Pop Quiz: What traditional marketing channel is e-commerce starting to embrace and why? Answer: Direct mail. The data is clear—when you optimize direct mail with AI technology, you can increase campaign effectiveness across every channel.
How?
Marketers know that cross-channel marketing strategies deliver. Today’s modern marketers leverage multiple channels, using artificial intelligence-based marketing platforms, to deliver integrated customer experiences at every touch-point. Engaging your customers when and where they want to be reached improves campaign effectiveness across channels. And no channel is elicits as much of a response as direct mail.
According to the Data & Marketing Association, direct mail is the top channel for direct response by a landslide. It yields 10 to 30 times the results of all digital channels combined.
And contrary to popular belief, direct mail isn’t all coupon circulars and holiday catalogs. Modern direct mail is a data-driven AI marketing channel that can help you reach customers you’re struggling to get in touch with online. But as with any cross-channel campaign, execution is key.

This e-commerce and mail order retailer announces an online sale via automated postcard.
Whether you’re jumping into postcard automation for the first time or fine-tuning your artificial intelligence direct mail strategy, here are four steps to optimize your next campaign.
1. Use Artificial Intelligence Marketing to Automate Direct Mail
Modern direct mail is not the old school, poorly targeted, generic fluff of the past. Similar to all of your online channels, you want to adopt a data-first approach. Sync our direct mail software to your marketing automation platform to leverage all the existing data in your CRM for direct mail.
The process should be very similar to automating email. Make sure to use a clean and updated database as you build your direct mail list; define customer journeys; and set behavioral triggers for direct mail wherever you need a personal touch-point in your cross-channel campaigns. For example, set direct mail automations to target inactive online customers.
Pro tip: Direct mail can also help you gather data. Consider sending postcards that solicit email addresses via landing page opt-ins, drive social engagement or pre-screen leads.