Have you been experiencing sore or irritated eyes from looking at screens all day? Feeling worn out from virtual meetings? Or having difficulty concentrating? If so, you may be suffering from digital fatigue, and it’s no surprise that your customers are feeling this too.
Digital fatigue is a term that has been used for a few years. However, since the beginning of the pandemic, reports of digital fatigue and digital burnout have skyrocketed, with ‘about one-third of consumers report[ing] feeling overwhelmed by tech management during COVID-19’ (according to a study by Deloitte Insights). Despite the effects of digital fatigue, ONS figures show ‘85% of people who worked from home because of coronavirus want hybrid working post-pandemic […] And over half of workers who currently work on a hybrid model would consider quitting if the option was withdrawn.’ (The Big Issue, 2021). So, hybrid working seems like it’s here to stay, however digital fatigue is still a common problem that your customers have to deal with every day. The most effective treatment for digital fatigue is simply less screen time. But when you can’t reduce your screen time in your work life, the only option is during your leisure time, which is exactly what many people are doing; putting down their devices and swapping screens for more healthy pursuits such as walking, reading, and socialising. So, what does this mean for online advertising? Businesses are seeking more traditional advertising techniques, and this is where mail comes in.
In a world oversaturated with online ads, mailed advertising stands out. Mailers are refreshing, memorable and unavoidable, unlike the thousands of emails sitting in your junk mail right now. Receiving a mailed advert is an experience for all the senses, especially vision and touch, which can be enhanced using processes such as embossing, peel and reveal; mailers can even be made interactive by integrating AR into the printed matter. With all these unique characteristics, the number of creative ways to bring your advert to life is endless.
There are two types of mailed advertising: direct and door drop mail.
• Direct mail is addressed and sent directly to an individual at a property or business. The process uses personal data to target potential customers for clients based on their current customer demographics.
• Advertising using door drop mail is nonspecific, sent to properties within an area without an address or a targeted recipient.
This alternative process can have a greater reach overall, but due to its impersonalised nature, door drop can lead to high volumes of wastage as the recipients are less likely to engage with the advertisement. Further, the response from direct mail can be tracked, making it easier to see the success of your advertising campaign and your return on investment.
At Address Intelligence, we can target people based on their age, gender, income bracket, property value, and even employment status. But this is just scratching the surface of what we can offer! This valuable information indicates advertising trends best suited to your company and target demographic. Our use of direct mail can be a much more effective way for a business to advertise. It ensures the people most likely to respond are targeted, thus increasing response rates, and reducing wastage (cost and materials).
From our recent study*, using data provided by JIC Mail across all industries, excluding content that’s not considered marketing, we found:
• Direct mail’s response rate is 130% higher than door drop mail. Responses include making a purchase, discussing the mailer with someone, using a discount/ voucher or visiting the sender’s website.
• 18% more door drop mailers are thrown away or recycled than direct mailers.
• The average lifespan of direct mail is 33% higher than door drop mail. This means your mailer will remain in the household for longer, increasing awareness of your brand and the services you offer.
• The number of times a recipient interacts with direct mail is on average 41% greater than with door drop mail.
• The average reach of direct mail is 8% higher than door drop mail. Meaning that direct mail reaches more people within the household compared to door drop mailers.
Based on our JIC Mail data analysis, it is clear there is a significant advantage to using direct addressed mail over door drop. However, many industries continue to underutilise this powerful channel that will become more important in the future.
Businesses have had to adapt due to covid in order to continue offering a quality service. Now it is time for you to adapt how you reach your customers, taking into account the impact the pandemic continues to have on their daily lives. Advertising through mail allows you to reach your potential customers without contributing to their digital fatigue, and choosing direct mail means you will target the correct customers, leading to greater results for you and your business.
*Study conducted internally by Address Intelligence. JIC Mail data covered the mail activity of a rotating panel of 1,000 nationally representative households. The demographic profile of the households and household members is compared to the UK population for gender, age, household size, social grade and region and weights are applied to correct any differences between the sample and the population. The data analysed by Address Intelligence covered all records between 01/01/2021 – 24/10/2021.
