Top 5 Direct Mailing List Trends for 2011

The increasing use of more robust targeting options is the first trend in the direct mail industry.

In the past, direct mail marketers relied on "traditional" mailing list demographic selects—age, income, marital status and a limited number of others. Today, mailing list compilers are adding more contributors to their files, with information on hobbies, lifestyle interests and product purchases. For example, instead of just targeting "homeowners", businesses have access to more precise data, such as homeowners with an interest in do-it-yourself repairs who intend to make a home improvement purchase. When combined with well-written direct mail messaging, marketers can enjoy a higher response rate and find new customers, more easily and profitably.

The second emerging trend is the increased use of automated direct marketing tools.

Businesses of all sizes are realizing the benefits of secure, automated applications that make list ordering and direct marketing more convenient and efficient. These on-demand tools offer the flexibility to choose target geographic areas, define target audiences, securely place orders, and receive new leads in minutes. Automated applications are also allowing marketers to plan campaigns and save list counts, retrieve them when they're ready, or easily order more leads based on past successful campaigns. The flexibility and ease of use of automated, online applications are helping businesses save time and effectively target new prospects.

Reaching out to outlying geographic areas to gain new customers is the third trend we have been tracking.

Many local businesses market solely in their immediate hometown and ignore outlying communities when the economy is booming. The trend now is to "look beyond your local market" for an expanded customer base. Data enhancement and more targeted saturation lists allow companies to profile new customers in new communities. Plus, experienced marketers can take their proven formula and expand it to outlying areas—increasing their market share.

The fourth trend is the use of more targeted Saturation Lists.

Saturation mailing lists, also known as occupant mailing lists, have traditionally been used when a company wants to "saturate" a direct mail message within a specific city, county or ZIP Code. Although the postage price was approximately 25 percent less than Standard Mail, saturating an entire area may not have been the best option for some businesses because it did not allow for targeting. Now, companies can use selection options such as median home value and household income, and choose specific carrier routes within an area to saturate. Marketers will enjoy the ability to refine their list while maintaining the postage advantage of a saturation mailing list.

The rising use of Data Enhancement is the fifth trend in the direct mail industry.

You may have a robust customer and respondent mailing list, but you’re always looking to improve the ROI from your campaigns. Why not supercharge your in-house mailing list with Data Enhancement. This insight helps you target your mailings more precisely by appending demographic data, such as age, marital status, income and lifestyle interests to your file, and analyzing the results. With Data Enhancement, you’ll uncover customer characteristics of which you may have been unaware, helping you to target new customers more efficiently.

Finally, Epstein, reminds marketers that any direct mail campaign should ideally be paired with other cross-channel efforts. Did you exclusively rely on email marketing this year? Try sending out a postcard mailer in 2011. Or, combine your "new school" social media efforts with a targeted email campaign. "Companies that integrate other forms of marketing with their direct mailing lists should see increased return on investment," says Epstein. The more touchpoints you set up with your current and future customers, the easier it will be for them to contact you, buy from you, and become advocates of your brand.