Direct mail is a form of marketing that entails the delivery of advertising material and promotional pamphlets to the postal address of chosen recipients. The efficacy of such campaigns needs to be monitored, and direct mail statistics provides an ample benchmark for entrepreneurs to work with.

The industry average for direct mail statistics is approximately 2%. To elaborate further, this means that every hundred promotional mails sent, elicit just two responses, on average.

Direct mail statistics should not be held up as a target to be achieved. Instead, it should be used for comparative purposes, only. Also, when making comparisons, entrepreneurs should take into account, the fact that different products, different industries and different markets, command varied response rates that may fluctuate from the industry average.

When comparing direct mail statistics, it is also important to pay attention to the context of the leaflets sent out, when judging the response rate and its efficacy. For instance, direct mail advertising which offers free promotions, discounts, prizes and such like, would command a far higher response rate than others which merely describe a product or service.

The efficacy of a direct mail campaign can be gauged by measuring the cost of conducting such a promotion against the value of sales generated from the afore-mentioned campaign. Therefore, at the planning stage, direct mail statistics can help entrepreneurs gauge an approximate breakeven point of such a campaign.

Some say that the internet is a goldmine of information. This is never more true than in the case of obtaining direct mail statistics via the Web. This is because direct mail statistics, be it direct mail marketing statistics, direct mail advertising statistics or direct mail response statistics can be obtained, with a mere click of a button, now. Updated direct mail statistics for the annum too, could be obtained without too much difficulty, if the entrepreneur wishes to do so.

Opponents of direct mail advertising campaigns, now, even offer direct mail statistics with regard to its impact on the environment. For instance, thought provoking statements with regard to the amount of trees felled and landfills created as a result of direct mail, is highlighted by certain environmentalists.

Direct mail statistics are of particular use to small and medium sized business organizations. This is due to the fact that it is such organizations that generally engage in direct mail marketing; which in turn, is partly due to the limited resources they possess to carry out more conventional advertising campaigns.

As can be clearly seen, direct mail is a form of advertising that is popular even today. Therefore the importance of obtaining direct mail statistics reverberates within such interest groups; as it provides valuable data, which can be used for comparative purposes, fine-tuned to suit different circumstances, whatever they may be.