Direct Mail: Consider the Math

Quite often, cost often comes up as a deterrent to direct mail. But you can’t look at cost without looking at response. Take a minute and tune into this month's Marketing in a Minute video about how direct mail is driving the highest response rate when compared to other digital channels.

Video Transcript:

We all agree, direct mail is here to stay. We know deliverability and viewability are higher with direct mail than any other channel. So, what’s the issue? Quite often, cost often comes up as a deterrent to direct mail.

But you can’t look at cost without looking at response. Yes, one email or one display ad or one Facebook ad, costs less than one piece of direct mail, but that one digital impression doesn’t drive the same response as direct mail.

Consider this math...

You can send a single piece of personalized direct mail for $0.77. Now, $0.77 certainly sounds high when comparing to a single digital impression, which costs just pennies.

But, it drives a 4.4% response rate which is also high when comparing to the response rates from digital impressions, which are less than 1%.

If you mail 100 pieces at a 4.4% RR, you will drive 4.4 transactions at a cost of $17.50 per conversion.

Average costs per conversion for digital channels? Whether it be display, search, or even Facebook are substantially higher. This is the comparison to direct mail.

The numbers speak for themselves.