The common pattern of eye flow by the recipient of a personalized letter is as follows: From (1) name and address; to (2) salutation; to (3) end of letter to the signature; to (4) postscript, if included. Between (2) and (3) the eyes tend to skip the page to scan highlighted words inside the letter.

In direct-mail letter promotions, the enclosure is usually the third item referred to by the recipient after the outer envelope and letter. The enclosure is quickly scanned, and, if considered worthy of further attention, such attention begins with the cover. About 50% of readers open and look at the inside; the other 50% first go to the back cover.

The common pattern of eye flow by the reader of an enclosure in a mailing package is from (1) illustrations, the eyes jumping from one to another, to (2) large and midsize headlines, to (3) inside spread, with eye path starting at upper left and moving to upper right.