Is the Direct Mail Well Drying Up?

When I was doing research for the March issue’s direct mail feature, it was a little harder than I expected.

By Chandra Johnson-Greene
03/12/2009 -11:46 AM

When I was doing research for the March issue’s direct mail feature, it was a little harder than I expected. Reaching out to b-to-b publishers didn’t even cross my mind -- most have long abandoned direct mail as a marketing source.

Consumer marketers, on the other hand, are still using direct mail, but as budgets dry up and the pressure to cut down on paper and print costs rises, that well may be starting to dry up too. A recent study even stated that total U.S. direct mail spending declined by 3 percent to $56.7 million in 2008 and is expected to fall another 8 or 9 percent in 2009.

When I turned to a few direct mail consultants for their views, I got some very interesting (and quite sobering) responses:

“Actually, my mailbox has been extremely light. No new Conde Nast offers, not even People Magazine. The market has dried up or is very sluggish, which to me, is a perfect time to get more than 25 seconds of review from my mailing pieces instead of the usual nine. My mailbox is so light now with the markets in flux. Direct mail is still important‹people are just shy right now when they should be bold and try something they wanted to do before but couldn't. This is the time to be brash, bold and innovative, not the time to wait for the market to come to them.” --James Sullivan, project director, Optic Nerve Direct Marketing

“I don't have much to say because not that much is being done. I've read that direct mail is sometimes used to drive recipients to the Web to respond to offers, but I’m not sure which magazines these work for. From my own experience, I find that b-to-b renewals still use Œlast issue’ wraps that are being used with tear-off BRC or URL for Web renew registration. Generally, I find that few b-to-c publications are doing new business or re-doing billing or renewal mailings right now.” --Karen Weinstein, direct marketing consultant

Direct Mail: Still A Reliable Source for Consumer Marketers

Chandra Johnson-Greene is senior editor of Audience Development magazine.