Later, as e-mail marketing and other forms of personalized communication entered the communication mix, direct mailings lost their appeal: they were much more expensive than e-mails and communication through social media with little or no added value. Or so it seemed, anyway.
Companies using Customer Intelligence or other forms of analytics may, hoever, reach different conclusions, Albert Derasse elaborately explained in BDMA’s direct marketing magazine DMix. Firstly, thanks to a better understanding of the customer and insight in their buying cycle, organizations can send much more personalized and targeted messages than ever before.
As a result, the effect of every communication effort is much more significant than ever before. This can now be measured very accurately, and some of the results are astounding. Did you know, for instance, that a (physical) direct mailing to your own customer base can generate up to 37 times more response than e-mail marketing actions?
Of course, this will not work with any type of communication. That is an additional advantage of a Customer Intelligence platform: that you can send the right message using the right medium and channel. And, equally important: you get to pick your customer. Because you don’t want hundreds of positive reactions from potential customers that you’d rather not have in your customer portfolio.
Customer analytics will help you re-appreciate direct mailings as a valuable tool. Direct mailings are still one of the most valuable and effective marketing weapons around, provided that you use the available customer intelligence and insight to send the right message at the right audience at the right time.