Financial Institutions Upping Direct Marketing: Survey

American financial services institutions are increasingly their use of direct marketing, according to a Direct Marketing Association report which found that the $13.4 billion that U.S. banks and credit institutions spent last year on direct marketing advertising generated $178.8 billion in sales.

In 2012, these sales are forecast to hit $286.2 billion, according to the report.

The report also found that:

* Banks and credit card institutions had the best return on investment in this sector in 2007 at $13.37 per dollar spent.

* Financial services direct marketers mainly use non-catalog direct mail (41.8%) as their primary direct marketing channel.

* Financial services companies’ advertising expenditures for commercial e-mail is expected to have the largest growth among all media types between 2007 and 2012 with a compound annual growth of 22.5%.

* Internet advertising spending in this sector is projected to grow at the second highest rate, at 17.8 % each year from 2007 to 2012.

* Telemarketing advertising expenditures for the overall financial services sector are expected to reach $7.4 billion in 2008 and $8.4 billion in 2012.

* Broadcast advertising sales are expected to climb 4.8% each year from 2007 to 2012.

* Insert media sales in the financial services arena will exceed $1.1 billion in 2008, with banks and credit institutions comprising half of sales.

* Financial services companies are projecting to spend less on print advertising than they currently do. Banks and credit institutions’ ad spending is expected to decrease 0.5% by 2012.