Should Direct Mailers Be Targeted Toward Women?

Jun 04, 2009•Blog Posts• Direct Mail• Print• Traditional Media• by author

Scott M.

In your household, is there one person who gets the mail on a daily basis? Is it the first person home from work? Or, is it the “woman of the house?”

According to research from Melissa Data, women sorted through the mail in three-fourths of the U.S. households studied. Furthermore, of these women who received the mail, 95 percent of them chose which advertising materials to keep while 93 percent clipped the coupons.

Another study by Vertis Communications in 2007 found that a whopping 85 percent of women ages 25-44 regularly read printed direct mail marketing pieces. Also an interesting tidbit: 57 percent of women and 62 percent of men prefer to receive direct mailers that are personalized to them.

So if more women are getting the mail than men on a daily basis, and 85 percent of those women are reading the direct mailers that they receive, wouldn’t you say that this is a perfect opportunity for direct mail advertisers to gear their messages towards women? After all, targeting women with direct mail media could trigger a higher response rate and increase ROI for a given business’s direct mail campaigns.

And while these sources affirm that targeting to women could maximize ROI on direct mail campaigns, these studies are catered to varying demographics and could fluctuate based on geographical location. However, the results of the studies certainly show that it is something to keep in mind when creating your direct mail pieces.

Still in Doubt? Personalize it Out.

If you really want to appeal to your targets, it’s always a great idea to personalize your direct mail pieces. Regardless of who gets the mail in your household, the personalization factor, quality of the content and ability to catch your consumers’ eyes will get the most responses to your direct mail efforts.