Chances are you’re sending out emails and posting on social media. You may even have a whole digital marketing agency under your belt helping you get online ads in front of the people who matter most.

These online touchpoints are essential in today's marketing world. However, if you’re looking for exceptional conversion rates and the opportunity to truly make lasting and loyal relationships with customers, you need to add an additional touchpoint.

Adding tangible, physical direct mail into your digital marketing strategy is the key to a successful digital marketing campaign and we have the details to prove it.

Why Use Direct Mail to Boost Digital Marketing Results?

Direct Mail Makes Online Marketing More Trustworthy

The online world can be scary which is why 82% of consumers trust direct mail over online advertisements.

However, when you add direct mailing campaigns with your online marketing campaigns, it helps show your audience that your brand is legit. So, the next time they see your display ad or receive your marketing email, they will feel confident clicking through to learn more or to make a purchase.

Reaches A Larger Audience

Not everyone is avid social media users, emails get pushed to the promotions or spam inbox, and many use online ad blockers resulting in your digital marketing efforts never getting the opportunity to be seen. Some of these people who aren’t receiving your online ads could be really interested in what you have to offer too.

Mailboxes, however, are something everyone in your target audience has and is something everyone checks. Because of this you’re able to reach a much larger audience. For example, a study showed that only 20-30% of emails get opened while 90% of direct mail gets opened. So, say you’re looking to target a list of 2,000 recipients. If you use email marketing alone, only around 400 people will actually open your email. If you include direct mail within your campaign, around 1,800 people will engage with your message.

Scaling Is More Cost-Effective

When it comes to digital marketing, scaling typically means upping bids to adjust for high-value clicks, increasing your daily budget, etc.

With direct mailing campaigns, bidding does not exist. There is no war to compete with other companies for a spot in your audiences’ mailboxes and when someone responds to your direct mail piece, you’re not charged. In fact, the more direct mail pieces you send out within a direct mailing campaign, the less the cost per direct mail piece is.

Reaches Your Audience When It’s Convenient for Them

When someone hops online to email a co-worker, post a picture they took over the weekend, or search for that actor they forgot the name of, chances are they’re not focused on your online advertisement or don’t have the time to click to learn more. Your advertisement needs to be displayed to your audience when it’s convenient for them.

Displays ads are scrolled over, pop up ads are exited out of, and emails are unsubscribed from or doomed for the promotion's inbox. Now, we’re not saying these marketing efforts aren’t powerful, they are! However, direct mail can help.

Whether someone is going to their mailbox with excitement or grabbing their mail after a long day at work without a second thought, everyone checks their mailbox. If it isn’t the right time for that recipient to look through their mail, they set it down and then come back to it when they are ready giving your direct mail marketing message the opportunity to be viewed at the exact right time.

Strengthens Brand Awareness

It takes 5 to 7 impressions for people to remember a brand which is why consistent branding, and omnichannel marketing is so important.

By using direct mailing campaigns alongside your digital marketing campaigns, you increase the chances that someone will recognize your online advertisement, trust it, remember it, and click on it.

Plus, it’s been proven that people hold on to the direct mail they receive for an average of 17 days. Every time they pass by your postcard on the fridge, or brochure on their desk they’re exposed to your brand and message. So, instead of scrolling by your social media advertisement or ignoring your email, they’ll remember that direct mail message you sent and are more likely to stop in their tracks and respond to your digital ad.

Higher Response Rates & An Increase in Sales

All of the above facts proving that direct mailing campaigns boost digital marketing, results in two ultimate things: higher response rates and more sales.

In fact, research has shown that the purchase rate of omnichannel marketing is 287% higher than that of single-channel marketing.

On top of that, another study showed that direct mailing campaigns boosted ROI by 20% for marketers when it was part of an integrated campaign. So, the truth is that direct mail can truly help better your digital marketing results.

When to Incorporate Direct Mail into Your Digital Marketing Strategy

When You’re Reaching A New Audience

With digital marketing, you can create highly targeted lists of individuals to reach via social media, IP addresses, email addresses, etc. And you can use those same lists with direct mailing campaigns by gaining access to those individuals’ postal addresses.

With the majority of people trusting direct mail the most, starting your digital marketing campaign off with a direct mailing campaign is an effective way to build that initial trust with someone who isn’t familiar with your brand just yet.

When You’re Nurturing Leads

It takes time and multiple touchpoints to turn leads into sales and while your leads may be showing interest in your online ads and emails, they’re also receiving similar touchpoints from competitors.

Adding in a more personable and tangible touchpoint, like direct mail, gives your brand the edge it needs to stand out and gives those leads the encouragement they need to make a purchase.

When You’re Looking to Strengthen Customer Relationships

Digital marketing campaigns typically involve reaching a very large audience, which makes it difficult to create lasting relationships with customers. You may send them weekly marketing emails, or they may engage with your social media posts, but these efforts are geared towards your entire audience, not just that specific recipient, and they know that.

With 75% of consumers saying that receiving direct mail made them feel special, adding a direct mailing campaign to your digital marketing campaign lets your audience know that you care. Even a simple thank you postcard sent to customers who made a purchase can go a long way. Throw in a special discount code and you increase your chances of repeat purchases.

How to Add Direct Mail to Your Digital Marketing Campaign

Launch Them Along Side Each Other

Running a direct mailing campaign alongside your digital marketing campaign is easy. All you need to do is create a plan and design each advertisement cohesively.

For example, you could run display ads, send out an email, post on social media, then send out a postcard, follow up with a second email, and then a second postcard. As long as you include consistent branding and messaging and have a strategic campaign timeline in place, you’ve got yourself an effective online and offline marketing campaign.

Retarget Your Website Traffic

Often digital marketers will use retargeting ads in efforts to bring someone back to their website. Someone visits a company’s website, they leave or even fill up their cart and abandon it and then they see ads for that company while scrolling social media or searching online.

To increase conversion rates even more you can add direct mail into the mix and retarget individuals who leave your website using the power of direct mail alongside email and even your online retargeting ads thanks to Mailbox Retargeting—also known as “Direct Mail Retargeting.”

All you need is a good amount of web traffic, a direct mail provider who specializes in retargeting efforts and you can effortlessly send relevant emails and direct mail to your unknown website visitors at the exact right time to bring them back to your website.

Automate Your Campaign Using CRM Integration

When you’re running ads on social media and Google, sending out emails, etc., it can be a struggle to keep up with your advertisements and monitor your results. Throw direct mail into the mix and you have another marketing channel to keep up with within your marketing strategy timeline.

However, not if you automate your direct mailing campaign.

Automating your direct mail campaign to boost your digital marketing campaign is easy with a CRM integration. It works by integrating your direct mail with your CRM or marketing automation platform, like HubSpot, Salesforce, Microsoft Dynamics, etc. Once integrated you can set up automated campaigns. For example, if someone opens but does not click on your email it could trigger a postcard encouraging them to visit your website or store. If someone clicks a link on your ad but leaves your website without making a purchase, a postcard could automatically be sent enticing them to come back.

You can even set up a complete automated digital campaign accompanied by direct mail. For example, you could send an email to a large audience, 3 days later schedule a social media post, 5 days later send a postcard, 5 more days later send another email.

The Bottom Line: Direct Mail Campaigns Improve Digital Marketing Results

When it comes down to it, no matter how you use direct mailing campaigns with your digital marketing campaigns, you will see better results.

With direct mail offering higher response rates, a higher ROI, better brand recall and awareness, a channel of marketing your audience enjoys, and so much more, direct mail is the marketing tool you need to gain the best results with your online marketing campaigns.

To explore all the ways, you can take advantage of direct mail marketing to better your digital marketing, including CRM integration, Direct Mail Retargeting, and more, click below today.