E-Mail Gains In Usage But Traditional DM Media Decline: Survey

E-mail has become the top medium for direct marketers, judging by Direct’s annual forecast survey.

Of the firms polled, 72% send e-mail to customers, a 10% increase over 2007, and 50% to prospects, a 9% hike.

Furthermore, 55% of those who use the medium plan to increase their budgets for it next year.

Direct mail, while declining, remains a strong second. Of those polled, 66% are sending mail to customers this year, a 4% drop from 2007, and 59% are mailing to prospects. That number is 1% lower than last year.

In addition, 37% of those companies plan to spend more on mail to customers in 2009, and 39% on mail to prospects.

Other online channels have also gained in usage. The survey shows that 39% of those polled conduct search engine marketing, a 10% increase over 2007 and 41% advertise on other Web sites. However, that number is flat from last year. In addition, 25% conduct affiliate marketing, a 4% increase over last year.

Traditional media appear to in decline. Only 7% advertise on radio (down from 10% last year). And 16% buy direct response space (down from 23%).

Inbound telemarketing is used by 17%, down from 21% in 2007. And 20% conduct outbound calling—the same as last year.

Meanwhile, card pack usage rose four percentage points to 10%. But statement stuffer use fell by half to 9%.