Welcome to the Dove Direct Print and Marketing Blog. Today's post, "Now Is the Time To Add Print," offers a collection of data points surveyed by various organizations that tell a compelling story regarding the value of print's direct mail marketing. We are all aware of the rise in digital marketing, and to most marketers, digital now ranks on par, and in some cases, is thought to be a better performer than television advertising. This is particularly true since digital marketing revenue eclipsed television in 2018.
That said, let's be clear on revenue spent versus sales ROI. Although a marketing medium is flush with advertising dollars invested by marketers and brands at large, does not necessarily translate into advertising efficiencies.
To that point, the idea of CPM (cost per thousand) analytics has taken a back seat and for some may be a complete afterthought. CPM is a formula based measurement that determines the cost to reach one thousand targets. It is a part of the entire advertising investment.
For example, if a brand is investing $1000 to reach 100,000 target impressions on a particular medium, the formula to reach the CPM is (CPM = cost/impressions x 1000). CPM is calculated by taking the cost of the advertising and dividing by the total number of impressions, then multiplying the total by 1000. Therefore, $1000/100,000 x 1000 would equal $10 CPM. In this example, the advertiser is spending $10 to reach every one thousand target impressions.
It is essential to keep in mind that the CPM formula is based on impressions and not lead conversions. An ad impression occurs when anyone who received or viewed an advertising message, although they may not respond to it. Measure the CPM at the onset of the ad purchase price and apply a conversion rate formula to calculate the conversion rate.
Note that the conversion rate can vary from the number of interactions, as customer interactions don't always convert to sales. For clarity's sake, let's stipulate that of those 100,000 target impressions, 1,000 prospects interacted and 25 of those prospects converted into paying customers. The conversion rate formula is taking the number of conversions and dividing that number by the total ad interactions. Therefore, the conversion rate would be 25/1000 = 2.5%. It is these types of conversion rates that support reasons to add print to the marketing mix.
Direct Mail Improves Multi-Channel Marketing
- Just 11% of marketers employ a single medium (DMA)
- Direct mail assisted, improved and lifted online campaigns by 62% (The Little Book of Bigger Returns, Royal Mail Group)
- Direct mail in conjunction with digital ads generates a 28% higher conversion rate (Nonprofit Pro)
- Direct mail increased ROI by 20% when it was included as part of an integrated campaign (The Little Book of Bigger Returns, Royal Mail Group)
- A person's name and other personalized data information (including the use of full color) expands direct mail response rates by up to 500% (Canon)
Direct Mail Is Significant
- Direct mail pieces average response rate sent to former customers is 18.4% (USPS Household Diary Study)
- Affluent households would rather receive direct mail as opposed to email (sourcelink)
- Direct mail delivers a more significant emotional impact over digital ads, which results in a stronger recall lasting up to a week later (Enhancing the Value of Mail: The Human Response)
- All demographic age groups have shown an interest in direct mail, and of those groups, 92% of Millennials attributed making purchasing decisions due to the influence of direct mail (National Mortgage Professional Magazine)
- 57% of UK consumers stated that postcard marketing created a more authentic relationship over and above digital ads (Private Life of Mail)
Direct Mail And Response Rates (DMA)
- 70% of people stated direct mail appears to be more personal than the Internet (Epsilon)
- Direct mail marketing garners a 37% higher response rate over email
- The top response rate tracking methods are online such as PURLs (61%), call center or telephone (53%), and code or a coupon (42%)
- Postcards average response rate is 5.7%
- From 2015 to 2016, direct mail customer response rates increased by 43% and prospect response rates more than doubled (mainly attributed to direct mail paired with digital intelligence)
Direct Mail Breaks Through the Clutter
- 70% of consumers prefer traditional mail regarding unsolicited offers (Direct Marketing Association)
- 81% of people daily read or scan their mail (2010 USPS Household Diary Study)
- 82% of Millennials who read messages on printed paper view the content as more trustworthy over digital (5 Myths About Millennials and Mail)
- The average household receives just two direct mail pieces per day compared to 157 e-mails (USPS Marketer's Guide)
- Up to 90% of people open direct mail, compared to only 20-30% of email that gets opened (DMN)
These numbers tell a very compelling story when it comes to print marketing, mainly when using direct mail marketing. From households to Millennial participation in response advertising, it is clear; the numbers don't lie. When looking at CPM and conversion rate calculations, direct mail marketing is, without a doubt, a real marketing contender, and should feature in any marketing mix.
It is essential to understand that these data points reflect averages. Marketing campaigns vary in so many ways, and a marketing campaign can fall directly into one or more of the common responses or represent a creative outlier. Therefore, when you add direct mail marketing to one of your campaigns, using the CPM and Conversion Rate formulas will provide you a more succinct evaluation of not only how your campaign performed, but moreover how the addition of direct mail marketing boosts conversion rates. After all, increased response rates tend to raise conversion rates.
The Net-Net
Lastly, there is, without a doubt, a ton of data points to consider for each medium to make a case for brands and marketers to invest in select mediums. That is the nature of advertising; however, wherever the pond is overcrowded, it makes good sense to invest in a marketing tactic that points folks to places where the advertiser plans to convert prospects. Let direct mail marketing guide your messages through the clutter and realize better response rates. Thanks for reading, "Now Is the Time To Add Print."
Let's have a conversation about direct mail marketing strategies, printing, transactional documents, variable digital printing, brand equity and unified marketing collateral during our next Open House. We invite you to join us on Thursday, September 26, 2019, for an hour or two, anytime between 10:30 am to 3:30 pm. Let us show you how to improve your document processes to optimize your workflow, reduce your costs, and maximize your organization's printing, letter shop, and mailing capabilities. Dove Direct has an official USPS certified bureau located within our offices that will save you time and money. Moreover, if you bring us your files, we will create a demo file for you. For more information, call Carla Eubanks at 404-629-0122 or email Carla at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
Dove Direct, your Atlanta based print and mail solutions provider offers organizations end-to-end data, printing, and mailing solutions: Data Management, Variable Digital Printing, LetterShop and Fulfillment, Fully Automated MLOCR Presort Bureau, Marketing and Production Management Support and Secure Data Life Cycle Management.
If you don't want to wait for the Open House, you can reach Dove Direct today by calling 404-629-0122 or use the contact form for Dove Direct.