Paradysz Releases Latest Study of Seasonal Patterns in Direct Mail Usage

NEW YORK—Sept. 08, 2011—Paradysz Research released its “2011 Seasonality Study” of direct mail trends. According to the study, key direct mail months and overall seasonal patterns remain relatively stable for most consumer sectors despite continued economic challenges for marketers and consumers.

Sample findings from the “2011 Seasonality Study” by category include:

• Nonprofit acquisition mailings overall continued to be concentrated in January and the fall. The best performing months were September and November. November response was a standout in 2010, while September showed the most consistency over a three year period.
• In 2010, Publishers continued to concentrate mail in the months of January, September and December, followed closely by March and June. Looking at response, performance indices were relatively stable throughout the year, suggesting that seasonal strategies for most publishers were on target.
• The Apparel category continues to mail most heavily in advance of the Spring fashion season and, correspondingly, saw its best performance in the spring and early summer.
• Merchandisers, however, typically save the bulk of their mailings for the year-end holidays. November continues to be one of the strongest months for Merchandise mailers, and the trend continues of marketers mailing as late as possible in the year (specifically late November and early December).

“Given the general uncertainty regarding the economy, unemployment and consumer confidence, it follows that seasonal strategies for many marketers focused on historically strong months. Our ‘Seasonality’ reports show, however, that opportunities for either expansion or alternate seasonal testing still exist in nearly all consumer categories,” noted Per Glenn Lalich, vice president of Research & Analysis at Paradysz.

“Given the general uncertainty regarding the economy, unemployment and consumer confidence, it follows that seasonal strategies for many marketers focused on historically strong months. Our Seasonality reports show, however, that opportunities for either expansion or alternate seasonal testing still exist in nearly all consumer categories,” Lalich added

The study leverages a proprietary set of Mail Volume Indices and Performance Scores over a three year period for areas of consumer publishing, nonprofits, apparel and merchandise. In addition, economic indicators such as the unemployment rate, combined with key economic and political events give broader perspective on each category’s direct mail efforts, and notes potential opportunities.

For more information on Paradysz’s “2011 Seasonality Studies,” please contact Debbie Seigenthaler at dseigenthaler@paradysz.com.

About Paradysz
Paradysz is an audience development agency that helps clients make the most informed decisions to connect with great customers. Experienced in direct mail, online, print and insert media, the company takes full advantage of a range of analytical solutions, consumer behavior intelligence and media research, using ROI metrics that deliver and retain customers. With a client list that’s a “Who’s-Who” of premier nonprofit and commercial organizations, Paradysz is uniquely positioned to help you accomplish your marketing goals.

Source: Paradysz.