Our society is on electronic communication overload and email saturation is bringing back snail mail as an effective marketing channel. According to a recent survey by Microsoft, Americans have three different email accounts and an average of 200 unread messages per person. How many emails do you get a day?
66% of online adults are connected to one or more social media platforms and have on average two social media sites they manage. Additionally, “Social networks and blogs continue to dominate Americans’ time online, now accounting for nearly a quarter of total time spent on the Internet.”
Today we are “communicating” in so many forms via text, email, VoIP services like Skype, and mobile apps. We are a mobile phone society so dependent on it to survive. Point being, have you ever lost your phone or even left home without it? I recently realized I could not survive the day without it and went back home to get it!
How much attention does your marketing message actually get even when the email is opened? Are we really capable of paying attention?
That’s why snail mail is cool again. Ok, so there is a lag time between the time a letter is sent and its receipt. But it does get your attention. The question is does it work more with some age groups than others? Is it more for digital natives? According to a recent survey, direct mail surprisingly transcends the age demographic. People do still like to touch, feel and open direct mail, not just the older demos. And what’s interesting is that according to the Direct Marketing Association (DMA), more than 80 percent of U.S. households still read some or all of their advertising mail.
I find myself going back to the tried and true tested days of snail mail.
Here are 4 reasons why:
1) More time and effort are put into communication before its printed
2) The individual will feel more important- after all, you are paying for postage
3) It stands out with a more personal touch
4) You break through the clutter by leaving the inbox
What is effective is an integrated marketing communication plan and a marketing strategy that includes online and offline. As consumers and marketers alike, we all want consistency. So we have to be mindful of our approach so when we are measuring the impact we are measuring our success.
I would dare to say snail mail
is the new old effective way for your message to break through the clutter.
By Jessica Castro of Mindspot Research, a division of Mindspot, Inc.
