• by August 1, 2001

According to a Pitney Bowes and Peppers and Rogers Group survey of selected US households with annual incomes greater than $35,000, 34% of the households say direct mail is the most valuable method companies use to establish and further customer relationships. These consumers rate other media as the most valuable for establishing customer relationships as:
- Print ads, 30%
- TV, 25%
- Radio, 5%
- e-mail, 4%
- Internet, 2%
- Telemarketing, 0%

Households rate direct mail as:
- Familiar, 95%
- Convenient, 94%
- Interactive, 93%
- Universal, 93%
- Private, 87%
- Personalized, 84%

Direct mail, accounting for 65% of all mail received by a household in 2001, up from 56% in 1987, leads to action on the part of the respondents. Upon receiving a targeted direct mailing:
- 45% would mention the company to friends,
- 43% would open a future mailing by that company,
- 39% would research the company online
- 22% would buy an advertised product.

Here is the original press release.