E-mail has become the top medium for direct marketers, judging by
Direct’s annual forecast survey.
Of the firms polled, 72% send e-mail to customers, a 10% increase over
2007, and 50% to prospects, a 9% hike.
Furthermore, 55% of those who use the medium plan to increase their
budgets for it next year.

Direct mail, while declining, remains a strong second. Of those polled,
66% are sending mail to customers this year, a 4% drop from 2007, and
59% are mailing to prospects. That number is 1% lower than last year.
In addition, 37% of those companies plan to spend more on mail to
customers in 2009, and 39% on mail to prospects.

Other online channels have also gained in usage. The survey shows that
39% of those polled conduct search engine marketing, a 10% increase
over 2007 and 41% advertise on other Web sites. However, that number is
flat from last year. In addition, 25% conduct affiliate marketing, a 4%
increase over last year.

Traditional media appear to in decline. Only 7% advertise on radio
(down from 10% last year). And 16% buy direct response space (down from
23%).
Inbound telemarketing is used by 17%, down from 21% in 2007. And 20%
conduct outbound calling—the same as last year.
Meanwhile, card pack usage rose four percentage points to 10%. But
statement stuffer use fell by half to 9%.

Source: Direct