Consumer’s Union Tweaks its Mail Plans
In mailboxes right now is a 50,000-piece test of a blank outer envelope–the first such attempt for Consumer’s Union, and most likely the last.
“It was just by coincidence that we delivered last week,” said Simon Aronin, senior director of circulation for Consumer’s Union. “We got caught in bad timing.”
Like many direct marketers, Consumer’s Union has faced difficulties in managing campaigns as world events dramatically alter the landscape.
Simon said the publisher would watch the results but has no plans to roll out with a blank outer under the current circumstances. The envelope is completely blank except for a metered indicia from Farmingdale, NY.
The test was part of a six-million-piece mailing that had already been delayed one week because of the Sept. 11 attacks.
Another 250,00-piece mailing for the Consumer’s Union Travel Letter, scheduled to mail the last week in September, was scrapped. Already printed and addressed, the company took a loss of a little less than $50,000. “We didn’t think it was a good time to mail about travel,” Aronin said.
To keep with the time, the November newsletter is being refocused to include travel safety and security as well as the usual content about how to save money when traveling. The company, which mails more than 50 million prospect pieces annually, plans to deliver its regular 4 million-piece mailing for the newsletter in late December with a message that conveys its expanded coverage.
Conumer’s Union does not expect to make any changes to its mail plan going forward. “We assume that the American people are intelligent, That after the initial anthrax scares, they will understand that legitimate mail is still legitimate mail and that there’s no danger with it,” Aronin said. “If it’s clearly identified that it’s safe to open, that’s our assumption.
Unlike many companies, however, Consumer’s Union has had no scares in the mailroom. And, as of last Monday, all incoming mail is screened by security and mailroom personnel and stamped for approval to be opened.
