SMART BLAST

To the uninitiated, it follows logically that doing an email marketing campaign is cheaper than doing a direct mail campaign.

After all, email is free, right?

The reality of this was a real eye-opener for me when I first started working in direct marketing. A client asked for both email and direct mail plan options. I went to work and discovered how much email marketing really costs.

- Quality email lists are often double, triple or even higher the cost per thousand of snail mail records. So you might be able to rent a mailing list for 7 cents per name, but the email list will be 20 cents.

- Oftentimes you have to hire an email marketer or list provider to mail your campaign, because of the Can Spam legislation and other privacy concerns, thereby adding another cost.

- Also, email addresses are harder to get than mail addresses. They change faster and not every household has one; some have ten or twenty, others have none. Best case, you end up with a subset of what’s available for regular mail; you just can’t reach some of your target with email.

- There’s still a creative cost associated with preparing the message, even if you aren’t printing anything.

It’s not uncommon to end up paying 40 to 50 cents per record for an email campaign, which is comparable if not more than what a direct mail letter or postcard might cost, even with postage, printing, etc.

This in no way should be interpreted that email marketing is deficient or shouldn’t be pursued. After all, I’m doing that right this minute, aren’t I? Depending on the situation and the results you want to achieve, an email campaign may be more practical.

It’s just a good idea to consider both options and use the one that makes the most sense, everything considered.