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Financial services firms sent out 4.19 billion pieces of mail during first-quarter 2008, a healthy drop from the 4.79 billion pieces mailed in first-quarter 2007, according to industrial research firm Mintel Comperemedia.

While the sluggish economy is responsible for some of this, a closer look reveals that a disproportionate amount of this falloff is due to decreased marketing from the mortgage and loan sector, which has come under increased scrutiny and pressure of late.

During first-quarter 2008, mortgage and loan mailers sent out 1.04 billion pieces, down from the 1.41 billion they sent out a year ago – a healthy drop of around one third of their total volume.

In comparison, the banking, credit card and investment sectors pulled their volumes down by less than 10%, with banking marketers being the most resilient, sending out 356.5 million pieces compared with 366.5 million a year earlier.

Credit card mailers dropped 2.59 billion pieces, down from 2.81 billion, and investment firms sent out 195.6 million, a decrease from the 206.6 million they sent out in first-quarter 2007.

The focus of these mailings has changed as well. A total of 3.3 billion acquisition pieces went out during first-quarter 2008, a drop from the nearly 4 billion sent out a year ago. But retention mailing activity actually rose, from 835.6 million pieces to 858.5 million.

"With credit lines tapped and people struggling to make ends meet, both consumer spending and savings are down," said Chris Zagorski, senior analyst at Mintel Comperemedia, in a statement. "Banks, card issuers and lenders have to look at today's consumers in a new light and find innovative ways to secure and maintain their business."