The 2012 Channel Preference Survey (PDF) - Prisa Digital

TELEPhONE
STRENgThS:
• AlerTs
• CusToMer
SERvICE
• INbouNd
COMMUNICATIONS
• shArINg
(CONSUMER
TO CONSUMER)
TELEPhONE
“Don’t call us, we’ll call you.” -Anonymous
First implemented in 2004, the National Do Not Call Registry struck a huge blow to the
telemarketing industry by allowing consumers to opt out of telephonic solicitations.
Virtually overnight, millions of consumers added their phone numbers to the Do Not Call
List, and telemarketing firms shuttered their doors. Today, the Do Not Call List stands as a
stark reminder of what can happen when marketers ignore consumer preferences.
While B2C telemarketing has shrunk considerably, consumers still do prefer the phone
under certain circumstances. For instance, 37% of US online consumers told us that
they’ll call a company when they have an issue with its product or service. A sizeable
percentage also prefer to receive financial and travel alerts by phone. The last place we
saw significant phone usage from consumers was when they wanted to share a marketing
message with others. Nearly 30% of consumers told us they use the phone for such word
of mouth marketing.
So while the phone isn’t “dead” to marketers, its use has drastically transformed over the
past decade from a wild west, anything-goes telemarketing channel to a more reserved
space best used for urgent, customer service, and peer-to-peer communications.
© 2012 ExactTarget | www.ExactTarget.com/SFF
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