Would be interested to see if there is a significant difference
between the expected sales return of 1) direct mail advertising, and
2) handbill advertising.  If available, please provide statistics and
sources.

Handbills refer to advertising that is deposited at the front door of
residences as opposed to advertising sent via US mail and deposited in
mailboxes.

Just answering intuitively, I'd say that handbills find their way to
my garbage can a lot faster than direct mail - although both approach
the speed of light (or at least sound...)

Seriously, though, I've never seen stats on handbills.  Would be an
interesting area to research.

ragingacademic

Ragingacademic - thanks for the comments.  I agree with you in
general, but I'm curious if some people may pay more attention to
handbill menus from local takeout places (if they get takeout
frequently), or sale announcements from local mom and pop stores than
they do to the national ADVO-type direct mail.  Perhaps there is a
"support our local stores" mentality that could explain any variance?

Here's a cached article that might be of interest to you:

http://216.239.53.100/search?q=cache:2SmVUX06R-EJ:www.libertynet.org/~score570/mktstra6.html