Digital retargeting is the “Ol’ Reliable” of marketing. Someone visits your site, and before they can say “I’m just browsing fer Pete’s sake,” you’re following them around the internet with targeted programmatic ads. But let’s be real—consumers have caught on. Ad blockers, banner blindness, digital fatigue, and rejecting all the cookies make it harder than ever to stand out.
If only there were another solution! If only! …But wait…
We have Direct Mail Retargeting (DMR). Thank the great Simulation Overlords! DMR is a game-changer that puts a glossy, physical, and high-impact marketing piece right into the hands of potential customers. With Postie’s automation and targeting tools, you can take all the best parts of digital retargeting (precision, automation, data-driven decision-making) and combine them with the undeniable effectiveness of direct mail.
Now, put on your retargeting pants and get ready for a heckuva walk through this DMR guide.
Why Direct Mail Retargeting works
Marketers have relied on digital retargeting for years because it actually works. Unfortunately, just like a DIY haircut, it’s not perfect. With consumers getting better at tuning out digital ads, or even using fancy new browsers that wipe them right off the page, direct mail exists in the physical realm, detached from the frustration and saturation of the digital one.
Here’s why direct mail is great for retargeting:
- It gets seen. Emails get ignored. Digital ads disappear. But a postcard? Unless the recipient has the powers of Thanos, it sticks around. Whether it’s on a kitchen counter or a desk, direct mail has staying power that digital can’t compete with. A 17-day lifespan to be exact.
- It’s personal. With dynamic text replacement, you can add names, promo codes, and even personalized product recommendations. The recipient gets a tailor-made mailer, rather than just another generic ad.
- It converts. Direct Mail boasts engagement rates digital marketers can only dream about. (That is what you dream about, right?) When a personalized postcard lands in someone’s mailbox, they’re far more likely to pay attention than if it were just another banner ad in their feed.
Want proof? Let’s dive into a real-world case study.
Case study: How a global footwear brand stepped up its retargeting game
A global footwear and accessories brand was stuck in batch-and-blast marketing mode, looking for a better way to retarget website visitors who didn’t convert. They needed an automated solution that could:
- Identify and retarget non-converting site visitors
- Run continuously without manual intervention
- Personalize messaging based on browsing behavior
Traditional retargeting efforts weren’t cutting it anymore. They needed something fresh, effective, and most importantly—automated. They turned to Direct Mail Retargeting powered by Postie.
The Postie DMR solution
Using Postie’s Retargeting automation, the brand was able to transform its strategy with a few key features:
- Match anonymous visitors to postal addresses. Even non-logged-in visitors could be retargeted with physical mail, expanding their audience beyond known customers.
- Deliver personalized offers. Unique promo codes were sent to each visitor, allowing for precise tracking and better attribution of conversions.
- Optimize on the fly. Just like digital marketing, Postie’s real-time reporting enabled the brand to tweak creative and targeting as needed to maximize results.
- Automate campaign deployment. No more manual mailing lists—Postie’s system handled everything, making it a seamless part of their retargeting strategy.
To ensure speed and efficiency, the brand used first-class postcards. They also implemented a multi-creative approach, assigning three different creatives to a single campaign, each targeting a different product category. Recipients received messaging tailored to what they had actually browsed.
The results: Pretty freaking awesome
Still asking yourself whether DMR works? Well, the numbers speak for themselves:
- 73% postal match rate: Turning anonymous traffic into reachable customers.
- 1,098.09% ROAS: Not a typo. One thousand and ninety eight percent. That’s real.
- $14.74 CPA: Lower than many digital channels.
DMR didn’t just work. It kicked some serious butt. Read the full case study.
How to get started with Direct Mail Retargeting
Thinking about adding Direct Mail Retargeting to your marketing mix? Here’s what you need to consider:
1. Define your audience
Unlike traditional direct mail campaigns, retargeting is based on consumer behavior, not demographics. You’re not just blindly sending mail to a ZIP code—you’re targeting real people based on their online activity. Start by determining which site visitors to retarget:
- Abandoned cart visitors: These are your lowest-hanging fruit. If someone added an item to their cart but didn’t check out, a timely postcard with a discount might be just the push they need.
- High-intent browsers: If a visitor spends time on a product page but doesn’t make a purchase, they’re clearly interested. A well-timed direct mail piece can reignite that interest.
- Window shoppers: People who visit briefly and bounce might not be your best targets. Focus on the visitors who show meaningful engagement.
2. Broad vs. Narrow targeting
Not all retargeting strategies are created equal. You need to decide how specific you want to get with your messaging:
- Broad Approach: One evergreen brand creative sent to all retargeted visitors. This keeps things simple and scalable.
- Segmented Approach: Custom creatives for different product categories or browsing behaviors. If someone browses men’s shoes, send them a tailored postcard featuring your best-selling men’s styles.
- Hyper-Personalized Approach: Ultra-specific postcards tailored to the exact products browsed. While powerful, this requires more creative assets and can come across as a little too Big Brother if not executed carefully.
3. Timing is everything
Your direct mail campaign should complement, not compete with, your other retargeting efforts. Here’s an example of a smart timing strategy:
- Day 0: Retarget via email. It’s instant and free, so start here.
- Day 2: If no conversion, trigger a Direct Mail piece. A physical reminder lands in their mailbox, keeping your brand top-of-mind.
- Day 5+: Follow up with digital retargeting ads to reinforce your messaging.
This kind of multi-touch approach ensures you’re hitting potential customers from multiple angles without overwhelming them.
What’s actually happening behind the scenes?
You may be wondering at this point how all of this works. How did that footwear company figure out how to send mailers to anonymous website visitors and cart abandoners? How does Postie know what to do and when? Well, let’s get into the nitty gritty.
Here’s a step-by-step explainer of the actual tactics:
- Tracking Visitor Behavior: When users visit your site, their actions (e.g., viewing products, abandoning carts) are tracked using cookies or pixels, capturing data on their interests and intent.
- Data Collection and Analysis: This data is analyzed to segment visitors, such as those who showed high intent but didn’t convert, preparing them for targeted campaigns.
- Matching to Physical Addresses: For known customers, addresses come from your first-party database and/or private databases we curate. For anonymous visitors, their IP addresses are used to approximate locations, with data providers or algorithms matching these to physical addresses for mailing.
- Personalization and Execution: Personalized mail, tailored to each segment’s behavior, is sent to the matched addresses, aiming to re-engage the visitor.
- Optimization: Campaign performance is monitored to refine targeting and messaging over time for better results.
Postie’s a data science company, not a postcard printer
Postie enhances this process with deep learning, using models like autoencoders and neural networks to improve the accuracy of matching anonymous visitors to postal addresses, especially for underrepresented customer groups. This method, detailed in our study on advertiser prospecting (Revolutionizing Direct Mail with Deep Learning Insights) , handles imbalanced data effectively, boosting campaign precision.
We use all sorts of cool data science techniques to not only match addresses, but also to optimize for diverse consumer behaviors. This helps us to increase response rates beyond traditional marketing methods.
Plus, Postie is backed by a Data Management Platform (DMP) that processes raw data into actionable segments. We keep the DMP continuously updated for relevant, accurate data that’s ready for targeting. (We can also help you with sophisticated lookalike audiences so you’re not just retargeting—you’re also targeting people who are more likely to buy from you, today!)
For personalization and campaign execution, we have the ability to dynamically personalize one-off mailers via our mailer automation. That allows us to add names, promo codes, QR codes, product recommendations, and more to our customized mailers. And because it’s all automated and delivered via our cloud-based printers, it’s efficient and scalable. It’s helped us to achieve much higher conversion rates (28% higher, 34% response rate boost, 23 times higher customer satisfaction).
| Data technique | What it does and how it works |
| Customer segmentation | Uses machine learning to analyze behaviors, preferences, and engagement for detailed segments. |
| Integrated data sources | Combines first-party and third-party data for comprehensive customer profiles using lookalike models. |
| Behavioral segmentation | Analyzes past interactions to fine-tune timing and content of mailings. |
| Data Management Platform (DMP) | Processes raw data into dynamic, actionable segments, continually updated. |
| Deep learning for address matching | Uses autoencoders and neural networks to predict postal addresses, handling imbalanced datasets. |
| Integration with digital techniques | Blends direct mail with digital (QR codes, PURLs) for multi-channel personalization. |
Why Postie?
Postie takes the guesswork (and the grunt work) out of Direct Mail Retargeting. With powerful automation and data-driven insights, you can run high-impact campaigns with the ease and efficiency of digital marketing. Here’s what makes Postie the best choice:
✅ Automated printing: No manual orders. Postie finds the best printer for speed and quality.
✅ Real-time reporting: Optimize your campaign like you would with digital ads.
✅ Dynamic personalization: Merge fields let you customize names, offers, and even product images.
✅ Scalability: Whether you’re retargeting 1,000 visitors or 100,000, Postie does it without breaking a sweat.
