Direct mail and search: boosting ROI

Search and direct mail are perfect partners and can boost the ROI of a campaign considerably, as this report reveals. Paid-for search is gaining popularity with marketers, but rising costs of click-through mean that its ROI isn’t what it used to be. Its power lies in how it works with other channels such as direct mail to increase campaign effectiveness and brand awareness.

Tesco, for example, successfully combines direct mail with paid-for search to drive traffic online and increase sales. The quarterly mailing it sends its 10 million Clubcard database leads to a 50% to 100% increase in searches online for ‘Tesco Clubcard.’

Research from the IAB, BrandScience and Google Trends among others reveals how adding mail to search helps develop existing customer relationships, re-engage lapsed customers and build brand awareness.

Key findings include:

• Paid-for search accounted for 61% of online advertising in 2009, putting it way above classified and display, which are 19% and 20% respectively.

• An analysis of 136 campaigns reveals that the revenue ROI of direct mail averages at £3.23 while for search it is only £1.43.

• Direct mail ROI has increased steadily since 2006.