6 Tips that Furnish Success: Direct Mail Strategies for Home Furnishings

Home furnishers aren’t just selling furniture; you’re selling dreams, comfort and a lifestyle that customers hope to achieve. And in the competitive world of home furnishings, direct mail marketing remains a valuable tool to connect with potential customers, turn catalogs into conversions, brochures into bed sales and so much more.

Why should furniture marketers use direct mail to sell home furnishings? The power of direct mail can help:

• Acquire new customers and retain current ones
• Engage with customers throughout their buyer journey
• Convert prospects and website visitors
• Reactivate lapsed and lost buyers

But the most convincing reason to use direct mail marketing? It works. Eighty-four percent of marketers agree that direct mail provides the highest ROI of any marketing channel  — including email. And by integrating direct mail into an omnichannel approach, home furnishing brands can create powerful campaigns that produce meaningful  results.

In a world where looks matter

In the home furnishings industry — where texture, quality and visual appeal reign supreme — direct mail marketing offers a tactile appeal that other channels can’t match.

While digital marketing bombards consumers with fleeting images and constant pop-up ads, direct mail pieces command attention through their physical presence, allowing furniture brands to showcase their products in a more immersive way.

High-quality catalogs and mailers give customers the ability to study design details, compare finishes and envision pieces in their homes — all while sitting at their own kitchen table.

Unlike email campaigns, direct mail has an open rate of 80-90%. And even after direct mail is opened and read, direct mail advertising pieces are kept in the recipient’s home for as long as 17 days, often finding a permanent spot on a desk or pinned up on the refrigerator during their furniture-buying journey. This fixed presence helps ensure that direct mail is an indispensable channel for home furnishing brands looking to make a lasting impression.

Ready to add direct mail to your marketing mix? Here are six tips for home furnishers to boost the success of their direct mail marketing campaign:

1. Sell the dream with visuals. A beautifully staged living room scene can be more compelling than a standalone product shot. Show customers how the furniture fits into their dream home. Use the direct mail piece’s real estate to:

• Stage furniture in aspirational room settings
• Highlight the texture, color and lifestyle appeal of your products
• Build your brand’s reputation with strategic, well-executed designs
• Maintain consistency with your brand’s aesthetic and recognizable style

Be sure to experiment with different direct mail formats like postcards or catalogs to see what has the most impact on your audience. Remember that messaging, color palettes, images and even paper stock are all a direct reflection of your brand. The more familiar customers are with your brand, the more likely they are to choose you over your competitors. It’s important to invest time and resources into these elements to achieve your desired results.

2. Speak directly to buyers. Modern direct mail goes far beyond “Dear [First Name]”. Today’s direct mail can also be targeted and personalized, creating a more relevant and engaging experience for shoppers.

Segment your lists based on demographics, purchase history or other relevant factors, so you can tailor your message to specific interests, needs and challenges, increasing the likelihood of earning customer loyalty. For example:

• Feature bedroom and living room collections for first-time homebuyers or newlyweds as they create their home
• Highlight downsizing-friendly furniture for older adults or new empty nesters
• Showcase low-budget staples for college students or young adults moving out on their own for the first time

By personalizing your messaging and offers to each segment, you’re working smarter (not harder) to earn those sales.

3. Incorporate offers that drive action. Your direct mail needs a clear call to action that creates urgency and communicates value. Make it easy for recipients to make an online purchase or view an entire kitchen collection on your website. They should know exactly what you want them to do and how they should do it. Use phrases like:

• Design your dream room! Click for 25% off complete dining room sets
• First-time buyer discount: Get 0% financing for 12 months
• Trade-in your old sofa! Claim your $500 credit toward new furniture

And instead of just telling them to visit your website, you may incorporate a personalized URL (PURL) that they can click to visit a shopping page with a limited-time discount. Or include or a Quick Response (QR) code so interested buyers can simply scan to access the interactive floor plan feature on your website. You may even offer a unique promo code for online and in-store redemption.

Whatever the call to action, it should command attention in your direct mail piece. Be sure it’s placed strategically within the design, complimented by bold fonts and an inviting color palette. 

4. Track and measure results…and make adjustments.Start by setting clear objectives for your direct mail campaign to help measure success. Are you trying to increase website traffic, sell out of your clearance inventory or convert new movers into new customers? By implementing unique tracking codes, PURLs or QR codes, you can see which tactics are driving results like:

• Response rate
• Conversion rate
• Average order value
• Click-through rates
• Cost per acquisition and more

A/B test different headlines, images and calls to action to see what generates the best response from your audience. You can review your strategies and make necessary to tweaks to optimize for future campaigns, based on where your efforts will have the greatest impact.

The key is to remain consistent, measure your results and continuously refine your approach. After all, in the home furnishings industry, every direct mail piece tells a story — make sure it’s telling one worth remembering.

5. Focus on Seasonality plays a significant role in the home furnishings industry. That’s why strategic campaign timing can make or break your direct mail performance.

For example, during spring and summer you’ll of course see more customers shopping for outdoor living room sets. Winter months may prompt more sales on cozy couches and recliners. Analyze industry trends and data from past campaigns to infer when your target audience is most likely to respond to a specific offer.

• Late summer/early fall may be an optimal time for back-to-school and home refresh season
• Early winter is an opportunity to maximize on holiday gifting and home celebration preparation
• Post-tax refund season can target consumers with extra spending money to spruce up their living spaces

Schedule your campaign strategically to coincide with key events when your audience is most likely to respond to your mailings. Establish a regular cadence, leveraging direct mail to stay top of mind with your audience.

Don’t discount the potential sales power of off-peak promotions to drive revenue during slower periods.

6. Retarget interested shoppers. In today’s competitive market, single-touch marketing rarely closes the deal. Postal retargeting — also referred to as programmatic direct mail — can reach interested prospects within 12-24 hours of a digital interaction. It can significantly boost your conversion rates and ROI. And it’s simple:

• Track website visitors through pixels or by implementing digital strategies into your direct mailers
• Send personalized direct mail pieces featuring products they viewed online
• Include specific calls to action referencing their browsing history
• Entice them to return with an exclusive promotion or sales code

For example, if someone visited your website and browsed a particular bedroom collection, but left without making a purchase, you can send them a direct mail piece that highlights features and specs of that collection, encouraging them to make a purchase. By focusing your efforts on the people who are already interested in your brand, you’re more likely to get a response — and a second chance at making the sale.

By nurturing buyers throughout their journey, you can build lasting relationships and drive repeat business. Remember, you’re selling a lifestyle. Your retargeting strategy should reflect this by creating a journey that guides customers from inspiration to purchase and beyond.

Direct mail delivers

Direct mail remains a tried-and-true tangible touchpoint that brings a furniture showroom directly into customers’ hands. Just as a well-designed room combines function, comfort and style, a successful direct mail campaign blends compelling visuals, data-driven strategy and a perfectly timed approach to get results.

At LS Direct, our solutions for the home furnishings industry combine the strengths of online programs and direct mail with critical analytics and data to optimize campaigns for powerful returns.

Download How Direct Mail Bridges Online and Offline Marketing for more strategies on using direct mail to accelerate results for your next campaign.