Direct mail ‘most trusted medium’

Consumers trust direct mail more than any digital marketing channel, and most traditional ones too, believing it is more authoritative, memorable and personal than email or social media put together, according to a report.
The study, “From letterbox to inbox – building customer relationships 2013”, has been carried out for the DMA by Fast.MAP, and is likely to strengthen warnings that marketers ditch mailings at their peril.
It also boosts the case for mailings and digital working together in tandem. More consumers say they respond to a mailing by going directly to a brand’s website to find out more, than by using a search engine for the same purpose (44% compared to 34%).
While expectations of a fully-digital world also risk being over-estimated by marketers – the youngest group of consumers (aged 18 to 34) are the least likely to predict a world where everything has become digital.
Direct mail, it seems, also has a longer “shelf-life”, with 48% of consumers saying they occasionally keep an item of interest while 17% do so regularly.
FastMAP managing director Davd Cole said: “Consumers are not as focused on deciding if they want to live in an online or offline world as the marketing industry might wish or perceive them to. They will use all channels at their disposal.
“Nearly half of people stated that they could be driven online by an interesting piece of physical post, primarily to the brand’s website.
“People may be expecting offline communications from business to reduce.  But marketers beware, because they aren’t necessarily looking forward to it, with just under half saying a world without physical communications from businesses would be worse.
“The letterbox is here to stay and remains a relevant way of engaging with customers. There’s an excitement that comes with receiving post, which is a good opportunity for marketers.”