4 DIRECT MAIL STATISTICS YOU CAN’T IGNORE

Direct mail has been getting a bad rap
Consumers are complaining about having to sort through endless piles of junk mail with offers that aren’t even relevant to them. Others complain of the environmental effects and deforestation they feel direct mail causes. The ever ill-famed direct mail has been pushed to the side as digital marketing components have taken over the strategies of many businesses, both large and small. Yet there seems to be something that many have overlooked…STATISTICS!
(Download our free ebook, 42 Ways to Direct Mail Marketing Success for even more!)
1.  Major corporations like Disneyland, Bank of America and Time Warner Cable love direct mail!
“Direct mail ranked as the number one (88%) planned marketing channels for 2012, followed by web/micro-site, email, and social media.”
2.  Direct mail, compared to other marketing endeavors, has the highest rate of gaining new customers.
“ For customer acquisition, direct mail (34%) topped email (25%), search engine marketing (10%), and affiliate marketing (8%), with 23% of respondents citing a variety of other channels.”
3. Direct mail has potential for huge returns on investment.
“US advertisers spend an average of $167 per person on direct mail to earn $2,095 worth of goods sold, giving them a 1300% return.”
4. The paper used for direct mail is green.
“Nearly 80% of U.S. paper mills use recovered fiber to make some or all of their products. About 140 mills use recovered paper exclusively.”

If you have colleagues, friends, and even customers dismissing direct mail as a marketing dinosaur, here is just a little more proof of how stellar direct mail marketing really is.
1. The findings of SourceLink’s latest Client Marketing and Transactional Document Survey are based on completed surveys from over 30% of   SourceLink’s client base
2. These findings are from Target Marketing’s Sixth Annual Media Usage Forecast which surveyed 350+ marketers.
3. These findings are from the “Print Drives Commerce” page on PrintIsBig.com.
4. NCASI, Environmental Footprint Comparison Tool
By Maggie Young