5 Reasons Your Consumers Like Direct Mail
Common misconceptions about direct mail are that it’s outdated, boring, or ineffective, but it’s simply not true. With the help of our expert direct mail preferred vendors, Valpak, Xpressdocs, and Valassis, here are few facts that will help dispel those myths and confirm that direct mail is an important component of any brand’s marketing strategy.
1. Consumers Read Direct Mail
How many of your emails do you actually open? How many do you read? Your consumers probably have a similar answer. Experts agree that the average office worker gets about 121 emails a day, but they only open about 20-30%1. Direct mail is a great way to help you sidestep email fatigue and cut through the digital noise. Up to 90% of direct mail gets opened2, and 71% of it actually gets read3.
2. Consumers Hang On to Direct Mail
Chances are you can find a piece of direct mail floating around your house right now. On average, consumers keep direct mail for about 17 days.4 This gives everyone in the house a chance to see and react to each piece. And if it’s a magnet, it’s even longer, often keeping your brand within daily eyesight.
3. Consumers Love Getting Physical Mail
Who doesn’t love getting mail? A trip to the mailbox is a physical experience that elicits a strong emotional reaction. In fact, 41% of Americans look forward to checking their mailbox every day5, and 73% say they’d prefer to be contacted by direct mail instead of email because they can read it whenever they want6.
And it’s not just the older generations that like snail mail. Millennials are the kids who grew up excitedly singing along with a blue cartoon pup about “Mail Time.” A whopping 95% of millennials say they love getting physical mail5, and 57% of folks under 30 say they’ve made a purchase influenced by direct mail offers.
4. Consumers Remember Direct Mail
The extended shelf life of direct mail compared to digital, plus the positive experience of checking the mailbox, helps consumers better remember physical ads — and your brand. Right around 75% of people can recall a brand after receiving a direct mail piece compared to less than half who see a digital ad7.
5. Consumers Trust Direct Mail
You’ve heard the phrase, “You can’t believe everything you read on the internet.” With the onslaught of false or misleading information to be found on the internet these days, the internet isn’t always considered the most trustworthy source of information. But print is something you can touch and feel, and for consumers’ brains, that often equals trust. Just look at millennials, who are often called the first digital natives – over 82% of them see information printed on paper as more trustworthy than messages shared through digital8.
Connect with Valpak, Xpressdocs, or Valassis and your Local Marketing Specialist to explore print and direct mail options to grow your business!