Is the mailing list industry headed for death? Two industry veterans take opposing viewpoints through their articles recently published in Direct Magazine. One says "we'll actually be more profitable in 2009" while the other says "the entire direct mail industry is stinko."
David Kanter of Acculist USA takes the optimist's viewpoint in "The List Industry Ain't Dead Yet" including:
"For prospecting, e-mail is not a substitute for a well conceived direct mail program. E-mail open rates are declining. If truth be told, direct mail may actually cost less than e-mail, and generate a superior return on investment (ROI). E-mail is great for maintaining relationships with customers. If you rely on e-mail for prospecting, you will probably be out of business, whether in a good or bad economy."
David's article was in response to a previous article "Direct Marketing Industry is in Major Jeopardy" by Robert Dunhill of Dunhill International List Co., where he takes the pessimist's viewpoint:
"To start, the money that's spent on direct mail in 2009 will fall about 10% under 2008 levels. That's a real wow, isn't it? And, it's not restricted to the financial giants. But they sure are the biggest losers. The mortgage lenders and finance companies were off almost 40%. The credit card companies dropped their volume by 22%. The tech guys, automotive, hospitality and travel, plus the investment companies combined for an additional 56% volume decrease."
The list industry will certainly not stay the same as it was 10 years ago. So which is it? Is the list industry headed for death or a transformation?