Why direct mail isn’t dead

You’d think direct mail would be dead by now. After all, many large companies have moved away from communications involving print to save on waste and expense. Yet, direct mail stubbornly refuses to die.

We discover why large national and global companies still use direct mail and how Paragon’s direct mail and marketing services can help businesses cut through the digital clutter and make an impression that lasts.

The enduring relevance of direct mail

In today’s digital age, it’s easy to overlook analogue. However, direct mail refuses to stay down. Like printed magazines (which Businessweek reports revived as a luxury good in 2024), direct mail continues to pack a punch. It’s especially impactful as part of a multichannel approach.

The statistics speak for themselves. According to a recent Marketreach and Retail Week report, 68% of consumers said they were likelier to notice a catalogue or brochure than a marketing email, and 55% bought something afterwards.

Why direct mail works in 2025 and beyond

Direct mail cuts through digital noise, providing a sensory, tactile experience that converts and delivers strong ROI. Research confirms that the ability to touch and feel products is a powerful tool of persuasion.

A Direct Marketing Association (DMA) study in 2021 found that 73% of consumers preferred direct mail for brand communication because they can read it at leisure.

Moreover, response statistics provide compelling evidence of direct mail’s continued worth.

• According to the DMA research, direct mail campaigns generate a response rate of 4.9% compared to email’s average of 1%.
• In a 2022 JICMAIL study, 1,000 households looked at direct mail for 108 seconds on average over a month. In contrast, a global survey by Statista showed mobile display ads had a time-in-view of 14.57 seconds.

Direct mail is a must-have in many a marketing mix. The luxury sector knows this, preferring print to blanket digital communication. According to Walpole, ‘the voice of British luxury’, 67% opened, read and looked at direct mail, door drops and business mail from 15 luxury brands.

However, direct mail doesn’t just provide a direct response. It fits all stages of funnel performance, from targeted direct mailers to acquiring consumers, converting potential customers with a discount-code postcard, and closing the sale with a personalised letter.

Finally, considerable evidence shows that consuming information on paper evokes deeper emotional engagement and retention than digital media. Put simply, the brain responds differently to reading the same material on a screen. We retain the information for longer (deeper semantic coding), which marketers know is essential swaying consumer behaviour.

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Best-ever warm donor mailing for St John Ambulance

Paragon’s personalised direct mail campaign for St John Ambulance garnered an impressive 19.63% warm donor response and boosted average donations.

Our creative fundraising door-drops used a zip tear to remind audiences of the importance of getting to an emergency fast.

Read more.

Engaging features of modern direct mail

Modern direct mail can rev up your marketing strategy by driving online engagement using cross-media tools that create a flawless physical and digital experience.

Direct mail prompts over five minutes of website traffic on average, making an integrated customer journey across channels essential. Check out our blog on direct mail and the digital journey.

Paragon bridges the gap between online and offline media using digital tools like QR codes on printed material, augmented and virtual reality and digital/native adverts to cross the divide and create deeper connections. We also use customisation to drive higher engagement and segmentation for highly targeted campaigns.

Many large companies adopting ESG targets have moved away from wasteful communications involving print. It makes good sense for the planet and brands as consumers increasingly prefer businesses that can prove their ESG credentials. But they are missing an opportunity to benefit from all of direct mail’s advantages.

We can help companies weave direct mail into their campaigns by integrating environmentally sustainable practices, such as paper choices, aqueous inks and print recycling and reuse, to counter audience perceptions of waste.

The British Printing Industries Federation’s research shows a vast divide between what Europeans think about print and paper waste and the reality:

• 40% of Europeans believe paper is a wasteful product, but the European recycling rate is 71% 
• 56% believe digital communications are more eco-friendly, yet the print and paper sector is one of the lowest greenhouse emitters at 0.8% 
• 60% think Europe’s forests are shrinking. In reality, they grew by 58,390sq km between 2010 and 2020.

How Paragon elevates direct mail campaigns

Paragon uses data-led multichannel direct marketing through online and offline channels to effectively target and engage customers. Our services include:

• Strategy and creative design for maximum impact
• Advanced printing and mailing technology
• Data management and segmentation for precision targeting

Our ability to handle entire campaigns from concept to delivery makes Paragon the ideal partner when you want end-to-end marketing services and data to underpin your strategy.

JD Williams campaign highlights direct mail’s power

JD Williams drove 17,308 new customers to apply for a credit account using Paragon DCX’s direct mail formats. We conducted tests to optimise future campaigns by comparing the effectiveness of a letter vs a postcard and a detachable discount card vs no card. Warm mail converted at 1.65% compared to 1.32% for cold data.

Delve into the details.