A study in the US has indicated that despite direct mail’s reputation for being “old school” or expensive, it is the top choice of U.S. and Canadian consumers for the receipt of brand communications.

According to Epsilon Targeting’s 2011 Channel Preference Study, titled The Formula For Success: Preference and Trust, direct mail continues to deliver as consumers’ preferred means of receiving marketing messages from brands.

Suggestion

The study suggests that brands should use a variety of mediums to build relationships, starting with trusted channels like direct mail, then layering the message to re-enforce it through other channels.

Marketers need to understand which channels resonate most at various points in the consumer purchase cycle and incorporate a cross-channel strategy that leverages data and technology to communicate on a one-to-one basis

Findings

There has been 66 percent growth in U.S. consumers’ use of Facebook in the past year to research and review consumer product information. In response to an annual Epsilon Targeting survey of consumer channel preferences, 10 percent of U.S. respondents said they used Facebook for consumer product information, a jump from six percent in 2010. At the same time, roughly a third of U.S. and Canadian survey respondents (33 percent U.S. and 31 percent Canadian) said they don't find ads on social media sites useful.

Key findings:

• 26 percent of U.S. consumers and 30 percent of Canadians said direct mail is more trustworthy than email;
• 50 percent of U.S. consumers and 48 percent of Canadians said they pay more attention to postal mail than email;
• 60 percent of U.S. consumers and 64 percent of Canadians said they enjoy checking the mailbox for postal mail, highlighting an emotional connection;
• 30 percent of U.S. consumers said they’re receiving more mail that interests them compared to a year ago, and just 50 percent (down from 63 percent in 2010) said more information is sent to them in the mail -- indicating marketers are improving targeting efforts;
• The perception that reading email is faster declined among U.S. email account holders to 45 percent in 2011 (from 47 percent in 2010), suggesting clogged inboxes are draining time.

The 2011 Channel Preference Study also found:

• 37 percent of U.S. consumers and 29 percent of Canadians use TV daily to get consumer product information, down from 43 percent and 35 percent respectively in 2010;
• The least trustworthy channels are social media and blogs, achieving only six percent trust among U.S. consumers and 5 percent among Canadians;
• The number of U.S. respondents who said Internet use “is more anonymous” declined to eight percent in 2011 from 11 percent in 2010;
• Personally addressed mail is greatly preferred to unaddressed, with numbers in the insurance category showing a 31 percent to 5 percent gap;
• 34 percent of U.S. consumers who prefer email over mail cited “saving on paper” as the main reason, up strongly from 21 percent in 2010;
• In 2011, 39 percent of U.S. consumers claimed awareness of group deal web sites, lagging behind the 53 percent awareness level among Canadian counterparts.

The study is based on completed surveys from 2,226 U.S. consumers and 2,574 Canadian consumers.

Travel industry

Interestingly, another recent study indicated that digital content is a top priority for travel companies, with 83 percent reporting a planned increase in budget for 2012.

According to EyeforTravel’s Travel Distribution & Marketing Barometer – Edition 2 (released in October), looking towards the next quarter in the most recent data for both suppliers and intermediaries, the largest proportion of companies are increasing budgets for website design or re-‐design; 59 percent in the September barometer. Social media ranked at the top in February (from the first edition which was published in May this year), but in September a lower but still significant 57 percent are planning an increase. The investment area with the smallest proportion in September was group buying; 15 percent are planning an increase in the next three months and 22 percent are keeping their budgets the same.

As convergence between online and offline marketing continues, budget fluidity is also expected to increase. There’s no doubt that digital marketing has become an essential marketing tool – especially when paired with off-line. Global recession made this even more apparent as brands cut back off-line marketing budgets and had to do more with less.