Royal Mail is piloting a scheme with a “well-known UK retailer” that will send direct mail to consumers’ homes based on their web browsing.

Clicking on a product and adding it to a shopping basket would trigger personalised marketing letters, according to The Daily Mail.

The paper claims one UK retailer is piloting the scheme in “secret” and the system could be rolled out further within months.

Letters will be sent to consumers who have abandoned an online shopping basket before buying any products.

The retailer piloting the scheme is using cookies to track which products are being looked at on its websites and is matching this data against customers’ postal addresses.

Royal Mail is then paid by the retailer to deliver marketing to customers’ homes within a day or two.

Jonathan Harman, managing director of Royal Mail’s MarketReach, revealed the plans at an industry event and said the tie-up would allow retailers to target “high value prospects” with a follow-up letter.

He added that privacy is a “big deal” for Royal Mail and said the programme would be used sensitively.

The privatised Royal Mail earns significant revenues from direct mail and is becoming increasingly reliant on the marketing channel as the volume of traditional letters drops.