Fewer credit card offers in the mail

November 19, 2008

Finding upsides to this economic mess is about as plausible as finding a million bucks stuffed in your mattress.But here goes. For one thing, the price of gas is half of what it was in mid-July. In Rutherford County, the price of gas is the lowest that it has been since March of 2005.

And secondly…

This is when it starts to get difficult. If you’re thanking your lucky stars for any small favors, you may have noticed that there are fewer credit card offerings in the mail.

According to LISA HRONEK at the media intelligence company Mintel Comperemedia, the volume of credit card solicitations dropped by 13 percent in the third quarter compared to the previous three months and is down by as much 28 percent from a year earlier.
Still, companies shipped 1.34 billion card offerings to Americans between July and September of 2008.

Hronek says businesses actually began scaling back direct mail marketing long before the current economic meltdown because they haven’t increased the percentage of sign-ups or usage.
Today, it’s more out of necessity that credit card firms have to cut way back on direct mail because so many are facing monumental losses.

As for the future, Hronek predicts they’ll focus, quote, “on a narrower target audience, using refined marketing and more precise mailings to tap into people’s true needs and desires.”

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