For the generations that grew up on Blue’s Clues, mail time is pretty few and far between these days.

As a Gen Z/millennial “cusper,” Emily Loof, development and marketing manager at education nonprofit Colorado Youth for a Change (CYC), said she’s pushed for an increased use of direct mail in her current and past roles.

• Since last year, she said CYC has “about doubled” its direct-mail marketing budget.
• In addition to seeing increased donations, Loof said she’s also received feedback that indicates younger people may be itching for more things in their mailboxes.
• One person “tagged our organization on Facebook and said, ‘This is so cool. Like, I never get letters from people that I donate to,’” she told us.

Sign, sealed, delivered: Given growing data-privacy concerns, clutter in online advertising, and demand for brand authenticity, some marketers we spoke to said the best way to reach younger consumers could be through some good ol’ fashioned snail mail.

You’ve got mail

“What were the last five things someone sent you in the mail?” Lauren Alt-Kishpaugh, VP of marketing at offline marketing automation platform Postal, asked. “I could name the last five brands that have sent me something in the mail. I can’t do it with people who email me.”

:While email inboxes are overflowing, a USPS study found that “62% of millennials tend to read through the advertising mail they receive, rather than discarding it without reading.”

Considering that most people are bombarded with hundreds of ads per day online, Alt-Kishpaugh said, “it makes sense that brands are wanting to lean into offline.” Polly Wong, president at Belardi Wong, an agency that specializes in direct marketing, told us it’s helping more than 80 brands work on their first direct-mail campaigns this year.

Keep reading here.—KH

When it comes to new CPG products, it’s survival of the fittest. About 30,000 new items—enough to fill an entire grocery store—debut every year, but just 30% actually notch growth two years post-launch (or just keep them steady), per NielsenIQ.

Bold Strategies, an e-commerce strategy and services firm, wants to help companies beat the odds with BoldLabs, a new division that it debuted in May.

• Its Digital Test Market service does what the name suggests: It tests a brand’s new products online first—be it on Amazon’s or Walmart’s marketplaces, or a custom Shopify site—tweaking prices and marketing over several weeks to six months to find the perfect formula for a wider launch.
• It already works with 30+ brands to help introduce new items to shoppers.

“At the end of the day, what you’re trying to do is, you’re trying to delight consumers, right? And you’re trying to give them something that they like better,” said Horacio Trevino, the CPG industry vet heading up BoldLabs.

But there’s a lot of potential risk associated with a wide launch of new products—the cost of manufacturing, the marketing dollars, and the bad taste (literal or metaphorical) left in the consumers’ mouths by a not-so-great product.

Read the full story in Retail Brew here.—EC

Last week, we reported that several brands—including Peace Out, Coterie, and Yes Way Rosé—are upping ad spend on influencer marketing in the face of a possible recession.

We asked all of you if your brand or clients are doing the same. Here are the results, courtesy of more than 1,000 Marketing Brew readers:

• 32% said yes
• 39% said no
• 28% weren’t sure

Brands are spending more on influencer marketing even as creators raise their rates. In the US, ad spend on influencer marketing is expected to pass $4 billion this year, according to eMarketer forecasts.

Growth will continue, but measurement remains a challenge. Nearly 40% of marketers recently surveyed by Publicis Sapient and Launchmetrics said that they rely on influencers to report their own data, “opening the door to potential misrepresentation and manipulation.”

There are a lot of bad marketing tips out there. These aren't those.

Ad tech: Take a look at how Amazon could be tracking you on Prime Day, thanks to Gizmodo.

Retro: Clever (and cringey) ways that brands are leaning into “Gen Z’s obsession with nostalgia.”

: Five ways to navigate negative comments and reactions on social media.

Candid convos with industry icons: Hosted by Brew co-founder Alex Lieberman, the Imposters podcast delves deep into the personal and mental challenges some of the biggest names in biz have faced while reaching their most resounding achievements. Listen here.

::drumroll:: Introducing The Brief: A Summit Presented by Marketing Brew

Marketing Brew has partnered with some of the world’s most recognized brands and influential marketers to bring you a premiere one-day marketing event in the heart of New York City.

You’ll hear from a powerhouse panel of speakers that will spotlight innovations, highlight strategies, and provide solutions to the modern marketer’s biggest challenges. Sounds good, right? Dust off your work pants and join us.

Early-bird pricing ends soon, so don’t wait. Save yourself a seat (and some green) now!

Are you one of the 83% of Marketing Brew readers planning to make a career change this year? Be sure to check out our Marketing Brew Job Board for over 300 job openings!

Today’s featured openings:

• Senior Service Designer at Chew Innovation
• Studio Producer at Rust-Oleum
• Senior Manager, Marketing at Skimlinks

See more jobs or post your job opportunities here.

Stat: 33% of new subscribers to news publications cancel within a day according to a report from the paywall-tech company Piano cited by Nieman Lab. (Don’t even think about it.)

Quote: “Peppou declined to share exactly what Morsel’s made of, but told us that up front you get some ‘umami, roasted chicken’ flavors before it melts in your mouth ‘like a beef brisket’ and concludes with some ‘seafood notes,’” writes Emerging Tech Brew’s Dan McCarthy on *checks notes* uh, new…meat

Another quote: “Went from saddie to baddie thanks to Peak!”—Copy for a ketamine-therapy advertisement running on TikTok for the psychedelic therapy brand Peak

Read: “Hard Seltzer Has Gone Flat” (The Atlantic)

Marketing pros like you need to understand what drives consumers, right

Join us on July 18 for a free virtual event, where Mr. Freakonomics himself will  demonstrate that economics is the study of incentives — how people get what they want or need, especially when other people want or need the same thing.

This event is just a small sample of what you can expect when you take our Business Analytics Accelerator course — now open for enrollment. Apply by July 18 and get $200 off with code EARLYBIRD200. No payment needed when you apply (isn’t that nice?).

Catch up on a few Marketing Brew stories you might have missed.

• Streaming ads are way too loud. Who’s going to fix it?
• Chief is promoting the new season of its podcast with a satirical ad about gender bias at work
• Emission impossible: Greenpeace’s Cannes takeover