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Understanding conversion rates is critical to ensuring the success of your direct mail marketing efforts. Say 1,000 direct mail pieces were sent to potential customers, and you want to measure the performance of your print campaign. Tracking conversions can tell you how many people completed a desired goal after receiving the direct mail you've sent. The more conversions you generate, the more successful your marketing efforts are. In this guide, you'll learn more about this metric and how to convert more prospects into customers.
Put simply, a conversion rate is the percentage of potential customers who carry out a particular action, such as scheduling a product demo or purchasing an item from your online store. You calculate the number of people who complete that action, divide it by the number of people who received your marketing material, and turn that figure into a percentage.
In a direct mail advertising context, for example, you might include a phone number on the back of your flyer. That lets people schedule a product demo with your sales team. Your conversion rate will be the percentage of people who phoned that number.
Different marketing types and channels have different benchmarks for success when it comes to conversion rates. Here are some averages, according to one sales report:
As you can see, direct mail tends to produce lower conversion rates for B2C and B2B than other marketing channels. That means you need to design creative and compelling mail pieces that encourage potential customers to take action. A direct mail platform like Lob can help you do this.
So, how do you measure marketing conversions across your campaigns? Here are some simple ways to do it:
The Goals feature in Google Analytics measures how conversions contribute to the success of your business. You can track your conversion rate on the platform and find out how well your website or app performs.
When someone purchases an item from your company after viewing your marketing, that's an example of a conversion. Tracking the number of sales you generate can reveal how successful your company is in converting prospects into customers.
Every time someone contacts your sales team for a demo or takes a similar action, that's also an example of a conversion. It's important to find out what triggered a potential customer to contact your business, such as a call-to-action (CTA) on a direct mail piece.
When someone fills out a form on your website with their contact details, a conversion event occurs. Potential customers might complete a form after reading a CTA on your website.
You can boost marketing conversions in various ways, such as offering prospective customers incentives and including QR codes in direct mail campaign pieces.
Learning more about your target audience can help you create marketing materials that convert. Survey existing customers and review sales calls to determine how people respond to your campaigns.
Eliminate any barriers that prevent prospects from converting. For example, remove the need for people to enter a credit card number to access a product demo. Or make it possible for someone to purchase from your online store without creating an account.
Discounts, promotions, and other incentives can encourage people to complete a desired action. For instance, you can give prospective customers a 10% discount code for a future purchase if they sign up for your mailing list.
Testimonials and case studies can make your business look more authoritative and trustworthy. Include these in your marketing materials to boost conversions.
Potential customers might be close to converting but abandon their cart or leave your website. Send these prospects emails or direct mail to get them to return and complete a particular action.
Direct mail and other printed marketing materials with QR codes and pURLs can drive prospects to specific landing pages that convert them into customers.
In Lob's 2023 State of Direct Mail report, 74% of marketers agreed that direct mail delivers the best return on investment compared to any other marketing channel. Plus, 58% of marketers allocated more of their marketing budgets to direct mail in 2023 than in 2022.
While conversion rate averages might be low for this marketing type, you can encourage more prospects to take action by following the tips above. Offering incentives, using QR codes, removing friction points, and carrying out other tasks can convert more people into bonafide customers.
More marketers are investing in direct mail marketing than ever before, and for good reason. Lob is the direct mail automation platform that maximizes ROI, making reaching your target audience easier. Schedule a demo and improve your conversion rates today.
