Another survey and lo and behold, 70% of consumers loath and detest junk mail.
And so they should. Junk mail, as defined by me, is untargeted rubbish. The trouble is the consumer makes no particular distinction. Anything they don't actually like is junk, and the well targeted stuff that doesn't hit the spot is condemned as being the same as all the rest.
But it isn't, is it? All good DM practitioners, having gone to the trouble to target as best they can, should rightly feel aggrieved if they are accused of peddling junk. But it happens, because we are all tarred with the same brush. Another reason why the industry bodies should be explaining the difference between direct marketing and confetti. It is a hard argument, but someone needs to try.
As with all surveys, the devil will be in the detail. If the question asked was 'Do you hate all that crap that hits your doormat every morning?' you will get a high negative response. If you ask them to name the useful things they have received through the post unsolicited in the last month, most would find something positive to mention.
My Gosh I hate junk mail - I donate to a few charities and they still send me mail. I've tried sending them back with "no longer at this address" written on them and still they send them. It puts me off donating to tell you the truth.
Seems like an awful waste of resources although I'm sure their "research" shows that it does make a lot of money for some. Very strange that environmental charities send still iinsist on sending junk mail out too.
Hugh Bessant
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Last login: 18 Nov 2008
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