesses can use print direct mail. At Ink, we’re now able to offer unbelievably short turnaround times, enhanced finishes that won’t break the bank, high-levels of personalisation and postal audits and integration.
Couple this with the fact that print excites the senses with the touch and feel of unusual print finishes. How much nicer is it to be able to have something physical in your hands; the vibrant colours, the soft touch paper, through to special finishes such as foil or metallics. We also can’t ignore the longevity of print. A printed brochure or catalogue has one big advantage over its digital counterpart. Digital marketing disappears at the speed of a click, and as the old saying goes out of sight out of mind. A beautifully designed printed document is something to that will be kept, and returned to again and again.
Direct Mail vs. e-mail
Digital channels are a great source to easily identify and profile your target audience but this can also create problems. The digital world has become a noisy over-saturated channel, with consumers bombarded by up to 3,500 marketing messages a day (Guardian)
With such competition for share of voice, print offers marketers a cut-through solution and many advantages over e-mail:
- No inbox overload
- High-levels of personalisation through a range of different methods
- Longer shelf life
- Better brand and offer recall
- Resonates with every age group
- Drives online or bricks and mortar traffic
- Higher response rate – 4.4% direct mail vs. 0.12% email (DMN)
- Higher delivery rate
- Higher open rate
Direct Mail handed a new lifeline…
Only this month direct mail been handed a new lifeline, after the Information Commissioner’s Office confirmed that companies will be able to use legitimate interests – and not have to gain explicit consent – under GDPR to contact consumers by post.
Highlighted in the FAQ section of ICO’s website, it reads: “You won’t need consent for postal marketing…you can rely on legitimate interests for marketing activities if you can show how you use people’s data is proportionate, has a minimal privacy impact, and people would not be surprised or likely to object.”
All in all, we can’t see direct mail dying off anytime soon, instead we expect it to continue to go from strength-to-strength as companies mine even richer data on their customers preferences, and as print techniques continue to advance.
Get in touch to discuss how print DM could boost your marketing returns on your next campaign.