Direct mail continues to defy critics with a new Direct Marketing Association (DMA) report finding that direct mail averaged a 4.4% rate, compared to email’s 0.12%. DMA Director of marketing and media insights, Yory Wurmser, announced DMA Response Rate Report 2012 found direct mail received a response rate up to 10 to 30 times that of email and even higher when compared to online display advertising. 

Could this be a sign that consumers have become overwhelmed with digital message to the point that they are tuning out? Not entirely. If you analyze the numbers for a return on investment, email is more cost effective with a reported $28.50 ROI compared to the $7 for direct mail.

“Because of the proliferation of emails and the onslaught of display ads everywhere, there is an advantage of going through direct mail,” Wurmser muses. “Direct mail in a way has become less cluttered.”

Our advice is to give your consumer choices using a cross media campaign and maximize your ROI by testing channels with audience segments. You can read the entire DMA Response Rate Report here.