4 Reasons Why Snail Mail Marketing Works

In today’s marketing world we tend to focus on online: Facebook, Twitter, Google, Yelp, email, and more. But it’s important not to forget that old school marketing tactics can still have a big impact on your business.

Take direct mail for instance, a response rate of 1-2% would be considered a good response for unsolicited messages. Meanwhile, only 0.01% would be considered a good response rate for unsolicited email. So here are a few reasons to consider including good old snail mail in your marketing strategy:

1. Precise Targeting
When searching for new customers in your neighborhood, there is no better targeting option than direct mail. You can have your postcard delivered to every door within 1 mile of your business. And since location is a huge factor in determining if someone will be a regular client, this is a big deal.

You can even work with marketing companies who have lists of people in your neighborhood to be even more precise with your targeting – like choosing males over the age of 30 with annual income of $70,000+ (and plenty of disposable income).

2. Personal Touch
Do you still get a little thrill every time you go to the mailbox? Even though most of your mail is usually bills, most people still get a little bit excited every time they go to the mailbox – maybe this is the time they get a letter from a friend, or an exciting offer. Who doesn't love getting some direct mail!

Take advantage of that feeling – it’s not going away any time soon. Whenever you have a spare moment, write a hand-written thank you note to a client. For 5 minutes of your time and the cost of a stamp, you can leave a lasting impression. It’s personal touches like that that turn people into lifetime customers.

3. It’s Professional
When you are trying to grow your business, you may look to form professional relationships/referrals with other businesses and health care professionals. An unsolicited email can often be seen as “spam”. But a well-crafted letter on your company letterhead looks and feels more professional, giving you a better chance of securing that relationship.

4. Non-Opt-In
As email laws become more and more strict, your opportunity to send unsolicited emails becomes limited. Some countries/states/provinces now require customers to either opt-in or have an existing business relationship with your business if you are going to send them email. This makes it really hard to reach out to potential new clients since neither of those conditions apply to them. Direct mail on the other hand, does not require the customer to opt-in, so an offer delivered via a postcard is a great way to reach out to new clients.

As with all things, it’s important to not put all your eggs in one basket, so consider using direct mail to complement your online marketing efforts. These days, direct mail is slightly against the grain, which means the number of mail pieces people are receiving has lowered dramatically – giving you a better opportunity to stand out from the crowd and get a positive response.