SeQuel Response：2023年直郵營銷基準(zhǔn)報告

THE2023DIRECTMAILMARKETINGBENCHMARKREPORT

SECUEL

RESP0NSE

Examininghowmailersutilizethechannel,whatchallenges

theyface,andconsumersentiment...ensuringyourdirect

mailinitiativesremainsuccessful.

TableofContents

Methodology

3

DirectMailisaPillarChannel

4

DirectMailisaCustomer

AcquisitionPowerhouse

7

IntegratedMailStrategies

DriveCampaignSuccess

9

TheFutureisAutomated

11

DirectMailDilemmas:

MarketerRealities

13

StrategiesforSuccess

15

EXECUTIVESUMMARY

Themodernmarketinglandscapehaswitnesseddirectmail’s

widespreadadoptionasavaluablechannel,utilizedthroughout

thebuyerjourneyfrombrandawarenesstoleadremarketing.

Mail’spowerliesinitsabilitytodelivertargeted,personalized,and

engagingexperiencesthatresonateonanindividuallevel,evoking

emotionsthatdrivepurchasebehavior.Theexpandingintegration

ofdirectmailwithdigitalmarketingstrategieshastransformedit

fromitstraditionalrootsintoadynamicdirectresponsechannel,

whileautomationandprogrammatictechnologiesofferpromising

solutionsforincreasedefficiency.Despitetheimmensepotential

ofdirectmail,marketersexpressconcernaroundaudience

targeting,dataaccesslimitations,andperformancetrackingacrossomnichannelstrategies.

ThiscomprehensivereportuncovershowB2BandB2Cbrandsare

usingdirectmail,overallchannelperformance,aswellasdigital

integrationtacticsandchallenges.Wealsoexamineconsumer

insightsarounddirectmailsentiment,influence,andpreferences,

somarketerscanusethepowerofdirectmailtoproduceimpactful

campaignsthatachieveexceptionalresults.

DIRECTMAILINDUSTRYREPORT2023?2?

HouseholdIncome

25%

24%

21%

17%

METHODOLOGY

Tocompleteourindustryresearch,wepartneredwithresearchfirmISGtosurvey250B2BandB2Cmarketingstrategyleadersacrossthe

UnitedStates.ViaacustomonlinequestionnairedistributedinAprilof2023,ISGgatheredinsightsonhowmarketingleadersareusingdirectmailtoday,whatchallengestheyarefacing,anddirectmarketingopportunitiesforthefuture.Duringthatsametime,ISGrananotheronlinesurveycreatedfor400consumers.Thisquestionnairesoughttouncoverhowfrequentlyconsumersengagewithvariousdirectresponse

advertisements,theirlevelofinfluenceandenjoymentwitheach,andtheirdirectmailspecificpreferences.

MarketerAudienceConsumerAudience

Gender

CompanyBusinessModel

AgeGroup

1%

13%

19%

24%

57%

38%

Female

Male

Non-binary

25-3435-4445-5455+

38%

25%

MixofB2CandB2B

Businessto

Consumer(B2C)

BusinesstoBusiness(B2B)

62%

25%

Industry

37

Retail FinancialServices AutomotiveConsumerProductsHealthcare

RealEstate

26%

12%

10%

10%

10%

6%

TelecommunicationsInsuranceServices

Travel&Leisure

Education

Utility

Other

5%

4%

4%

2%

2%

6%

8%

RoleinOrganization

6%3%2%1%1%

MarketingDirectorCMO/VPofMarketing MarketingManager C-Suitenon-CMOCreativeDirector

41%19%13%9%9%

3%

2%

1%

$40K-$59K

$60K-$79K

$80K-$99K

$100K-$149K

$150K-$199K

$250K-$299K

$300K+

$200K-$249K

CEO/President

BrandManager

DigitalManager

MediaBuyer

Other

DIRECTMAILINDUSTRYREPORT2023?3?

KEYFINDINGS

DIRECTMAILISAPILLARCHANNEL

9%

In2023,WinterberryGroup1expectsdirectmailmarketingspend

tosurpass43billiondollars–anannualgrowthof3%over2022.

Ourresearchaligns,finding89%ofmarketershaveincreasedormaintaineddirectmailinvestmentsinthelastyear,up3%fromour2022data2.Surveyrespondentsindicated2023mailbudgetincreasesarehigherthanSMS/MMS,CTV|OTT,paidsearch/programmaticdisplay,andSEO.Mailspendwasalsoprioritizedoverothertraditionalchannels,including

printedmedia,OOH,linearTV,andradio.

0%

Thebiggestbudgetincreaseswereallocatedtoemail,socialmedia,andinfluencermarketingstrategies.Radiowasthemostlikelytoexperiencebudgetcutsoverthelastyear.

Inchallengingenvironments,it’sexpectedthatmarketerswilldemonstrateincreasedfaithinthemarketingchannelsthatcanbetrustedformeasurableresponseratesandconversions.Lookingatdirectmailspecifically,theincreasedspendingonmailiswelljustifiedbythechannel’sperformance.Inoursurvey,70%ofmarketersreporteddirectmailperformancehasimprovedinthelast12months.

Additionalindustryresearchmirrorsourinvestmentandperformancedata.ANA’s2022AnnualResponseRateReport3

foundmail’sROIoutperformsallotherdirectmarketingchannels,andhalfofrespondentsplantoincreasetheiruseof

mailoverthenext12months.ThelatestIPABellweather4reportalsoshowsmarketersareincreasingdirectmailandemailinvestmentsinQ22023,representingthelargestsurgetodirectmarketingbudgetssinceQ32006.

DIRECTMAILINDUSTRYREPORT2023?4?

10%

9%

37%

10%

37%

44%

14%

43%

43%

42%

46%

49%

ChangesinDirectMarketingBudgetsintheLast12Months

EmailMarketing SocialMediaInfluencerMarketing

DirectMail

DigitalAudio

SMS/MMS

PaidSearch/ProgrammaticDisplay

PrintedMedia

SearchEngineOptimization(SEO)Out-of-home(OOH)

CTV|OTT

LinearTV

Radio

Howhasyourbudgetforthefollowingdirect

marketingstrategieschangedinthelast12months?

31%

7%

62%

5%

43%

52%

40%

7%

50%

40%

11%

49%

40%

8%

49%

5%

45%

48%

8%

44%

47%

10%

43%

46%

46%

7%

46%

IncreasedStayedtheSameDecreasedDon’tUse

0%

0%

4%

<1%

3%

3%

1%

1%

1%

4%

4%

4%

4%

ChangesinDirectMailPerformanceintheLast12Months

Inthelast12months,hasyour

directmailperformance…

DIRECTMAILINDUSTRYREPORT2023

?5?

Improved

withmaileachweek.Nearly1/3ofconsumers

engagewithdirectmaildaily.

REALITYCHECK:

ConsumerInsights

Consumersfeelmailislessoverwhelmingthan:

69%ofconsumersengage

?Emailmarketing

?Sponsoredsocialmedia

?Paidonlinesearch/bannerads

?Television/streamingads

?Influencercontentads

?Textmessagingads

HowOverwhelmedYouFeelbytheAmountofAdvertising

EmailMarketingAds

SponsoredSocialMediaContentAds PaidOnlineSearchResultsorBannerAdsAdsThroughTVorVideoStreamingServices

SponsoredInfluencerMarketingContentAds

TextMessagingAdsDirectMailAds(Letters,Postcards,Catalogs)RadioorDigitalAudio(StreamingAds)

PrintedMediaAds(Magazines,Newspapers)

AdsonBillboardsorEventSignage

23%

44%

26%

46%

22%

53%

21%

54%

28%

50%

22%

57%

18%

67%

15%

13%

12%

71%

77%

80%

33%

28%

25%

25%

22%

22%

15%

14%

10%

8%

Pleaseratehowoverwhelmedyoufeelbytheamountofadvertisingyoureceiveineachofthefollowing.

Slightly/NotOverwhelmedSomewhatOverwhelmedOverwhelmed

DIRECTMAILINDUSTRYREPORT2023?6?

REALITYCHECK:

ConsumerInsights

%

interestinafli.andrefer

1

ofadvertising.

0

aboutnewbrands/products/

servicesthroughthemail.

45%

se

40%ofconsumersenjoylearning

54%ofconsumerskeepan

40%

DIRECTMAILISACUSTOMER

ACQUISITIONPOWERHOUSE

Marketersareleveragingdirectmailthroughoutthebuyerjourneyfrombrandawareness

toleadremarketing.Whenthecampaignobjectiveiscustomerretention,directmailisthe

topchoice.Ourresearchfound43%ofmarketersutilizedirectmailforcustomeracquisitioncampaigns.It’salsoapopularchannelforcustomerretention(27%)andbrandawareness

(34%)programs.

Additionaltopmarketing

objectivesperchannelinclude:

Leadgeneration=

paidsearch/programmaticdisplay

Leadremarketing=

socialmedia

Brandawareness=

printedmedia

Customerretention=

emailandSMS/MMS

50%

43%

43%

29%

Directmail’sabilitytodelivertargeted,personalized,andengagingexperiencesiswhat

makesitsuchacustomeracquisitionpowerhouse.Advancementsintargetingandmodelingtechnology,dataanalytics,andconsumerexpectationshaveallowedmarketerstocreate

highlytargetedpiecesthatresonateonanindividuallevel.Unlikedigitaladvertisements,thephysicalactionoftouchingapieceofmailexcitesthebrainandkicksoffachainreactionofemotionsthatdrivepurchasebehavior.

Accordingtothe2023JICMAILAttentionStudy5,theaveragepieceofdirectmailgenerates108secondsofattentionacross28days.Ourresearchshowsthatconsumersdonotfeel

mailisoverwhelmingorintrusive,butrather,theyfinditmoreinfluentialthanpopulardigitalmarketingchannels.

DIRECTMAILINDUSTRYREPORT2023?7?

DirectMail

24%

25%

24%

22%

MarketingObjectivesforTypesofDirectAdvertising

43%

43%

DirectMail

34%

38%

31%

29%

33%

24%

28%

32%

33%

36%

34%

33%

DirectMail

39%

33%

34%

32%

35%

37%

33%33%35%32%33%

29%

BRANDAWARENESS

CUSTOMERACQUISITION

DirectMail

38%

44%

39%

40%

35%

46%

50%

38%

44%

LEADGENERATION

38%

40%

38%

36%

DirectMail

40%

43%

42%42%

36%

42%

41%

35%

40%

LEADREMARKETING

32%

40%

42%

38%

27%

29%

23%

20%

29%

27%27%

24%

CUSTOMERRETENTION

22%

DirectMail

SocialMedia

EmailMarketing

InfluencerMarketing

DigitalAudio

SMS/MMS

PaidSearch/ProgrammaticDisplay

PrintedMedia

SearchEngineOptimization(SEO)Out-of-home(OOH)

CTV|OTT

LinearTV

Radio

Whichtypesofmarketingobjectivescorrespondwitheachofthe

followingtypesofdirectadvertising?[Multipleresponseperattribute]

DIRECTMAILINDUSTRYREPORT2023?8?

INTEGRATEDMAILSTRATEGIESDRIVECAMPAIGNSUCCESS

Mailisnotwhatitusedtobe.Onceassociatedwithmassmailingsandgenericpromotions,

theofflinechannelhasevolvedwellbeyonditsrootsintoamodernandvaluabledirect

responsestrategy.Marketersidentifiedpersonalization,integration,andvolume/budgetflexibilityasthetopthreeadvantagesofdirectmail.

Eventhoughthreeoutoffourmarketersbelievemailismoreversatileandeffectivethanpeoplethink,nearlyhalfofmarketersindicatedthechannelcanbechallengingtoselltoleadershipintoday’sdigital-firstworld.Directmailanddigitalmarketingintegrationis

1%

91%ofmarketersbelieveintegratingdirectmail

anddigitalchannelshasapositiveimpacton

campaignperformance.

bridgingthegapbetweenphysicalandonlineexperiencestodrivehigherresponserates

andcreateinteractiveandimmersiveconsumerencounters–whileallowingmorebrandsto

executecost-effectivemailprogramsthatdeliverimpactfulresults.

Nineoutoftenrespondentsreportintegrationhasapositiveimpactoncampaignperformance.Morethanhalfofmarketershaveintegratedorplantointegrateemail,

SMS/MMS,paidsocial,andwebvideowithdirectmailprograms.Approximately40%are

currentlyintegratingwithdisplayandconnectedaudio,andoneinfourareintegratingwithnativeandCTV|OTT.

5%

75%ofmarketers

integrateemailwithdirectmail.

LevelofAgreementwithStatementsaboutDirectMailMarketing

17%18%

77%76%

66

IsmoreversatileIsfarmoreeffective

thanpeoplethinkthanpeoplethink

48%

26

26%

27%47

Ischallengingto

selltoleadership

AgreeNeutralDisagree

Pleaserateyourlevelofagreementwiththefollowing

statementsaboutdirectmailmarketing.

DIRECTMAILINDUSTRYREPORT2023?9?

REALITYCHECK:

ConsumerInsights

4

52%ofconsumerswill

%

Googlethebrandname

andvisitthewebsiteofa

relevantmailpiece.

learningaboutnewbrands/

products/servicesthrough

themail.

MostInfluentialTypesofAds

AdsthroughTVorvideostreamingservices

EmailmarketingadsDirectmailads(letters,postcards,catalogs)

Sponsoredsocialmediacontentads

RadioordigitalaudioadsPrintedmediaads(magazines,newspapers) PaidonlinesearchresultsorbanneradsSponsoredinfluencermarketingads

Adsonbillboardsoreventsignage

Textmessageads

38%

38%

36%31%

26%

22%

15%

14%

14%

Pleasechooseandrankthetypesofadvertisementsthat

aremostinfluentialoveryourpurchasedecisions.

50%

Consumersagreedirectmailismoreinfluentialthanpopulardigitalmediums.

AdvantagesofDirectMail

Personalization/customizationoptionsAbilitytointegratewithdigitalcampaigns MailvolumeandbudgetflexibilityFlexibilitywithcreativeandformat

Qualityaudiencetargetingdata

40%

36%

36%

35%

33%

Easytotrackattributionandperformance

It’sscalableinwaysotherchannelsarenotPhysical,tangiblemedia

Affordable(CPA/CAC)

31%

30%

29%

25%

Inyouropinion,whatarethetopthreeadvantagesofthedirectmailchannel?[Selectthreeadvantages]

DIRECTMAILINDUSTRYREPORT2023?10?

THEFUTUREISAUTOMATED

Ourresearchfounddirectmailautomationisusedby84%ofmarketers.Whenaskedaboutnewideasandstrategiesforfuturecampaigns,marketersagainindicatedautomationisthemostlikelytobetestedthisyear,justedgingpastcreativeanddigitalintegrationstrategies.

Today’senvironmentisforcingbrandstodomorewithless.Ourdatashowsnineoutoftenmarketersarefocusedonmailprogram

optimizationandscale.Wealsoknowthat45%ofmailcampaignsareproducedbyin-houseteams.Directmailautomationandprogrammatictechnologyenablemarketerstomaximizethepotentialoftheirdirectmailprogramsbystreamliningprocesses,improvingefficiency,and

enhancingpersonalization—whilesavingtimeandresources.

Effectiveautomationprogramsrelyonaccurateandwell-integrateddata,qualitymailpieceproduction,andquickturnaroundtoreachcustomersduringcriticaldecision-makingtimeperiods.

DirectMailStrategiesUsedbyMarketers

84%

Likelihoodof

TestingNewStrategies

Automation

Creative

DigitalIntegration

Lists

Offers

15%

84%

15%

83%

16%

83%

14%

82%

18%

79%

1%

2%

1%

2%

3%

MorelikelyAboutthesameLesslikely

Comparedtolastyear,howlikelyareyoutotestnewideasor

strategiesforthefollowingdirectmailelementsthisyear?

DIRECTMAILINDUSTRYREPORT2023?11?

REALITYCHECK:

ConsumerInsights

78%ofconsumersprefer

receivingpostcards.

icmailineyipiurmail

20

Morethan80%ofconsumerssay4+mailingsayearis“toomuch”.

Defining“TooMany”DirectMail

PiecestoReceiveAnnually

2%

1Piece

46%

17%

5Pieces

2-3Pieces

36%

Ingeneral,howmanymailpiecesfromthesamecompanyistoo

manytoreceiveinayear?

4-5Pieces

MostPreferredTypesofMail

78%

71%

68%

53%

41%

31%

28%

16%

9%

6%

Large/Envelope

Postcards

Catalog/Magazine

Letter

Folded

Multi-Panel

Postcard

Pleaserankthefollowingtypesofmailinorderofpreferencetoyou,using1formostpreferred,2forsecondmostpreferred,andsoon.

MostPreferred

TopThree

MostPreferred

DIRECTMAILINDUSTRYREPORT2023?12?

51%

DIRECTMAILDILEMMAS:

MARKETERREALITIESANDSTRATEGIESFORSUCCESS

Audiencetargetinganddataaccesslimitationsaretoponthelistofchallengesformailers,followedbyperformanceconcernsandaclientpreferencefordigitalchannels.Whenaskedaboutmailprogramconcerns,halfofmarketersworryaboutperformancetrackingacross

omnichannelstrategiesandreachingtheiraudienceduetodatasecurityregulationsforoffline/modeleddata.

Behavioraldatarestrictionsandcomplexregulationshavemadeitharderformarketerstoeffectivelyreachtheirdesiredaudiences.

Performancetrackinghasalsobecomemorechallengingasmarketersstruggletoassessthetrueimpactofeachchannel.Consequently,

customeracquisitioncostscontinuetorise,with86%ofretailandecommercemarketerssayingthey’vehadtospendmoretoachievethesameacquisitionresultsinarecentCommerceNext6report.

TopChallengesofDirectMailChannels

TopConcernsAboutDirectMailPrograms

33%

30%

Trackingdirectmailperformance

acrossomnichannelstrategies

Reachingmyaudiencewithincreased

Audiencetargeting/dataaccesslimitations

Performanceconcerns

29%

50%

datasecurityregulationsforofflinedata/modelingdata

Budgetconstraintsreducingmymail

27%

26%

25%

Clientpreferencefordigitalchannels

Lackofexecutivebuy-in

46%

withotherdirectmarketingchannels

Internalpersonnelbandwidth

Unfamiliaritywiththechannel

42%42%

3%

Abilitytointegratedirectmailwithotherdirectmarketingchannels

Overallpaperindustrychallengesduetocostinflationand/orshortagesoflaborandmaterial

Iamnotconcernedaboutthefutureofourdirectmailprogram

24%

24%

Integrationcomplexity

22%22%

21%

LackofROIandperformancetracking

Internalpreferencefordigitalchannels

Budget/costofemail

Costperacquisition

14%

Don’thavetherightpartnerorvendorstoimplement

Whichoneofthefollowingareyoumostconcernedaboutasitrelatestoyourdirectmailprogram?[Selectallthatapply]

DIRECTMAILINDUSTRYREPORT2023?13?

Inyouropinion,whatarethetopthreechallengesof

thedirectmailchannel?[Selectthreechallenges]

Enjoy

35%

Donotenjoy

39%

REALITYCHECK:

ConsumerInsights

%

36%ofconsumersfeeltheirdirect

mailisnotrelseirlife,needs,

28%

psreosail

pieceduringcheckout.

16%

Lessthan16%ofconsumers

enjoyreceivingemail,influencer,

television/streamingvideo,and

textmessageadvertisements.

LevelofEnjoymentinReceivingTheFollowingAdTypes

Radioordigitalaudioads

Printedmediaads

SponsoredsocialmediaadsPaidonlineadvertisingorbannerads

Adsonbillboardsoreventsignage

EmailmarketingadsAdsthroughTVorvideostreamingservices

Sponsoredinfluencermarketingcontent

Textmessagingads

28%

38%

34%

28%46%26%

27%27%45%

22%33%44%

53%

28%

18%

40%

44%

16%

40%

44%

16%

42%

11%47%

59%

10%31%

26%

DirectMail

Neutral

Pleaseratehowmuch

youenjoyreceiving

directmailadvertising.

EnjoyNeutralDonotenjoy

DIRECTMAILINDUSTRYREPORT2023?14?

STRATEGIESFORSUCCESS

Directmarketersrelyondataqualityforaudiencetargetingandperformancetracking,andsomearestrugglingtofindqualitydata.Our2022BenchmarkReportfoundsevenoutoftenmarketerstrustdemographicandfirst-partydatasourcestocomposetheirmailinglists,withonly53%usinglookalikemodeling.

Whetheryou’remanagingyourdirectmailcampaignsin-houseorwithanoutsidevendor,expandingyourdatapartnershipsandagencycollaborationswillenrichyouraudienceprofilestoenhanceyourtargetingcapabilitiesandgrowyourreachforimprovedcampaign

performance.

Weknowdataqualityisthetopsuccessfactorfordrivingoverallbrandgrowthandcustomerexperience.Wealsoknowthatpredictingfuture

purchasesisbestaccomplishedbyanalyzingpastspendingbehavior.Reputabledirectmarketingpartnersofferaccesstoproperlypermissioneddatapointsthatgobeyondbasicdemographicandgeographicselections.Thisincludeshighlypredictivebehavioralandcontextualdatapoints,suchasindividual-leveltransactionaldatalinkedtoaconsumer’sphysicaladdress.

DIRECTMAILINDUSTRYREPORT2023?15?

Usingpredictivemodelingandmachine-learningalgorithms,

thecombinationoffirst-partyandsecond-partyaudiencescan

bemultipliedtoidentifypotentialcustomerswhoexhibitthe

characteristicsandspendingbehaviorsofyourbestcustomers.

Thisinformationcanthenbeusedtocreateperformingmailing

lists.Ifyou’restrugglingwith“signalloss”inyourdigital

campaigns,thistargetedlistcanalsobeonboardedintodigital

environmentstoreachonlineaudiences.

Themerge-purgeprocessplaysavitalroleinoptimizingdirect

maillistsbyidentifyingandeliminatingunwantedorduplicate

datapointsandrecords.Thisensuresthateachconsumeron

yourlistisrepresentedbyasingle,unique,andcomprehensive

record.

Adirectmarketingpartnercaneffectivelymanagerecordquality,dataconversions,addresshygiene,advanceddata-matchinglogic,andsamplingtoupholddataintegrityandeliminatewaste.

Whenitcomestotrackingcampaignperformance,paira

matchbackofyourknownaudiencelistwithaholdoutstrategy

tovalidatecampaignresultsfromawarenesstoaction,across

channels.Matchbacksareimportantwhendeterminingcampaign

performanceandmail’simpactbecauseonlyathirdofdirect

mailresponseswillcomethroughadirectlyattributableelement

(URL,TFN,promocode,etc).Directmailholdoutsactasa

campaign’scontrolgroup.Duringcampaignanalysis,salesfiles

arematchedtotheholdoutrecordsviathesameprocessand

matchkeymethodologythatisusedonthemailedgroup.With

amatchbackcompleteonbothmailedandholdoutgroups,you

cancalculateanincrementalsalesrateandliftfordirectmail.

DIRECTMAILINDUSTRYREPORT2023?16?

CONCLUSION

Inaneradominatedbydigitalcommunication,directmailisstillprovingitsvalue.

Ourstudiesrevealsignificantgrowthandincreasedinvestmentindirectmailmarketing,withmailvolumeandspendingprojected

toriseinto2023andbeyond.Whenmarketersareunderpres