Direktmarketing-Glossar

Das umfassendste Glossar für Direktmarketing, Postwerbung und Print-Mailing im deutschsprachigen Raum. 23 Fachbegriffe einfach erklärt — mit Praxisbeispielen und AutoLetter-Bezug.

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A
1 Begriff

A/B Testing

A statistical testing method for comparing two campaign variants — with the goal of identifying the more effective version through data and scaling it up.

Analyse & Testing
B
1 Begriff

Legitimate Interest

Legal basis for direct mail without consent under GDPR Art. 6(1)(f). Recital 47 explicitly mentions direct marketing as a legitimate interest. Court rulings from Stuttgart Regional Court to the ECJ confirm: Direct mail advertising to new customers is GDPR-compliant.

C
2 Begriffe

Conversion Rate

The conversion rate measures the proportion of recipients who complete a desired action. In print mailings, B2C campaigns achieve an average CVR of 4.1% — significantly higher than digital channels.

Metriken & KPIs

Customer Lifetime Value

Customer Lifetime Value measures total customer worth over the duration of the business relationship. In direct marketing, CLV controls budget allocation: print mailings achieve 1,011% ROAS (CMC 2025) and increase CLV through high dwell time and long-term effects.

D
4 Begriffe

Dialogpost

Deutsche Post's addressed advertising mail product with reduced postage rates for bulk mailing of print mailings from 500 items.

Deutsche Post Produkte

Dialogue Marketing

Marketing strategy based on direct, measurable dialogue across online and offline channels — for personalized customer communication and long-term relationships.

Grundbegriffe Direktmarketing

Direct Marketing

All marketing measures involving direct, personal communication and measurable response — via direct mail, email, or phone.

Grundbegriffe Direktmarketing

GDPR

The EU General Data Protection Regulation governs the handling of personal data. Key for direct mail: postal advertising is permitted without consent (legitimate interest), while email marketing is not.

Recht & Datenschutz
L
1 Begriff

Letter Shop

Service provider for mechanical production and mailing preparation of mailings — from printing and inserting to postal submission.

Postwerbung & Versand
M
2 Begriffe

Mailing

Umbrella term for all forms of direct marketing communication — by mail or email. Print mailings achieve 1,011% ROAS (CMC 2025), are GDPR-compliant without opt-in, and continue to generate responses up to 12 weeks after mailing.

Marketing Automation

Software-driven automation of marketing processes—from email campaigns to trigger-based direct mail. A crucial lever for higher response rates and measurable ROI in direct marketing.

Automatisierung & Technologie
N
1 Begriff

Customer Acquisition

All measures for acquiring first-time buyers -- from lookalike modeling to direct mail and B2B sales letters. Direct mail achieves a ROAS of 250% at 40 EUR CPO according to the 2021 CMC study and is GDPR-compliant without opt-in requirements.

Branchenspezifische Begriffe
P
3 Begriffe

Personalization

Data-driven adaptation of advertising messages to individual recipients — from personalized salutations to fully individualized content using Variable Data Printing.

Gestaltung & Copywriting

Print Mailing

Printed, postal advertising piece -- from classic advertising letters to maxi postcards. Print mailings achieve up to 4.1% conversion rate and 1,011% ROAS with existing customers, according to CMC studies.

Formate & Materialien

Unaddressed Mail

Unaddressed or partially addressed mass advertising from Deutsche Post — ideal for local reach, customer acquisition, and area-wide brand awareness without an existing address database.

Deutsche Post Produkte
R
2 Begriffe

Response Rate

Key metric in direct marketing that measures the percentage of recipients who respond to a marketing campaign.

Metriken & KPIs

ROI (Return on Investment)

ROI measures the profitability of marketing campaigns as the ratio of profit to investment. Print mailings achieve a ROAS of 1,011% for existing customers according to CMC 2025. The MIT Sloan Study 2025 proves: Direct Mail outperforms Google, Amazon, and Facebook in ROAS.

S
1 Begriff

Self-Mailer

Promotional mailing without envelope -- folded, sealed, directly addressed. Self-mailers achieve 4.6% CVR (CMC 2020) at lower production costs than direct mail letters and can be sent GDPR-compliant without opt-in.

T
2 Begriffe

Target Audience Segmentation

The strategic process of dividing markets into homogeneous buyer groups — crucial in direct marketing for minimal waste circulation and maximum response rates.

Zielgruppen & Daten

Trigger Mailing

Automated mailing triggered by an individual event -- from cart abandonment to birthdays. Trigger mailings achieve up to 320% more revenue per send than batch campaigns and can be used via mail in a GDPR-compliant manner without opt-in.

Automatisierung & Technologie
W
3 Begriffe

Cart Abandoner

Online shoppers who abandon checkout -- with an abandonment rate exceeding 70%, one of the biggest revenue opportunities in e-commerce. Print mailings achieve up to 113% of email conversion rates for cart abandonment recovery and are GDPR-compliant without requiring opt-in.

E-Commerce & Integration

Direct Mail Letter

Personally addressed print mailing for direct customer communication via postal mail — with measurable response rates and proven higher effectiveness than digital channels.

Postwerbung & Versand

Wastage

The portion of an advertising campaign that reaches people outside the target audience—ineffectively deployed budget that can be reduced through precise targeting.

Metriken & KPIs

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