Member-only story
Your Marketing Creative Drives Success … About 20% Of It
This secret dates back to paper mail, mailing lists, and stamps.
When you think of cutting-edge marketing, direct mail is not what comes to mind. And yet, despite previously declining numbers, it’s proving to be a resilient marketing niche, and still represents the largest local advertising spend of $38.5 billion in 2020. There is a sort-of minimalist purism in direct-mail marketing. The message is delivered to the prospect, and that’s it. No cookies, no click-throughs, just a pass or fail, convert or wind up in the garbage can. And, with open rates of up to 90%, and a 28% better conversion rate than digital channels, there is at least one key principle that can help any digital marketer concentrate their efforts more efficiently.
The 40/40/20 Rule
A core concept taught in direct-mail marketing (and virtually nowhere else) is the 40/40/20 rule created by a marketer named Ed Mayer in the ‘60s. The premise is simple: “The success of your marketing campaign depends 40% on the list, 40% on the offer, and 20% on everything else.”
Or, to generalize: your marketing success is determined 40% by the efficacy of your targeting, 40% by the value you offer, and 20% by everything else.
