Response rates are an essential part of a marketing campaign. Your dealership can find out how successful your campaign was with your customers, which influences future business. That’s why your customers’ response rates to the advertisements and the offers you send them are equally as important. However, you first want to establish the best marketing methods to boost engagement with your dealership.
Direct mail provides businesses with great response rates, even when compared to more modern advertising methods. To find out more about the response rates your auto dealer will see with automotive direct marketing mailers, check out this guide, created by the experts at Epsilon Individual Automotive. Contact us today!
What Is Marketing Response Rate?
Before we dive into the details of automotive direct mail response rates, it’s important to define what this term means. A response rate is how you measure the number of people who have responded to your advertisement’s call-to-action.1
To calculate the response rate of a particular direct mail marketing campaign, marketers divide the number of respondents who completed the call-to-action by the total number of recipients who received your direct mail piece. Then, you can compare that metric to your previous direct mail marketing campaigns. This will tell you if your most recent campaign has been more or less effective than previous campaigns.
Response Rates: How Does Direct Mail Hold Up?
Direct mail has excellent response rates. The average response rate for direct mail is 9 percent for house lists.2 For prospect lists, the response rate hovers around 4.9 percent.
When matched against digital marketing techniques, the direct mail response rate reigns supreme. Emails offer around a 1 percent household response rate.2
What does that mean for your dealership? Direct mail may be the better option for your business. Customers are more likely to look at it and take advantage of your promotions.
How To Track Your Direct Mail Response Rate
Now that you’re aware of the response rate benefits that automotive direct mail has to offer, it’s time to learn more about how you can track your customers’ responses.
Tracking your customers’ response rates is as simple as adding key features to your direct mailers. Let’s take a look at some of the best marketing methods to use to see how your direct mail campaign performs.
Personalized URL
Tracking your buyers’ behaviors is easy when you harness the power of the internet. By adding a personalized URL to your direct mailers, you’ll not only add an element of personalization to your advertisement, but you’ll also be able to evaluate the customer response rates with online analytics resources effortlessly.
Coupon Codes
Redeemable coupon codes are a great way to encourage your leads to do business with you. Plus, your dealership’s direct mailers can be further enhanced by online redeemable coupon codes. This makes it convenient for your customers but also allows you to measure the number of coupon codes used vs. the number of mailers sent more easily.
You can also keep track of the coupon codes used in person for those who prefer to do business face-to-face.
800 Lead-Generating Tracking Numbers
Another way to effectively determine the number of customers who responded to your auto dealer’s direct mail advertisement is to create a unique phone number that they’ll call to participate in the special that’s listed on your mailer.
Then, have your team log the number of calls they receive through that number to calculate your direct mail response rate.
Use QR Codes to Engage & Monitor Audiences
QR codes are more than just trendy—they’re practical tools that can transform how your dealership connects with potential customers. Nowadays, these codes are found almost everywhere because of how simple they are to use. Adding a QR code to your direct mail pieces gives your audience an instant and easy way to engage with your dealership. With just a quick scan using their smartphones, customers can be directed to a variety of digital destinations, such as:
- Custom landing pages
- Personalized URLs (PURLs)
- Trackable websites using UTM parameters—and more!
Beyond convenience, QR codes also provide something invaluable: data. Each scan can be tracked, giving insight into how often your mailers interacted with you and what content resonated most with your audience. This feedback is crucial for refining your marketing approach.
By blending traditional direct mail with digital technology, QR codes allow you to seamlessly link your physical outreach efforts to your online campaigns. This makes your marketing more interactive and gives you measurable results to help fine-tune your future initiatives.
Consider a Microsite or Landing Page
When building your next campaign, understanding the difference between microsites and landing pages can help you choose the right tool for your goals—and how to best keep track of response rates throughout your campaign.
Microsites are small, focused websites typically consisting of just a few pages. They’re perfect for showcasing specific promotions, highlighting limited-time offers, or exploring a new product or event in depth.
Think of microsites as mini-sites that deliver detailed content for one message. For example, if your dealership is hosting an annual sale or launching a new vehicle, a microsite lets you present that information creatively.
On the other hand, landing pages are typically one page and live within your dealership’s main website. Their goal is simple: convert visitors into leads. Landing pages are built around a single action—scheduling a test drive, requesting a quote, or redeeming a special offer. Unlike microsites, they’re more about driving immediate results than providing in-depth information.
Choosing between the two comes down to what you need. For a detailed, immersive experience, go with a microsite. But a landing page may be the more practical route if you’re looking to turn clicks into conversions.
Increasing Direct Mail Response Rate: Things to Consider
In addition to including unique URLs and coupon codes in your direct mail campaign, there are a few things you can do during the design process that may help to increase your campaign’s response rate.
To make improving your response rate easier than ever, here are three things you should always keep in mind: a specific mailing list, a great offer, and creativity.
Mailing List
To get the best response rates, you need to make sure you’re sending your mailers to the right people. To do so, make sure your mailing list is both up-to-date and targeted correctly.
Ensuring your contact list is up to date means your loyal customers will always receive your information. This helps keep them shopping, financing, and servicing with your dealership for the long haul. Don’t be afraid to periodically double-check that contact information is correct. That way, if a customer moves, they’ll still receive your mailers.
When you’re looking to expand your client list, direct mail is a great way to reach new shoppers. You spent all that time creating an eye-catching campaign; now it’s time to make sure it gets seen by the right people.
For example, if you’re sending out information about a college graduate rebate program you’re running, sending this to everyone on your contact list may not be the best way to go. Instead, utilize data solutions to fine-tune your contact list, like the ones used by our experts. By doing so, you can create smaller, custom contact lists based on demographics, credit scores, and much more. You can specifically reach out to college graduates, who are the target audience for your campaign and will be more likely to respond to it.
A Great Offer
Coupon codes are a great way to track response rates. Before you can track the response rate, however, you need to create an offer that your customers can take advantage of. The first way to do this is to create a simple-to-understand offer. Is this an exclusive coupon that’s only redeemable with the mailer? Can they claim a free car wash with their next service appointment?
By offering a coupon with simple redeeming directions, you’re likely to see higher response rates.
Creativity
Many dealerships flock to direct mail as their go-to marketing technique because of the flexibility this option provides. Take advantage of the creative freedom direct mail offers by thinking outside the box. Consider making your envelopes larger. Experts estimate using large envelopes lands the highest response at 5 percent, compared to postcards and catalogs.2
You can also experiment with colors, textures, and types of mailers—like foldouts, brochures, three-dimensional boxes, and more. Chances are, the more unique your mailer is, the higher the response rate.
Maximize Response with Targeted CTAs
A well-crafted call-to-action (CTA) is critical to getting your audience to take the next step—and finding out what they respond to and ignore. Whether you’re using a landing page or a microsite, the CTA is where you can communicate what your customers want to do—and why they should act now.
A strong CTA isn’t just about using action words—it’s about creating urgency and providing value. For instance, consider this example: “Don’t Miss Out on Our New Inventory—Schedule Your Test Drive Today!” This statement does more than ask for an action—it encourages quick decision-making by suggesting exclusivity and timeliness.
Your CTA is also a valuable tool for tracking engagement. By monitoring how many people click or respond, you can assess the effectiveness of your message and make improvements for the next campaign.
Combining CTAs with segmented mailing lists creates a powerful feedback loop. This allows you to analyze customer behavior, track responses, and ultimately build more effective outreach strategies over time.
Increase Your Response Rae with Automotive Direct Mail
At Epsilon Individual Automotive, we’re committed to helping dealerships nationwide increase their revenue and improve their direct mail response rates.
With our exclusive services and customizable options, our team can lead you to business growth with your next direct mail campaign. Get the conversation started by giving us a call or sending us an email today!
1 https://www.skyword.com/marketing-dictionary/response-rate/
2 https://www.smallbizgenius.net/by-the-numbers/direct-mail-statistics/#gref
