OIG publishes report on enhancing the value of advertising mail
The US Postal Service Office of Inspector General (OIG) has published a new report which aims to help companies improve their marketing strategies and also help the Postal Service better understand the effectiveness of ad mail. According to OIG, advertising mail accounted for over $20 billion – or almost a third – of the U.S. Postal Service’s (USPS) total revenue in fiscal year 2014, so it reasoned that “understanding physical ad mail’s unique qualities and how people respond to them could enable the Postal Service to identify potential new opportunities to maintain and enhance this critically important source of revenue”.
OIG therefore worked with Temple University’s Center for Neural Decision Making to study people’s responses to physical and digital media in the consumer buying process, including memory of products advertised and intent to purchase.
“But instead of just using surveys, which rely on people’s stated or conscious preferences,” said OIG, “we also monitored physiological and neurological activity to understand the subconscious response.” Known as neuromarketing, this scientific method uses technologies like eye tracking, heart-rate measurement, and MRIs to measure a person’s reaction to various stimuli.”
OIG said that its study builds on work done by the U.K.’s Royal Mail, showing physical media generates greater activity in certain parts of the brain than digital media.
The key findings of the study were:
- Participants processed digital ad content quicker but spent more time with physical ads.
- Participants had a stronger emotional response to physical ads and more easily recalled physical ads, both crucial when making a purchase decision.
- Physical ads triggered greater brain activity responsible for value and desirability for featured products, which signal a greater intent to purchase
The full report, Enhancing the Value of Mail: The Human Response, is accessible here.
