Yesterday, I wrote about direct mail, and how not dead it is, and in fact how savvy business owners, who grew up online, are now rediscovering it.
I asked for the experiences of readers related to direct mail. I got ’em. Here are a few particularly relevant and current ones…
#1. From an in-house copywriter at a big supplement brand and alternative health publisher:
“One of my sales letters for [client] is going to direct mail soon. Excited to see how it performs.”
#2. From the chief copywriter at a health and beauty brand:
“We’ve been sending direct mail at [client]! It’s not the classic plain text letter format, but postcard style cart/checkout abandonment campaigns with some short copy + a discount. Not sure what the ROI is but I imagine it’s not bad since we’ve been doing it for a while. ”
#3. From a fundraising expert:
“I love direct mail. I’ve been doing it for 17 years for clients but in the nonprofit space. It works really well. I made over $10MM with mostly direct mail. From a very small warm list of donors.”
#4. From a fractional CMO:
“Current client spends $200k per month on direct mail. Cold, B2C.”
#5. From the owner of a guitar school:
“I’ve basically built my whole school around it and made ~200k€ with direct mail. It’s really profitable, but a bit slow.”
#6. From an expert in retention marketing for 8-figure ecom brands:
“100%. That’s a huge part of ecomm. I’ve run many campaigns and automations with direct mail. I also have direct connections in the biggest direct mail platforms.”
My point for you today is the same as yesterday.
Direct mail has gone underground. But it is something to consider unearthing again if you have a business, so you can make sales to the 80% of your email list that doesn’t open your emails, or to the 99% of your audience that never sees your messages on social.
Direct mail is also something to consider doing behind the scenes if you partner with businesses and take a cut, or if you take on clients straight out, as a way to distinguish yourself from the sea of copywriters and marketers offering same-old services and producing same-old results.
That’s really all I have for you today.
Except, maybe you’d like to buy something from me? For just $5?
If you haven’t read it yet, you might like my 10 Commandments of A-List Copywriters.
Out of the A-list copywriters I profile in that book, the majority cut their chops on direct mail.
Their stories and commandments can be relevant to you if you decide to integrate this new-again medium of selling into your toolbox. If you’re interested: