Seema Kumari Totally Mailed It
My advice would be to approach direct mail with the same level of rigour and accountability as any digital performance channel. Build measurement into your strategy from day one. Establish a robust control group that doesn't receive direct mail, so you can measure the true incremental impact on conversion, revenue and customer behaviour. Look beyond last-click attribution. Direct mail rarely works in isolation. It can prompt customers to search, revisit your website or convert through another channel, and if you're only measuring the final touchpoint, you risk undervaluing its contribution. And make the journey from offline to online as seamless as possible. Personalised URLs, QR codes and relevant landing pages can all help bridge that offline-to-online experience.
I started my career in the fabulous era of direct marketing's 'batch and blast' days, when sophistication was largely dictated by the quality of your customer database and how effectively you could segment it. We've come a long way since then, but what's always fascinated me is the ability to use customer insight to deliver the right message, to the right person, at the right time.
What makes direct mail particularly powerful is its staying power. An email can disappear down your inbox within hours, whereas a well-targeted piece of direct mail can remain in someone's home for days, even weeks. That's repeated brand exposure without having to pay for every additional impression! A customer might not act immediately, but the next time they see your digital ad, receive an email or revisit your website, your brand is already front of mind. In a world where we're fighting for milliseconds of digital attention, there's something incredibly powerful about a marketing message that people can physically hold onto.
In a world where we're fighting for milliseconds of digital attention, there's something incredibly powerful about a marketing message that people can physically hold onto.
A great example was when we introduced direct mail into our abandoned basket recovery strategy. We'd already invested in acquiring those customers and driving them to the website, so the opportunity was to maximise the return on that initial investment rather than continually paying to acquire new traffic. What was particularly interesting was seeing how direct mail acted as a trigger for customers to return and complete their purchases, often through a mix of channels rather than directly from the mail itself. Direct mail was influencing customer behaviour and helping our existing digital channels work harder, even when it wasn't necessarily credited with the final conversion. For me, that's where direct mail really demonstrates its value.
It's not necessarily about generating another click, but about making the clicks you've already paid for work harder.
It's not about direct mail versus digital. It's about how the two work together to deliver greater impact than either could achieve alone.
Direct mail arrives in your home. There's something inherently more personal about receiving something you can hold, touch and interact with, and something reassuring about receiving a physical communication from a brand, particularly when it's relevant, personalised and thoughtfully executed. A well-crafted piece of mail demonstrates that a brand has put thought and effort into the communication, which can help strengthen perceptions of quality and credibility.
Mail invites a more deliberate interaction. You physically pick it up, open it, read it and often return to it later. For me, it's not just about the 141 seconds of attention, but what that attention translates into: greater brand recall, stronger engagement and ultimately, customer action.
With the post often bringing bills, statements or the dreaded parking fine, it's genuinely refreshing to receive something from a brand you know and have a relationship with! And personally, I absolutely love it when there's a mini catalogue included. There's something unique about flicking through the pages, discovering products and finding a little inspiration. Sometimes it's the simplest marketing experiences that leave the most lasting impression.
With the post often bringing bills, statements or the dreaded parking fine, it's genuinely refreshing to receive something from a brand you know and have a relationship with!
For a long time, direct mail took a back seat as marketers shifted their focus and investment towards digital channels. What's interesting is that a channel once considered quite traditional can now feel surprisingly fresh and disruptive. It's not about going back to traditional marketing. It's about recognising that a diverse, integrated channel mix can be far more powerful than relying too heavily on any single channel. Mail never lost its power. Marketers are just rediscovering it.