Sending a postcard to 10,000 random homes and hoping the phone rings isn’t a strategy.

In this episode of the Plumber Marketing Success Podcast, I sit down with Gary Pizzati, Founder and CEO of We Mail America, to break down how plumbing companies can use direct mail as a measurable part of their marketing mix.

Gary brings decades of advertising experience to the conversation, including senior leadership roles with Modern Luxury and Cumulus Media, where he oversaw hundreds of millions of dollars in advertising revenue. He later founded We Mail America, which has earned back-to-back recognition on the Inc. 5000, including a #953 ranking in 2026.

Gary calls direct mail the “grandfather of targeted media.” But today's direct mail is far more sophisticated than simply choosing a ZIP code and dropping postcards.

We get practical about what actually makes a campaign work.

In this episode, you'll learn:

• Where direct mail belongs alongside Google, LSA, Yelp, Meta and other marketing channels• The four critical variables: mailing list, offer, creative and frequency• How to target homeowners based on home age, owner occupancy, income and specific neighborhoods• Why Gary recommends thinking in terms of Data, Design and Delivery• What makes a compelling plumbing offer—and why free inspections can work• Why your mail piece should be simple, eye-catching, credible and easy to understand• How much a plumbing company should realistically budget for direct mail• Why Gary's larger service-business clients may spend $5,000–$7,000 per month, while smaller campaigns can start around $1,800 per month• How AI is making direct mail targeting and attribution more sophisticated• How matchback reporting can connect mailed households with CRM data and reveal leads that might otherwise be attributed entirely to Google or another digital channel• What the first 90 days of a serious direct mail campaign should look like

One of the biggest takeaways: direct mail shouldn't be viewed as a replacement for digital marketing.

A homeowner might see your postcard, remember your company, throw the card away—and later search for your business on Google. Without proper attribution, Google gets all the credit. That's why Gary argues that plumbers need to look at direct mail as part of an integrated marketing system rather than judging each channel in isolation.

If you're a plumbing company owner trying to determine whether direct mail deserves a place in your marketing budget—or you're already mailing and aren't sure whether it's producing a real return—this episode gives you a practical framework for evaluating it.

Learn with PipeWrench.

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