The data covering the period from July to September 2022 found that this has also been accompanied by an increase in mail effectiveness across seven of the 12 commercial effectiveness metrics tracked by JICMail.
JICMail’s diary-based data captured from a panel of one thousand households every month reveals that in Q3 2022 a greater proportion of mail was read (74% of mail items), opened (65%), retained (45%), put on display (4%) and taken out of the home (3%) in Q3 2022, than in the same period in Q3 2021.
The data showed that the average piece of business mail was interacted with 4.8 times over a 28-day period, direct mail 4.4 times, Partially Addressed Mail (PAM) four times, and door drops 3.1 times.
The average lifespan in the home was 8.6 days for business mail, 7.4 days for direct mail, 6.8 days for PAM, and 5.9 days for door drops.
As the cost-of-living crisis deepens, JICMail said consumers have been more likely to put the mail that matters most to them on display in their homes than ever before.
Record amounts of mail were put on display in Q3, with appointment related information, loyalty reward statements, notifications and reminders – for example, related to product and service renewals, and vouchers and coupons the most commonly displayed mail content in the home.
Metrics related to tangible commercial benefits to advertisers throughout the sales funnel also improved in Q3. 15% of mail prompted a brand discussion, the highest rate recorded in two years. In addition, brand discovery prompted by mail was further seen with increased amounts prompting web visits, store visits, calls to the advertiser, and mobile device usage.
Increased product and service discovery drove improved conversion levels with 3% of mail prompting a voucher redemption and 5% used to make a purchase.
Ian Gibbs, JICMail director of data leadership and learning, said: “As the cost-of-living crisis deepens, UK households are becoming more reliant on the mail channel to deliver a vital connection between consumers and brands.
“Loyalty reward statements and vouchers and coupons take on new importance when consumers are looking to make their household budgets stretch further, while notifications and reminders about upcoming service renewals are being scrutinised more than ever before to ensure that the best deal can be had.”
JICMail data is gathered from a panel of 1,000 households every month. The mail activity of every household member is tracked using a diary-based app. Every mail item they receive over the course of a week is captured and everything they do with that mail item over the course of a month is recorded.
Separately, JICMail has revealed the latest winners of its JICMail Platinum Awards for outstanding practice with JICMail data. The awards have been given to four new companies and eight renewals for existing Platinum partners. With five new companies confirmed earlier in the year, this brings the total number of Platinum partners up to 17.
Winners have been required to demonstrate a level of proficiency with JICMail beyond its basic application, which includes evidence of JICMail data being embedded into the subscriber’s L&D programs, routinely applied across the planning, sales and data ecosystems, together with case study evidence that JICMail is being systematically used to retain or grow business.
The latest winners are Go Inspire Group, DBS Datamarketing, MetroMail, and Nutshell Creative Marketing.
The Platinum partners who successfully validated their accreditation were Citipost Mail, Join the Dots, Marketreach, PSE Offline Marketing, The Dragonfly Agency, The Letterbox Consultancy, Webmart, and Whistl Doordrop Media while other Platinum partners awarded in Spring 2022 were the7Stars, Gecko Direct, Mailbird, Smart Distribution, and Eight Days a Week Print Solutions.
