| Email Marketing Press Release :Unsolicited promotion mails waste thousands of trees every year |
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Email Marketing Press Release :
Thousands of trees go to waste as Hong Kong people readily throw away unsolicited promotion mails
Hong Kong, 7 October 2009 – Email Marketing solution provider Radica has announced the results of a survey. This research was launched in August 2009 by Radica Systems Limited. We have invited Professor Lau Kin Nam of Chinese University of Hong Kong to provide professional opinion on our research design and data analysis. The questionnaire was presented to the public through banner Ad and standalone email invitation. The survey aimed to reveal Hong Kong people's perception of promotional materials, and found that many people discard non-personalized or unsolicited mailings, wasting an enormous amount of paper every day.
According to the findings, some 71% of respondents admitted that they have thrown away publicity materials they have received by post without reading. 95% would glance through the materials before disposal. Most of these printed matters are made of paper, and such disposal is like cutting off tens of thousands of trees to make paper only to be sent to trash (1).
More importantly, when respondents were informed of the amount of trees consumed by printed promotional materials (2), they nearly overwhelmingly agreed to switch to receiving promotional information via emails instead. This shows as Hong Kong people become more environmentally concerned they will increasingly turn away from printed promotions in their mail boxes.
"The findings may help us understand the emergence of social media in Hong Kong, because it confirms that people are only interested in the information that they have previously agreed to receive and that is personalized to their preferences,” said Francis Kwok, CEO of Radica. “They also love sharing information with friends and relatives, provided that they think the information is relevant and useful. This means that businesses have no choice but to embrace permission-based and personalized communications means such as permission-based email marketing to build a strong and loyal customer base.”
People are equally selective when it comes to online information. Nearly 7 in 10 respondents said that they would simply delete without opening any emails from unknown senders. 80% of the respondents will always open and read subscribed emails, while among them some 27% said they would “open the emails and read with interests” or “read eagerly subscribed emails”.
One of the most exciting findings for marketers is the confirmation that emails are generating more and more purchases, as revealed by the survey which has been conducted annually since 2006 (except 2008). This year 71% respondents have bought products they get to know from promotional emails. In 2007 only 43% have done so. The figure was even lower in 2006, with only 38% having made purchases thanks to promotional emails.
Below are some of the key findings from the survey:
1. 78% of respondents find emails about discounts are most persuasive in driving them to purchase products mentioned in the emails. Respondents are also responsive to emails with discount coupons (72%), offering free gifts (65%) and cash rebate (50%).
2. 63% of respondents forward promotional emails to friends and relatives. Therefore businesses should include a "forward to friends" link in their promotional emails so as to reach a wider audience.
3. 72% of respondents are approval of promotional messages in transactional emails such as bank statements and electronic invoices.
4. An overwhelming 96% of respondents will provide their email addresses to companies with which they want to stay connected, but only 29% are willing to leave behind their mobile phone numbers as means of contact. This suggests that obtaining customers' email addresses is an important, first step to a long-term, loyal customer relationship.
5. The survey has also obtained in-depth information about the most preferred brands across a variety of industries that the respondents would like to receive promotional emails from. Radica suggests that favorite brands should be indicated clearly in email subjects or the sender fields so as to attract attention.
"The survey has brought to us many useful insights,” said Kwok. “First of all, Hong Kong people are willing to change to email-based communications once they become aware of the huge amount of paper being wasted by unsolicited promotional materials. Secondly, emails have become so prevalent that many people regard it as the primary connection means with their favorite brands, and emails are generating sales. Finally, the most important lesson is that for email marketing to work, personalization and permission are the two keys for brands to stand out among competition.”
In this year’s survey 828 respondents answered an online questionnaire. The information collected will help marketers devise more effective marketing plans. More information can be found on http://www.radicasys.com .
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