Commentary

Media Buyers Prefer Double Opt-in

Media Buyers Prefer Double Opt-in

Opt-in News announced the availability of their "Email Marketing Factbook", which contains opt-in email industry research from 1999 to the first quarter of 2002. This report contains documentation never before released by Opt-in News Research Division.

Of the 200 U.S. media buyers that were surveyed, 64 percent favored the double opt-in method for gaining permission; 31 percent preferred the single opt-in e-mail marketing process; and 4 percent selected opt-out or pre-check data collection. Opt-in News projects that non-permission-based methods will become obsolete in 2-3 years, as media buyers will demand a higher return on investment (ROI) and privacy concerns will dictate opt-in methods as the industry standard.

According to the report, 77 percent of those surveyed indicated that audience interest is the most important form of profiling when planning business-to-consumer e-mail campaigns. However, for business-to-business e-mail marketing campaigns, the numbers are nearly reversed: 67 percent choose demographic and geographic targeting as most important and only 33 percent felt that audience interest was a priority.

Other significant findings include:

  • 47 percent of media buyers surveyed prefer cost-per-click pricing options when purchasing opt-in e-mail ad space.
  • 59 percent of media buyers receive less than 3 percent click-through rates on opt-in e-mail campaigns.
  • 73 percent feel that e-mail is the most responsive form of marketing available, garnering better results than television, radio, print and direct mail.
  • 54 percent of those that participated say that they primarily rely on Web sites for e-mail marketing news and information; 43 percent use newsletters; and 3 percent count on radio, television and print.
  • 71 percent claim that list counts given by opt-in e-mail brokers are accurate only some of the time and 26 percent say the list counts are never precise.
For the report, click here.
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