Direct mail automation software automates the process of sending electronic or physical letters, packages, and gifts. Direct mail automation is most frequently used by marketers, who utilize these tools to digitize the tracking and targeting of campaigns by enabling their creation, personalization, sending, and results tracking.
These tools can be used alongside marketing automation software to trigger digital events, such as sending an email, which synchronizes with real-time user actions or events across other channels. As direct mail automation has evolved, it now includes corporate gifting, swag, and virtual experiences offerings. Because of this, the attribute of gifting platforms has been added to better differentiate products that have primary functionality around gifting capabilities. These gifting capabilities contribute to a more one-to-one marketing approach vs. traditional direct mail, which is often seen as one-to-many. When searching for a direct mail solution based on the approach, this gifting attribute will help identify the best product.
To qualify for inclusion in the Direct Mail Automation category, a product must:
Allow users to upload and manage lists of physical addresses and managed addresses (i.e. not only a business address)
Facilitate the printing, postage, sending, and tracking of direct mail
Offer design features or templates for easy customization
Provide personalization features during campaign creation
Offer reporting capabilities in addition to campaign tracking
Integrate with sales and marketing tools, like CRM software or marketing automation software
