Direct mail
Written by Hylke Reitsma, co-founder of TouchDrop
Direct mail is printed marketing, usually a postcard or letter, posted to a customer's or prospect's home address. For an Australian online store it works like an email flow with a letterbox at the end: a Klaviyo or Omnisend segment or a Klaviyo flow triggers the card, a mail house prints and lodges it with Australia Post, and a unique discount code, or a match on the customer's email or shipping address, ties a later order back to the card. Cards are priced per piece with no minimum run, and delivery inside Australia takes 3 to 7 business days from lodgement. If you want the service rather than the definition, see direct mail automation for Australia; the pricing guide has the current rates.
Why e-commerce brands use direct mail
Digital marketing channels have become crowded. The average consumer sees hundreds of digital ads per day and receives dozens of marketing emails per week. The average Australian letterbox receives a fraction of that volume in physical mail. Direct mail stands out by arriving in a different environment, handled physically, with zero competition from other brands at the moment of receipt.
Modern direct mail is also trackable. QR codes and unique discount codes connect physical postcards to online conversions, making ROAS calculation possible in a way that wasn't available a decade ago.
Direct mail formats for e-commerce
- Postcards. The most cost-effective format. Short, visual, impossible to ignore. Most common for abandoned cart, win-back and post-purchase campaigns.
- Letters. Higher perceived value for B2B outreach or premium brand positioning.
- Catalogues. Useful for brands with large product ranges, particularly in fashion and home.
TouchDrop specialises in postcard automation, the format with the best combination of cost per piece, production speed and conversion rate for Shopify brands.
Direct mail in Australia
Australia Post carries addressed letter-class mail to every Australian postcode, and bulk lodgement through a licensed mail house is how volume senders access it. Most Australian online stores have never mailed their customers, so a postcard arrives with little competition in the letterbox.
If you are looking for a service rather than a definition, the direct mail automation for Australia page covers how TouchDrop prints, posts and tracks postcards for Shopify brands, with pricing and delivery windows.
Related terms and reading
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