What the 2026 CMC Print Mailing Study reveals about existing customers, coupons, and real purchasing power:

Print mailings are no longer just a nostalgic advertising tool; they’ve become an integral part of the performance mix for many online stores, which is exactly why it’s worth taking a closer look at their actual impact. The CMC 2026 Print Mailing Study once again clearly demonstrates just how effective physical promotional letters are in re-engaging existing customers, based on 858,490 print mailings sent by 35 online stores between late September 2025 and late February 2026.

The focus here is on how effectively print mailings bring existing customers back to the store and what economic impact they have—and the answer is clear: Print works reliably and, above all, sustainably.

The economic significance becomes even clearer when looking at the return on advertising spend, which stands at 961 percent—meaning that every euro spent on a print mailing generates an average of 9.61 euros in revenue. This is based on an average shopping cart value of around 118.79 euros before returns, and even though print is more costly to produce than many digital channels, this is more than offset by the high conversion rate and shopping cart value.

Impact over time and on the shopping cart

Print mailings have an impact not only immediately after being sent, but also over a significantly longer period of time; while 39 percent of orders are placed within the first two weeks, nearly half of all purchases are made starting in the fifth week after mailing. The promotional letter thus remains in the household and continues to have an effect, even long after the initial impulse has been triggered.

At the same time, the average cart value is also increasing, as customers spend an average of 24.8 percent more after receiving a print mailing than they did previously, raising the average cart value from 95.21 euros to 118.79 euros. Print thus not only drives more purchases but also increases the value of those purchases, while data also shows that 8.5 percent of recipients visit the online store immediately after receiving the mailing—often via QR codes that translate the physical impulse into a digital visit.

This is precisely where the study’s central focus comes into play: the question of customer-value-based incentives, since different voucher values have very different effects depending on the segment. For customers with lower customer value, a higher-value voucher leads to a significantly better conversion rate—which rises by 33 percent, from 2.1 to 2.8 percent—and revenue per campaign also improves slightly.

With top customers, however, the picture is different: while a smaller discount may lead to a lower conversion rate, the return on advertising spend increases after deducting the cost of the discount, making it clear that a larger discount does not automatically lead to better results—rather, what matters is how well the incentive aligns with the customer’s value.

Conclusion

The bottom line is that the study confirms a clear picture: print mailings are a stable yet highly effective channel for engaging existing customers, generating measurable revenue, increasing average order value, and having a lasting impact over weeks. This effect is particularly strong when print is combined with precise segmentation and a well-thought-out coupon strategy, as this is precisely where it demonstrates its full potential.

Here Click here to download the study.