Mail Unleashed with Rory Sutherland Ep 14: Use behavioural science to unlock campaign potential with Richard Shotton
Dec 10, 2025
Richard Shotton, behavioural scientist and author who applies psychology to marketing, joins to explore direct mail. They discuss how surprise and distinctiveness capture attention. They cover why physical mail boosts trust and memory. They highlight costly signalling and a real test where paper quality raised donations.
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Surprise Breaks Mental Scripts
- Distinctive and surprising requests get noticed because they break people’s mental scripts.
- Richard Shotton cites research showing unusual asks produce larger and more frequent donations.
Mail’s Distinctiveness With Young People
- Young people may respond strongly to mail because they receive far less of it, making it more distinctive.
- Richard notes scarcity of mail to Gen Z can boost its impact rather than reduce it.
Mail As Costly Signal
- Recipients treat mail as a costly signal indicating effort and credibility.
- Richard argues that this perceived effort makes printed messages feel more believable than pixels.
