In a digital world, direct mail may seem like an outdated marketing tactic. But direct mail is still an excellent way to connect with your target audiences and communicate your unique corporate advantage in a stand-out way. Thanks to digital communication channels such as phone, email, and social media, the amount of physical mail has decreased over the years. This makes it easier than ever to stand out from the crowd with a well-executed direct-mail campaign. Here are 10 reasons why direct mail can be a game-changer for your marketing efforts:

Even with climbing postal rates, direct mail offers a 29 percent return on investment. This matches social media efforts. But packaging does matter. While postcards may be less expensive, oversized mailers get the largest response rate, so be sure to consider the “wow factor” when considering ROI.

Smart data helps marketers reach highly targeted audiences by demographics including geography, company size, business title, household income, etc. Whether using a purchased mailing list or employing search values in your own CRM, it is easy to build and reach specific groups of prospects and customers with campaigns tailored to their needs and interests.

The ease of digital marketing and continued focus on social media mean that marketers may be overlooking direct mail as a marketing tactic. When fewer marketers are sending mail, you have a higher chance of standing out with a well-crafted campaign.

Which is more exciting: opening an email or opening a hand-addressed letter or package? Although direct mail isn’t going to evoke the same excitement as opening a letter from a friend, it’s more effective in increasing customer engagement.

Personalization gets attention. Fortunately, technology allows marketers to personalize mail by name, gender, purchase history, place in the sales cycle, purchase history, location and more. Based on targeted lists, pieces can be personalized with design, imagery, content, designated phone numbers and personalized landing page addresses.

People look forward to getting mail each day. That means they don’t throw away mail without at least glancing at it first. Compare that to digital marketing. When you receive an email, most people have multiple tabs open, notifications dinging and conversations taking place. It’s easy to delete an email without a second thought. Direct mail naturally gets more attention because there are fewer distractions when it is delivered.

Direct mail can be an important part of a comprehensive marketing program. Studies have shown that brand recall is 40 percent higher when an email is followed up with a direct-mail program. Additionally, the response rate is higher when digital ads are accompanied by direct-mail follow-up.

Because direct mail is tangible and can be endlessly creative, it sticks with recipients. If you take the time to put together a unique piece of direct mail, your audience will remember the message you sent.

Direct mail may consist of a wave of postcards, free samples, catalogs or something entirely unique. Marketers can include as little or as much information as they like, depending on their budget and other resources.

Due to the relatively low cost of entry to digital advertising, the internet is saturated with ads. This confuses customers who don’t know which ads to trust. Direct mail helps build brand trust by demonstrating a company’s willingness to invest in building authentic customer relationships.

Marketers know they have approximately eight seconds to grab someone’s attention. They also know it takes multiple “touches” to make an impression with prospects. While some marketers believe direct mail is dead, the fact is it couldn’t be more alive. Digital marketing has expanded this tried-and-true marketing technique and it works effectively alongside other marketing efforts. At its core, marketing is about getting the right message to the right audience at the right time. Direct mail accomplishes just this. To learn more about how to communicate directly with your audiences, contact Trade Press Services today.