Australian consumers prefer the post

Companies allocating big budgets to email and SMS campaigns may want to
>think twice following new research conducted by TNS showing less than one
>in ten Australians want organisations to reach them by email or SMS.
>
>Whether it be for promotional messages or essential communication such as
>bills, the report reveals Australian consumers vastly prefer post to any
>other medium.
>
>The research, sponsored by Australia Post, interviewed over 1000
>Australians, examining their media preferences for receiving different
>types of marketing and business communication across 15 industries within
>the service, retail and not-for-profit sectors. It also explored if media
>preference was affected by an existing relationship with a business
>(customer/non-customer).
>
>“This is the first Australian research that gives a clear and in depth
>picture of how and when consumers want to hear from organisations.” says
>Adam Sinclair, Director, Financial and Business Services at TNS Australia.
>
>“What is interesting is that while age, income, existing relationship
>with an organisation and industry make some differences in preference, mail
>is almost always the preferred choice.”
>
>Key findings included:
>1. 67 per cent of customers prefer to receive promotional messages in their
>letterboxes
>2. Personally addressed mail is preferred by over half of customers and
>almost a third of non-customers for advertising and promotional messages
>from telecommunication companies
>3. More than half of all consumers prefer to receive unaddressed catalogues
>or mail from retailers
>4. Over half of all customers prefer most marketing communications at least
>monthly
>5. Financial statements and credit card bills are strongly preferred by
>mail at least monthly
>
>Mark Roberts, Manager Mail Marketing at Australia Post, sees the research
>as essential reading for any organisation wanting to maximise its return on
>marketing investment and communicate effectively with existing and
>potential customers.
>
>It offers unique consumer insight by outlining their preferences for
>certain communication channels. No matter how relevant a message is, it
>can be lost if the channel is inappropriate. Getting this right is a
>fundamental step in reaching consumers successfully. Whether its a
>sports club targeting potential new members or a bank sending promotional
>information, the message from Australians is ˜use the post˜ says
>Roberts.