Print marketing isn’t dead, but is best used in conjunction with digital campaigns to increase the likelihood that consumers will take action with a brand.
That’s the finding of a recently released whitepaper from Canada Post, and is being reinforced across several brands, including with the recent acquisition of direct marketing firm Bassett Direct by St. Joseph Communications.
While brands have understandably been focussed on the exploding digital environment, some see direct mail as key to reinforce brand recognition and ultimately consumption.
“Some companies that had maybe cut back and shifted their direct mail dollars to go more heavily into digital and social are rethinking and coming back to a more balanced approach,” says Jennifer Campbell, general manager of influencer marketing at Canada Post, who will be speaking about the role of print . “It’s about how they are better together.”
The Crown corp’s new neuromarketing study, done in partnership with Ipsos and Neurons, shows participants spent 39 per cent more of their time with integrated direct mail and digital campaigns versus those focussing on just one.
Broken down, participants spent 186 per cent more time with integrated direct mail and display campaigns versus display-only, or 40 seconds compared to 14.
The study also shows participants spent 57 per cent more time with integrated direct mail and pre-roll campaigns than those with only pre-roll, or 47 seconds versus 30 seconds.
It also shows integrated direct mail and email resulted in roughly the same amount of time spent as email-only campaigns, or 62 seconds versus 63 seconds. However, that’s less time than direct mail-only campaigns at 68 seconds, the study shows.
“Integrated direct mail and email campaigns sustain attention for longer than any of the other integrated media campaigns, making this a fitting media combination for longer-form content and more complex messages,” the report states. “When paired with display, direct mail brings needed attention to brands and advertising messages that would have otherwise received selective focus, if noticed at all.”
Campbell says the results were consistent regardless of age group and gender, including Millennials who grew up in a digital environment. For them, direct mail is seen as a more of a new medium.
“What this is showing that, in fact, if you’re not talking to them through physical means, you’re actually missing out on some really important audiences,” Campbell says.
The findings don’t suggest a one-size-fits-all approach for brands. Instead, Campbell recommends a bit of trial and error to learn what combination of digital and direct mail works best for a particular company, depending on their goals.
The study is good news for marketers, like Canada Post, who are part of the direct mail industry. The findings also come at a time when more ad blocking companies are cropping up to help consumers offer digital ads entirely. So-called “banner blindness” where consumers have become accustom to ignoring ads on websites they visit, is also an issue for digital marketers today.
The study, which follows previous neuromarketing research Canada Post commissioned, was the first to combine digital and direct mail and the impact of media sequencing.
“This was a dream study for any curious researcher in the ad space,” said Elissa Moses, CEO of Ipsos’ Neuro & Behavioral Science Center of Excellence, in the report.
“The study left me with two important new insights. First, each media channel is like an instrument in a symphony, with its own unique impact profile and role to play. Second, digital advertising provides value in its own right, but greater value when it’s combined and properly sequenced with direct mail.”
The Canada Post research also comes after a study released in January showing that 66 per cent of direct mail is opened, 82 per cent of direct mail is read for a minute or more. It also shows 56 per cent of consumers who responded to direct mail went online or visited a bricks and mortar location. Nearly two-thirds (62 per cent) made a purchase within three months.
More brands are using direct mail as a tool, notes Michael Chase, chief marketing officer at omni-channel company St. Joseph Communication.
He points to a recent Audi campaign where the direct mail piece includes a mobile phone interaction. There’s also Google Cardboard being used by everyone from Unicef to the New York Times.
“It’s a simple printed device, yet once you marry it with technology … you can transport people to just about anywhere you want,” Chase says.
His company has a trends report coming out later this month also highlighting the impact of combining digital and direct mail.
“Consumers are engaging with your brands in dramatically different ways,” Chase says. “You have to be a storyteller for this connected world and you need to understand how to merge marketing content and technology in bold new ways.”
