Launching Direct Mail in the UK (Powered by PostPilot)

@UK ecomm marketers: direct mail is making a comeback. 

Yep, direct mail in the UK is quietly becoming a secret weapon for keeping customers around and nudging would-be buyers to finally convert. 

And it's driving impressive results as customers’ inbox fatigue grows by the day.

All right, there’s our intro.

The Long and Short of It: Direct Mail Just Works

Digital ads, email, and SMS, are, of course, mandatory for ecomm brands. But there's something refreshingly effective about a well-timed postcard. 

It cuts through the noise. 

It's usually cheaper than buying a single ad click.

It helps your message stand out from customers’ inbox chaos (i.e., a frillion and a half unread messages).

The fact is, direct mail demands attention in ways an email or ad impression simply can't. You can't hold or touch an email. And crucially, direct mail in the UK shines in two areas that every brand cares about: retention and retargeting. 

It gives you another touchpoint beyond the screen. When customers ignore follow-up emails and thumbscroll past your social ads, a postcard in their post box can grab attention and feel personal. 

And unlike an email that gets deleted in a second, a well-designed card might sit on a desk or fridge, quietly reminding them of your brand.

Retargeting and Retaining with Direct Mail: How Gozney Does It

Gozney, a UK-based pizza oven brand, uses direct mail to retarget almost-buyers who didn't convert online and to drive repeat purchases.

Re-Engaging Checkout Abandoners

Because Gozney sells beautiful (but expensive) pizza ovens, potential customers have longer deciding periods before making a purchase. 

So, the more touchpoints with those folks, the better.

Gozney understands this, and to add a physical touchpoint, they send direct mail to checkout abandoners. 

At that point, many almost-buyers only need a tiny nudge, and an A5 postcard can be (and we’d argue, should be) that nudge.

The results? Excellent. 

For these checkout retargeting campaigns, Gozney saw a 10x+ ROAS. Plus, it was non-discounted, and it drove net-new acquisition because they retargeted never-buyers. 

Retaining Customers and Driving Repurchases (And More Pizza)

Gozney didn't stop at abandoned carts. 

The team analyzed their time between orders data and found over 90% of new customers open emails in the first month, but by the 60–90 day mark, those ORs drop to ~60%. 

Knowing this, they wanted to maximize their BFCM results (with direct mail) and stay top-of-mind. 

In the run-up to BFCM, Gozney sent postcards to different customer segments. 

For example, customers who had dipped their toe into Gozneyland and purchased lower AOV items were offered ovens, like the Roccbox.

While customers who had purchased Roccboxes were upsold more premium ovens, such as the Dome S1.

Each card was tailored to what that customer would likely want next and keep them excited about the brand.

The payoff: 

All of Gozney's UK direct mail campaigns over BFCM drove 10x+ ROAS, with several campaigns hitting 15x+. 

As Arthur Brunetti, Gozney’s Retention Marketing Manager told us, “Direct mail lets us re-engage customers who last purchased over six months ago and do it more affordably – that's a big win for us." 

When a channel brings in ten times what it cost, you know you're onto something. And it’s why the team has invested more (and more) in direct mail over time.

Revamping a Brand + Winning Back Customers: Feat. T.M. Lewin

T.M. Lewin, a 126-year-old British menswear retailer, turned to direct mail to power up its customer retention, and the results would make any marketer sit up and take notice. 

The T.M. Lewin team worked with PostPilot to develop a series of win-back postcard campaigns aimed at lapsed customers, from one-time buyers to long-time VIPs. 

And they launched BFCM campaigns, too.

PostPilot's team handled the heavy lifting of strategy and postcard design, making it a turnkey effort for T.M. Lewin.

The results speak volumes: 

T.M. Lewin's retention postcards have delivered at least a 9x ROAS on campaigns to win back high-value customers who hadn't purchased in over a year. 

Other customer groups saw similarly strong returns, ranging roughly from 5x up to 15x ROAS depending on the segment. 

As Dan Ferris, T.M. Lewin’s Finance Director, told us, “It’s effective having extra touch points. Everything else is online, and we’re getting that presence and staying top-of-mind somewhere else. It’s been working well for us. You’re getting more into customers’ subconscious with physical mail.”

From Planning to Post Box: How PostPilot Powers It

How can you actually launch a direct mail campaign in the UK?

It’s a lot easier than it sounds.

PostPilot is a direct mail platform that makes it a cinch to plug postcards into your marketing mix. 

In fact, launching a direct mail campaign can be easier than setting up a new Facebook ad because our team provides a fully managed experience, handling everything from strategy and audience segmentation to creative design, printing, and mailing each piece. Your dedicated account manager will also keep you updated on campaign results, though you can check progress any time in real-time dashboards.

Plus, you can integrate PostPilot with your ecomm stack (Shopify, Klaviyo, etc.) so that sending a postcard is as easy as triggering an email flow. 

Direct Your UK Direct Mail Questions to Us

Give your customers' inboxes a break, and try reaching them where it stands out—in their post box. 

If you have any questions, you can always reach out to us (through that chat button that’s probably popped up on your screen by now), or you can check out our site for more information.

‍