Dove Direct Print & Marketing Blog - “Improving Email Open Rates with Direct Mail”

Similarly, email and direct mail tactics for the most part are carried out in a silo strategy, with each team doing its own thing, thus they may lack connectivity between the departments. To that end, let's dive in!

Due to the fact that the marketing waters have become increasingly overcrowded, consumers are overwhelmed with the onslaught of 4,000 to 10,000 daily messages, depending on the person's access level to a plethora of media channels. Therefore, marketers and brands are increasingly in pursuit of how to gain more traction from their marketing efforts. To that end, email marketing is also part of the message bombing tactics and is now one of the messaging offenders. However, email marketing continues to be an effective tool when used properly.

Current State of Email Marketing

Many marketers are aware of the drop in email open rates, and one distinct area points to the amount of emails a single consumer receives with their daily cup of java. Would you believe that in 2018, on average, a person is likely to receive at least 95 emails per day? Let's put those 95 emails per day into perspective. That's 34,675 emails per calendar year, or 24,700 using 5 day business weeks per year. Who has time to read 24,700 emails in a year, let alone 34,765? Overkill for some reason is an understatement at this juncture.

Thanks to automated email tools, the time it takes to set up and send emails has become much less burdensome, but also contributes to the onslaught of emails that recipients are grappling with, and to that end, is yet another reason why the email world is overwhelmed. Therefore the question now looms, "How can a brand or marketer get their email communications opened within a sea of millions?

Conversely, in all those deep water email tsunamis, email response rates continue to hold a high response rate once they do get opened. Depending on the brand, the product, the offer, the correctly identified targets, and of course whether or not the brand has created personas for their targets, the fate of those email response rates are in part dependent on those few parameters.

In the world of big data, averages represent benchmarks that marketing strategists take into consideration when deliberating goals, ROI and budgeting. Therefore, when one looks at the average open rate of emails being 0.1%, care should be taken to consider what the 0.1% actually represents in that massive email ocean. To place email's 0.1% open rate into perspective, let's apply a basic marketing formula. Let's say that a brand is looking to target 1 million over the course of a year, and for iconic brands that's not farfetched.

One million targets, who are all on average receiving an annual dosage of 24,700 email blasts over a span of 52 business weeks or 260 days, are collectively receiving 24,700,000,000 emails (that's billions!). Now apply the 0.1% email open rate average, and you get 24,700,000 that will be opened. That's a ton of deep water lobsters! You can use that formula or a more specific one to understand what's at stake with email marketing and it boils down to a numbers game.

However, the challenges brands and marketers face is their ability to stand out in a sea of email posts, where their email is not only opened but in fact generates a response post opening. It's been stated by some very astute marketers that those who have made their claim relying solely on email marketing run the risk of being swallowed up and having their brand and products deemed indecipherable from their competitors.

Direct Mail Production Challenges

For starters, direct mail open rates exceed that of emails at a 3.7% clip. And while that may sound exciting, before one can make direct mail collateral production viable and affordable, brands and marketers should look to organizations that have forgone manual tools and replaced them with tech stack systems that use automation and CRM systems.

Amalgamating these direct mail manual production tools into smart tool suites provides these systems with an intercommunication process that reduces time, resources and costs. More and more brands and marketers are realizing how to reduce direct mail costs by seeking out commercial printers that have invested in the right hardware and software that streamlines the direct mail creation process.

Consumer Spending Trends - Email Versus Direct Mail

In the event you may be unaware, recent reports and newly collected data all point to direct mail recipients increased spending habits. Direct mail recipients spend on average 25% more when direct mail is used in conjunction with email marketing. 25%! That 25% more in terms of spending, when placed against what top MBA programs state are successful annual returns of 3 to 4% is huge.

Why? Emails are clutter bombs while direct mail's typical landing spot is a mailbox with just a few items. Our physical mail boxes fail to contain over 98 pieces of communication on a daily basis. That's why direct mail can cut through the clutter, because for the most part, there is none!

Therefore, merging direct mail marketing with email marketing is a no brainer. Each discipline contains strengths and weaknesses, and when used in tandem with each other, the strengths are multiplied and the weaknesses are reduced, if not completely mitigated.

Further, and thanks to recent updates in direct mail technological advances, both direct mail and email automation processes can be aligned for a seamless, integrated fit, thus providing marketers with better tactics and reduced time, resources and spending.

Omnichannel Email and Direct Mail Tactics

In the context of achieving an omnichannel strategy when it comes to merging direct mail marketing with email marketing it is not so much as a marketing everywhere concept, although some brands can achieve that prospect, but moreover it is about creating an omnichannel customer experience between direct mail marketing and email marketing.

Automated tools are now available for both direct mail and email which presents an interesting perspective. With automation driving the marketing bus, there are a number of possibilities in which the two disciplines not only coexist, but also provide added value for one another.

For example, an automated email drip campaign which is actually an old school tactic, can be used to stimulate engagement, convert new prospects, nurture leads and build client relationships. And the numbers for email drip campaigns are impressive. According to Sigma Marketing Insights, email letters and postcards automatically sync to the email drip campaigns, as both email and direct mail can operate within automated sequences.

And thanks again to automated processes, both email and direct mail can now be tracked. Direct mail can now be tracked via automation with direct mail deliverables through the USPS. With the addition of CRM integration, brands can now deliver well timed personalized email/direct mail that can extend the offer with timely messaging.

There are so many marketing strategies that can be designed by pairing direct mail with email, with one leading and the other following up, and vice versa. The limitations are only present in the face of a lack of creative thinking, as the sky is the limit here, or should we say a great way to avoid the great email tsunami wave.

The Net-Net

Moving forward, marketers can merge their direct mail and email synergies into a very powerful omnichannel platform. By merging the two disciplines, marketers can ensure that customers and prospects enjoy a meaningful and engaging experience, thus lifting brand equity and ROI to improved levels. Thank you for reading "Improving Email Open Rates with Direct Mail."

Let's have a conversation about direct mail strategies, printing, print software, transactional documents, variable digital printing, brand equity and unified marketing collateral during our next Open House. We invite you to join us on Thursday, December 20th, 2018, for an hour or two, anytime between 9:30 am to 4:30 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 does have an official USPS certified bureau located within our offices that will save you time and money. And, 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..

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.

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