Bet you never thought you'd see a comeback in something as traditional as direct mail. Well, lo and behold, it's happening. According to a study by marketing services firm, Epsilon, 50% of U.S. consumers prefer direct mail to email. No kidding!
And, get this… the study also found that one-quarter of all U.S. consumers said they found direct mail to be “more trustworthy” than email.
With recent growth in electronic methods of communication, some people may find this surprising. But, if you factor in the benefits now of tracking direct mail through its drive to online landing pages, it begins to make sense. Plus, a lot of people just like… dare I say it? PAPER!
Other findings:
- The perception that reading email is faster than reading postal mail declined among U.S. email account holders from 47% in 2010 to 45% this year.
- 75% of consumers say they get more email than they can read.
- 60% said they enjoy checking their physical mailboxes, highlighting what the study refers to as an “emotional connection” to postal mail.
What do you make of this? Are you using direct mail? Have you reduced your direct mail marketing in the past couple of years? Any plans to return to it in 2012?
















