It feels like every few months a new digital technology is released that shakes up each industry. Video games and kids apps for mobile phones and tablets have disrupted the toy and gaming industries. Lyft and Uber have disrupted the gasoline and auto industries. Amazon and e-commerce platforms have disrupted the retail industry.

Of course, marketing and advertising have been affected too. Executives have had to rethink and restructure their marketing strategy to keep up with these technological advances that seem to be coming at lightning speed. Both established brands and newcomers are partnering with bloggers and social influencers to expand their reach on social media. Businesses are promoting themselves on Snapchat and Facebook Live. E-commerce companies use automation and retargeting to encourage sales.

You may be wondering how digital technology developments affect the Direct Mail services industry. To say that it hasn’t changed would be a blatant lie. Of course the industry has changed, but that doesn’t mean that direct mail is going anywhere anytime soon. If anything, direct mail seems to be more powerful than ever before. DMA found that direct mail customer response rates increased 43% and prospect response rates increased by over 100% last year.

It isn’t necessary to choose between digital advertising and direct mail. A smart marketing strategy combines the two to maximize results. Create campaign awareness by sending out an email notifying your direct mail prospects that your mailer will be delivered soon. Conversely, you can also send an email after the mailers are delivered to remind and encourage recipients to respond.

Now that most online purchases, emails, and inquiries are coming from cell phones, businesses are making an effort to make themselves even more mobile friendly. Many consider mail to be the antithesis to mobile, but the truth is that mailers do fit into this “mobile first” initiative. Direct mail service companies are now offering services to include QR codes on mailers. Recipients can simply use their phone to scan the code and be directed to a landing page, form, or app download.

Your website and in-house email list can be used as tools to build a direct mail list. Include a lead capture form on your website where visitors can sign up to receive mail. Create an email campaign to encourage your prospects and contacts to sign up for your print mailing list. It works best to use an incentive such as early access to sales and updates to encourage sign-ups.

It’s also important to point out how the Direct Mail Services industry (and business that use direct mail advertising) benefits from the digital boom. Now that virtually every company has a website, users can research companies after receiving mailers. Before the internet, there was a lot of pressure riding on mailers. If a recipient had never heard of the company, the mailer had to educate the reader in addition to promoting the offer advertised. There wasn’t really a way for someone interested to learn more about the company without calling. Today, recipients can do research and learn more about your company. Looking at your website, seeing your social media content, and reading your online reviews encourage recipients to respond. Additionally, they can choose to email you or submit a web inquiry instead if they prefer that to calling.

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