DM, A Champion Of Print Resilience

Submitted by: Two Sides Nordics May 26, 2025

Written by Sam Upton, Two Sides UK.

The use of direct mail is continuing to rise thanks to strong effectiveness and advanced customer targeting.

Of all the tools in the marketing box, one is proving itself to be the most resilient, hard-working and effective. While social media and online have the flashy tech, and TV the biggest budgets, direct marketing continues to quietly get on with the job of grabbing the attention of consumers and compelling them to take action, just with the use of paper, a bit of data and a lot of creativity.

The latest results from JICMAIL make great reading for all those in the DM business. Mail read-rates hit a peak in Q4 2024 with year-on-year growth in frequency of interaction seen across direct mail, door drops and business mail. Going into detail, the average DM piece is interacted with for 133 seconds in a 28-day period, while the average door drop generates an impressive 56 seconds of attention.

“Everyone knows that the competition for consumer eyeballs is more fierce than ever,” said Ian Gibbs, JICMAIL Director of Data Leadership and Learning. “Mail has again proven its strengths throughout the purchase cycle in Q4, and the record levels of mail read-rates show just how much appetite consumers have for marketing comms delivered through the mail channel.”

Cut-Through Communication

The fact that mail continues to achieve success in a time of economic uncertainty is testament to its ability to cut through the marketing noise and get its message across. Such effectiveness hasn’t gone unnoticed by marketing teams, which is demonstrated by the results of the latest IPA Bellwether report – the quarterly survey of UK marketing professionals that outlines companies’ marketing spend intentions and financial confidence.

According to the Q1 2025 report, there was a 4.8% reduction in firms cutting their marketing budgets compared to the previous quarter, with 24.2% of panel members reporting a reduction in their marketing budgets. Among the channels being reduced were out of home (-18.9%), audio (-10.8%) and video (-1.0%). However, leading the positive performers was direct mail, up by 9%, following an increase of 5.6% the previous quarter.

And the rise in popularity of mail isn’t going to stop there. As well as current marketing budgets, the report also surveys forecasts for 2025/26, and found that 36% of respondents expect an increase in their total marketing budgets – roughly double the 17% who expect a decrease. That optimism was echoed in a +13% forecast for direct mail.

“We’re seeing a familiar pattern emerge in these challenging times: increased investment in short-term sales promotions and cuts to main media budgets,” said IPA Director General Paul Bainsfair. “While these adjustments may offer immediate relief, they are not a sustainable path to long-term brand growth. That’s why it’s encouraging to see that, when looking ahead to annual marketing budget plans, many businesses are preparing to reinvest in main media, demonstrating a continued belief in the importance of brand building, even in uncertain times.”

Up Close And Personal

Part of the reason for the continuing success of direct mail is its ability to offer personalised campaigns. With advancing technology and rapidly developing AI software, brands can target consumers using increasingly sophisticated data sets and personalised offers.

One example is a campaign created to promote the Boots Advantage Card. As one of the UK’s most popular loyalty programmes, members also receive a ‘Quarterly Mailing’ that gives them personal offers on their favourite products. Using its vast bank of customer data, Boots used machine learning to score each member’s likelihood of using potential Quarterly Mailing offers, before determining the best six offers for each member to receive. This data-driven approach resulted in a redemption rate of 24%, with members redeeming an average of 2.4 coupons in-store.

“It’s noteworthy that revisions to direct marketing budgets remain firmly in positive territory,” said IPA Director General Paul Bainsfair, “reinforcing last quarter’s insight that AI is playing a growing role in enhancing both the personalisation and efficiency of this medium for UK companies.”

For more information on the latest IPA Bellwether report, go to bit.ly/IPA-Bellwether-Q1-2025