Is Snail Mail ‘In’ ?

Email marketers have gotten pretty savvy, from formulas that personalize the headline with your information, to using ‘RE:’ in the subject line to fool you into thinking it’s an email chain you’ve already engaged with; it’s getting intense. Or a personal favorite, when brands put a paper clip emoji in the subject line to make you think there’s an important attachment, when it’s just spam. 

For all these reasons and more, some young brands are throwing it back and counting on snail mail to make them stand out in a very cluttered digital marketplace. 

According to Vox, “over the last few years, brands — including hot, digitally savvy, direct-to-consumer ones like Casper, Harry’s, Wayfair, Rover, Quip, Away, Handy, and Modcloth — have taken to targeting customers in the mail.” The article goes on to cite that millennials get hundreds of emails a day, but only about ten pieces of mail. 

What’s your take? Who gets more of your attention – brands that find their way into your inbox or your physical mailbox? While you may not think you spend much time with an ad you get in the mail, it could sit on your kitchen counter for three days before you toss it and you’ll see it every time you walk by. Alternatively, one brand may send you three emails per day, and while that’s annoying, you’re likely to at least see one. 

As the digital world gets more cluttered by the second, being accentuated by the virtual shift due to COVID-19, marketers are being required to think differently about how they reach you.  Maybe direct mail (the real DM), is staged for a comeback.