Direct Mail: A Unique Marketing Angle

Introduction

When you think of “DM” you probably are thinking of “Direct Message.” You probably think of sending and receiving private messages on social media apps like Instagram. In Japan, DM has another meaning of “Direct Mail.” Direct mail is sending physical promotional or sales material to potential buyers. This marketing tactic is surprisingly effective in Japan (probably more effective for B2C). This is a different angle compared to other and more ubiquitous GTM strategies.

Effectiveness of Direct Mail

Though marketing through paper may feel outdated, it may present an opportunity in Japan. Though trending downwards, direct mail was 4.2% of all advertising spend in Japan. This spend comes out to be 310.3 billion JPY or roughly $2.05 billion USD. The direct mail market is still relatively large.

It makes sense that companies still spend quite a bit on direct mail, as the performance tends to be (significantly) higher. The average open rate of an email is about 20%. A report on direct mail showed that the open rate + read through rate is about 75.1% if the mail is properly addressed to the recipient. The report also revealed that 19.7% of the recipients took some action.

Conclusion

The top of the funnel conversion rates do seem higher with direct mail, but you do lose the benefits of having the interaction online. Tracking becomes pretty difficult, so calculating ROI could be a challenge. That being said, the direct mail channel seems to work based on the report, so running a small experiment could be an interesting option. If you are considering expanding into Japan and are looking for a strategic partner, reach out to us or book a free consultation here.