Royal Mail boosts digital offering

Royal Mail is aiming to help business customers improve direct mail response rates – through digital methods such as SMS, email and QR codes – with the appointment of mobile marketing and technology specialist Incentivated.
The move comes less than a week after it unveiled its MarketReach ‘hub’ – formerly Royal Mail Media Centre – designed to bring large clients and agencies back to direct mail. The appointment of Incentivated will add the digital element Royal Mail lacks.
It will offer three complementary response mechanisms: SMS (such as ‘text for appointment’, ‘text for coupon/ voucher’, ‘text for callback’); QR codes (typically for ”scan for mobile website’ or ‘scan for contact details’); and finally, personalised email addresses (for customers who can’t access richer media on their phones or who prefer to interact via email).
Royal Mail is also offering to set up and provide detailed reports and analytics for customers through “Iris” (Incentivated’s mobile campaign management platform). Fulfilment following a mobile response will be handled by Royal Mail.
Last year, the postal operator was heavily criticised for ignoring calls to promote the use of QR codes in mailings. Instead it launched a digital watermarking system that required customers to download an app to use it. This latest move appears to be an admission that QR codes are now a vital response device.
MarketReach marketing director Antony Miller said: “Direct mail is a proven marketing channel that has consistently shown itself to be successful. (This appointment) provides the ability for our customers to have access to a mobile call to action allowing us to keep direct mail at the forefront of 21st century marketing solutions, and for our clients to increase the profitability of mail for their business.”