The Can’t-Miss Benefits of Direct Mail in Omnichannel Strategies

The Resurgence of Direct Mail

Direct mail has long been touted for its ability to stand out and engage. Yet modern marketers trained and experienced in the gems of the digital era—social media, search ads, email marketing—are unfamiliar and question mail’s relevance. For them, digital touts much greater ease, scale, and trackability. But today’s direct mail is a whole new breed.

Amid the digital overload, mail’s tactile nature is now more valuable than ever before. And innovations such as automation, scannable codes, and digital printing have put direct mail on par with the usability of digital assets, enhancing targeting and personalization and bridging the gap between physical and digital forms of media seamlessly.

Direct mail is not a replacement for digital tactics—indeed they work best together. Direct mail is the perfect catalyst to boost the effectiveness of digital communications, adding its unique essence to a message—the proven power of touch.

From the first moment at the mailbox and holding the weight of it, to the experience of opening it, direct mail is personal and hands-on. Rather than a fleeting moment lost in an endless scroll, it lingers, demanding attention and engaging the senses. In fact, research has shown that physical ads have a stronger connection to emotion and memory than digital ads. Marketing academic Jonathan Zhang, Ph.D., notes in a recent whitepaper on the impact of direct mail that when a person touches a physical object such as a mailpiece, it activates parts of the brain that digital media’s two-dimensional existence can’t reach.^[2]

The paper points out that this connection is crucial to marketing, because emotional responses affect consumer decisions and brand loyalty. Mail provides the personal connection that’s lacking in the digital landscape.

Direct Mail Makes a Difference

The neuroscience is compelling but even more so is seeing the effect of direct mail in action. In a controlled field study conducted during Zhang’s research, involving a beauty and personal care e-commerce company, researchers looking to compare the effectiveness of direct mail to digital channels found that the ROAS for direct mail averaged around 55%, compared with 21% for a popular search-based advertising platform and 4.6 percent for social media ads.^[3]

Direct mail customers purchased more frequently across a broader range of product categories, a sign of deeper engagement with the brand. Digital ads proved effective in spreading awareness, acquiring a large number of customers, albeit at a higher cost. To engage across the full customer journey, direct mail and digital together would be the strongest approach.

How does this translate into real-world campaigns? Zhang found that major brands are returning to direct mail. Premium home furnishings and kitchen goods retailers have reported significant increases in customer engagement and conversions after reintegrating direct mail into their marketing. Several digital-first retailers are using direct mail to help build loyalty among their online customers. Even a global e-commerce giant is embracing the savvy use of traditional direct mail catalogs at holiday time, tied right to online offerings.

Yes, Direct Mail Can Be Creative

For marketers wondering if direct mail is creative enough to engage consumers, modern mail offers innovations that not only command attention but also play perfectly with digital properties to captivate and convert.

Mail’s tactile nature presents the opportunity to create magical moments infused with a brand’s personality. Specialty inks, papers, and interactive designs treat the senses and bring a message to life. Only physical mail can evoke emotions with scent, delight with textures and unexpected folds, and give users something to hold onto and revisit.

Plus, advanced technologies like augmented reality and near field communication, among others, make mail immersive and exciting. Consumers can experience products and capabilities firsthand and head straight to purchase with confidence.

But What About Measurement?

Marketers’ biggest issue with direct mail is often tracking and measurement. In the age of real-time metrics, many don’t see how they can prove the effectiveness of a mail campaign. There are, however, established methods such as matchback analysis, promo codes, and personalized URLs, all of which can attribute conversions to a mailpiece. Modern mail also benefits from various technological innovations that have revolutionized how consumers interact with mail and the data that results.

The Omnichannel Advantage

As noted, direct mail is best as a complement to digital efforts, working in synergy to boost impressions, memorability, and overall campaign strength. When digital-only campaigns get lost in the shuffle, integrating mail is proving to play a crucial role in helping a brand stand out, connect in a powerful way, and nurture loyalty going forward.

Studies have demonstrated this in recent years, with companies experiencing an average 15% increase in sales when they combined direct mail with their digital strategies.^[4]

Examples of integrated efforts include direct mail that is automatically triggered based on interaction with online channels or timing social promotions with the delivery of a catalog. The key is coordinated messaging that helps drive awareness and make campaigns feel highly personalized and relevant.