Direct mail marketing is a highly targeted, cost-effective way to spread your brand message to your target audience. Tangible materials help create a sensory experience and trigger a greater emotional response than digital marketing. Developing an effective direct mail strategy while taking advantage of USPS discounted rates and Informed Delivery technology enables your business to minimize spend and maximize returns.

First-Class Postcards

Postcards are a personal and affordable solution to grow brand awareness. They can be used strategically to retain existing customers and attract new audiences. In August of 2021, USPS increased the maximum size for postcards that mail at a discounted first-class rate from 4.25” x 6” to 6” x 9”. Taking advantage of this change enables you to effectively spread your message through these added benefits:

• Larger Space for Creative: With 28.5 additional square inches, you can leverage impactful headlines, use captivating imagery, and emphasize CTAs to boost audience engagement.
• Incorporation of New Technologies: Additional space allows you to incorporate interactive and highly-personalized technologies such as QR codes and PURLs.
• Increased Speed to Market: First-class mail is given priority over standard mail with delivery times of 1-5 business days.
• Reduced Cost: Postcards up to 6” x 9” qualify for first-class discounted rates with a 28% discount compared to first-class letters.

Informed Delivery

Informed Delivery is a feature offered by the USPS where consumers can sign up to track and digitally preview incoming mail scheduled to arrive in their mailboxes. It is free to consumers, and notifications are sent daily via email. This feature stands out with 45.9M users and a 37% year-over-year growth (USPS, 2022). Informed Delivery can be added to any direct mail piece and is a feature in our DM360 campaign platform. These are some of the most impactful benefits of using Informed Delivery:

• Increased Engagement: Informed Delivery users are highly engaged with over 67% opening their alerts daily with average click-through rates of 4-11%.
• Faster Response Times: Informed Delivery alerts can be viewed before the mail piece arrives and display offers, interactive content, and clear CTAs that improve consumer response times.
• Reduced Cost: USPS offers a 4% discount on postage costs when you use Informed Delivery.

Additional Promotions

USPS features a 2022 Promotions Calendar on their website that highlights all mailers that qualify for discounted rates. This includes mail with interactive engagement, advanced technology, personalized color, and mobile shopping technology with discounts ranging from 2% to 4%. With incentivized features, the value of direct mail increases and remains a key player in the modern marketing landscape.

Taking advantage of USPS discounted rates and incorporating Informed Delivery technology into your direct mail strategy enables your business to increase your speed to market and improve your ROI. With Prisma, all of your direct mail needs are in one place. Contact us today to get a quote for your upcoming direct mail project.