The 2012 Channel Preference Survey Web

SUBSCRIBERS, FANS, & FOLLOWERS
is an ongoing research series that sets aside theories and assumptions about consumer
online preferences and focuses instead on solid data collected through a combination of
focus groups and online surveys. These reports draw on the experience of real consumers
as they interact with brands through email, Facebook, and Twitter. Check out our other
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2 © 2012 ExactTarget | www.ExactTarget.com/SFF

Dear Readers,
Four years ago, the research team at ExactTarget embarked on a mission to discover how consumers’
communications preferences were changing in the face of emerging mobile and social technologies. Our
resulting 2008 Channel Preference Survey documented the growing fragmentation of personal communications
across multiple devices and set to rest any notion that direct mail or email were at death’s door. In fact, we
found that both were consumers’ most preferred channels for marketing communications.

Flash forward to today’s “Post-PC Era,” and consumers are inundated with even more devices and
direct communications channels than ever. While our ongoing research series, SUBSCRIBERS, FANS, &
FOLLOWERS, has looked at what consumers want from brands through email, Facebook, and Twitter, we
realized that it was time to revisit their broader marketing channel preferences to see whether they had
changed since 2008 and, if so, what those changes mean to today’s marketing professionals.

With that, we thank you for reading SUBSCRIBERS, FANS, & FOLLOWERS #14: The 2012 Channel Preference
Survey and hope it will help you navigate the fragmented messaging channel landscape while also inspiring
new strategies to serve today’s empowered consumers.

Sincerely,

Jeffrey K. Rohrs
VP, Marketing Research & Education
jrohrs@ExactTarget.com
@jkrohrs

© 2012 ExactTarget | www.ExactTarget.com/SFF 3

“May you live in interesting times.” -Anonymous

INTRODUCTION
Of any audience today, marketers should appreciate the above tune with what consumers want since they hold the keys to our
quotation. Unless you know its origin, the duality of its meaning may brands’ prosperity.
escape notice. After all, who would want to live in boring times?
In these pages we share with you the findings of our 2012 Channel
This is no ordinary quotation, however. This is the infamous Preference Survey—an in-depth examination and ranking of the
“Chinese Curse”—a backhanded way to condemn your enemy direct messaging channels preferred by consumers for particular
to a period of great chaos and tumult. Welcome to 2012! types of marketing activity. The channels evaluated include:

The “interesting” duality facing marketing professionals today • Direct Mail
stems from our “Post-PC Era” in which consumers are awash • Email
in technology (desktops, laptops, smartphones, and tablets)
• Facebook
that facilitate unprecedented mobility and social connectivity.
This sounds great until you consider the marketing implications. • LinkedIn
What was once one screen (the desktop) is now four screens— • Mobile Apps (Push Notifications)
or five, thanks to Interactive TV. Yes, “interesting” means more • SMS (Text Messaging)
work for already stretched marketing departments.
• Telephone
Post-PC devices have also accelerated the fragmentation of • Twitter
once-reliable direct marketing channels. Whereas not all that long
ago, marketers only communicated with consumers directly by In order to assess if and where consumer use of these
phone or mail, marketing communications are now a 24/7 affair channels has changed over time, this report also includes some
in which consumers serve as gatekeepers to channels that can comparative data from our original 2008 Channel Preference
amplify their praise—and complaints—in unprecedented ways. Survey. While four years wasn’t all that long ago, consider that
Were Mad Men’s Don Draper alive today (and a real person, for back then the iPad, Google+, and Pinterest didn’t exist while
that matter), he’d close his office door and never come out. Facebook was just crossing the 100 million user mark.

But we don’t have the luxury to shut our doors. We’re modern So what’s changed since 2008? Dig in and find out for yourself—
marketers, and we have no choice but to chart new courses we’re sure that you’ll find the research… interesting.
through foreign, digital terrain without a map or an experienced
guide. As we seek to maximize ROI, our best hope is to stay in

Our Research
Table of Contents Methodology
INTRODUCTION 4 The foundation for this 14th report in the
SUBSCRIBERS, FANS, & FOLLOWERS series is
SECTION I: PRIMARY FINDINGS 6 our 2012 Channel Preference Survey—our third
study since 2008 on the topic of consumers’
1. THE SIX FACTORS THAT DICTATE CHANNEL PREFERENCE 7 use of different channels for interpersonal
2. PERSONAL COMMUNICATION PREFERENCES: THE MARKETER’S SIREN CALL 8 communication and attitudes toward marketing
3. EMAIL: CONSUMERS’ PREFERRED DIRECT MARKETING CHANNEL 10 communications. For this 2012 edition, a total
of 1,481 respondents completed the survey
4. DIRECT MAIL LIVES! TEXT ALERTS! SOCIAL EVOLVES! 12
between January 27, 2012, and February 1,
5. TEENS: A NEW KIND OF NORMAL 14 2012. Participants answered questions about
6. PURCHASE BEHAVIORS CROSS CHANNELS 16 overall internet usage, devices owned, personal
communication habits, permission, and
SECTION II: MARKETING SCENARIOS 18 purchase-behavior related to marketing.

1. PERMISSION-BASED PROMOTIONAL MESSAGES 19 Data shared in this report was collected
2. SHARING 20 through MarketTools TrueSample™ panel
of consumers. The sample was stratified by
3. FINANCIAL & TRAVEL ALERTS 21
age across seven groups (15-17, 18-24, 25-
4. CUSTOMER SERVICE INQUIRIES 23 34, 35-44, 45-54, 55-64, and 65+) to have a
5. PURCHASE RECEIPTS & TICKETS 24 representative sample across each. Responses
were then weighted by age and gender
SECTION III: INDIVIDUAL CHANNEL ANALYSIS 26 according to US Census Bureau population
estimates and Pew Internet Project’s online
DIRECT MAIL 27 activity data to reflect the online US consumer
EMAIL 28 population. For data concerning consumers
FACEBOOK 29 15-17 years of age, an invitation was first sent
to parents with teen-aged children living in the
LINKEDIN & GOOGLE+ 30
home, requesting permission for their child’s
MOBILE APPS & PUSH NOTIFICATIONS 31 participation in the survey.
SMS (TEXT MESSAGING) 32
For more information about the methodology
TELEPHONE 33 of all of our SUBSCRIBERS, FANS, &
TWITTER 34 FOLLOWERS research, please visit
CONCLUSION 35


SECTION
ONE PRIMARY FINDINGS
As with our 2008 Channel Preference Survey, our 2012
data yielded a number of findings that could
have a material impact on your marketing
practices today. In Section One, we
present our top six findings and the
takeaways that may help shape
your one-to-one marketing
communication strategy.


1. THE SIX FACTORS THAT DICTATE CHANNEL PREFERENCE
It’s amazing to think that just a little over two decades ago, consumers had only two options to communicate across long distances—telephone
and mail. In today’s mobile, post-PC world, consumers have countless ways to communicate with each other—and they have similar options
when it comes to communication with brands. The question is how do consumers determine the proper channel for their communication
needs. The decision appears to boil down to six factors:

CONTENT PRIVACY
Is this a marketing message? Do I want the world to know about this message?
As we document throughout this report, consumers are much more selective Privacy remains a hot button and source of confusion for many consumers.
about the channels through which they will allow marketing messages Where privacy is crucial, consumers gravitate toward channels with an
than they are with personal or professional communications. Consumers— established track record of protecting conversations (text messaging,
while they may be huge FANS—don’t necessarily want to be friends with telephone, and email). Where privacy is not a concern, consumers happily
brands. They still draw hard and fast lines about when and where marketing embrace social channels such as Facebook and Twitter that provide them
communications are appropriate. with the public opportunity to share, vent, or engage. This isn’t to say that
consumers don’t send direct messages through Facebook and Twitter, just
IMMEDIACY that they proceed with greater caution as these channels are best known for
Do I need to send or receive this message right away? their more public communications.

Consumers often select a communication channel based on how quickly FORMALITY
a message must be sent or received. SMS (text messaging), telephone,
and instant messaging through social networks tend to be the channels Do I need to convey a level of professionalism with this message?
consumers use most often when time is of the essence. If your message When a task such as job hunting calls for a degree of formality, consumers favor
is imperative (from the consumers’ perspective) and you have permission, more established channels. Across all age groups we surveyed, job seekers
these “urgent” channels will perform best. If not, you should consider moving indicated a clear preference for contact through the company’s website first,
communications to less urgent channels such as email or direct mail. followed by sending an email or making a phone call. Consumers tend to view
marketing messages as formal communications; thus, when given a choice,
ACCESSIBILITY they tend to prefer to receive them through more formal channels.
Will I need to reference this message later? INITIATION
The ability to easily archive and access messages at a later time influences
consumer channel preferences. While smartphones and tablets replicate How did the conversation originate?
much of the desktop messaging experience, many consumers purposely This final factor is the one that can trump all the others. If the consumer
“park” messages to take later action from their computers (which may have initiates communication with your brand, then the channel they choose may
faster internet access, larger screens, full keyboards, etc.). Email remains be deemed appropriate for response. Be advised, however—the nature of
a powerful channel for its ability to bridge the three-device environment of the conversation (if not laws regulating your industry) may necessitate that
smartphone, tablet, and PC. you move it from a public space (Twitter, for instance) to a private one (Twitter
direct message or email) especially if the subject matter is of a sensitive nature.


2. PERSONAL COMMUNICATION PREFERENCES:
THE MARKETER’S SIREN CALL
The sirens of Greek mythology were deceptively beautiful creatures free of the distractions that clog other channels (advertising, spam,
whose enchanting voices caused even the most seasoned sailors to and messages from “friends” in extended social networks). Whereas
wreck their ships along the rocky shore. If we were to search for sirens consumers may text with hundreds of friends, they are highly
in today’s marketing ecosystem, we would surely find them circling the selective of the brands they will engage via SMS. This is also true of
consumer preferences in chart 1.1 on page 9. other emerging channels such as Facebook, Twitter, and Google+, where
the primary purpose of the channel is personal.
The sirens in this chart might lure the uninformed marketer into the
false belief that personal communication preferences and marketing Consider chart 1.2 on page 9. We asked consumers which channel
communication preferences are one and the same. But the fact is, was preferable for marketing communications from brands whom
we’ve found time and time again that personal communication habits they have given permission to send ongoing information. What
are a misleading proxy for marketers looking for the best way to leaps off the page is how different the preferred channels for
communicate with consumers. communication with friends are from their preferred channels for
permission-based marketing messages. Email and direct mail
This is because consumers don’t truly consider brands to be their
index much higher for direct marketing communications while text,
friends. Yes, they might love your products and services. They may
telephone, and social networks drop dramatically.
even love the fact that social media allows them to interact with real,
live human beings who work for your company. This does not mean, The lesson here for marketers is that just because consumers
however, that they will automatically invite you into the same direct embrace a channel for personal communications doesn’t mean
communication channels as they do their friends. that they want to receive direct marketing messages from your
brand via that channel. In fact, marketers who attempt to force
Take SMS (text messaging) for instance.
direct communications through such channels may find themselves
It indexes as the most frequently used
blocked by mobile carriers (in the case of SMS) and the subject
personal communication channel for
of far more “unlikes” and “unfollows” than “likes” and “follows
people age 15 to 34 and second for
on Facebook and Twitter, respectively. Absent an invitation from
those over the age of 35. Consumers
consumers to engage through social channels, marketers should
love SMS for personal communications
focus their efforts on optimizing communication through channels
because it facilitates short, quick
where consumers do want to hear from them.
messaging in an environment relatively


1.1 Channels used most frequently for personal Written Communications (By age group)
OVERALL 15-17 18-24 25-34 35-44 45-54 55-64 65 Plus
Email 45% 10 16 39 45 55 77 91
Text messages 36% 64 55 44 34 30 14 4
Posting messages on Facebook 12% 15 15 16 17 7 5 0
Direct mail (letters, catalogs, postcards, etc.) 2% 1 3 1 2 2 2 3
Instant messaging 2% 4 4 4 2 1 1 0
Messaging app on a cell phone 2% 2 4 1 1 2 0 0
Posting messages on Google+ 1% 2 2 1 0 0 0 0
Posting messages via personal websites or blogs 1% 1 1 1 0 0 0 0
Posting messages on Twitter 0% 1 0 2 0 0 0 0
Source: 2012 Channel Preferences Survey, February 2012 • N = 1,481 US Online Consumers, age 15 and older www.ExactTarget.com/SFF

1.2 Preferred channel for Permission-based promotional messages (By age group)
Promotional messages from companies whom I have granted permission to Send Me Ongoing Information

OVERALL 15-17 18-24 25-34 35-44 45-54 55-64 65 Plus
Email 77% 66 74 75 81 79 81 79
Text messaging (SMS) on a cell phone 5% 10 5 7 4 6 1 0
Facebook 4% 8 7 3 4 3 1 0
Telephone 2% 0 5 3 2 1 1 2
Twitter 1% 4 1 1 0 0 0 0
Mobile App 1% 2 1 1 0 1 0 0
LinkedIn 0% 0 0 1 1 0 0 0
Source: 2012 Channel Preferences Survey, February 2012 • N = 791 US Online Consumers, age 15 and older www.ExactTarget.com/SFF


3. EMAIL: CONSUMERS’ PREFERRED DIRECT MARKETING CHANNEL
Were he alive today, Mark Twain would probably have a soft spot for email
because, much like the author himself, recent reports of email’s death have been 1.3 How often do you use each of the following?
greatly exaggerated. In fact, email is not only alive—it’s the number one direct
At least daily At least weekly Less than weekly never
channel in terms of daily use and consumer preference for both personal and
marketing communications. Email is thriving thanks in large part to the channel’s Email 3%
familiarity, flexibility, and universality. A whole new generation of mobile smartphone
and tablet users are also driving anywhere, anytime email usage. Indeed, when you 91% 5%
dig into the data, any assertion that email is “dying” with consumers is laughable. Facebook 1%
Evolving—yes. Dying, absolutely not.
57% 13% 11% 19%
There is, however, one place where email channel preference has declined
significantly. As chart 1.4 documents, consumers’ preference for email as a
Text Messages
personal communications channel has dropped 21% since 2008 while their 57% 11% 10% 22%
preference for text messaging and social media have grown 20% and 10%,
“Check In” using location-based social networking
respectively. Overall, email still tops both text and social as the preferred channel
for personal communications—45% for email to text’s 36% and social’s 13%—but 28% 9% 11% 52%
email’s decline points to the fact that personal communications are shifting toward
Instant Messanger
text and social networks—especially for frequent, short-burst communications.
24% 8% 16% 52%
This shift would be worrisome to marketers were it not for the fact that consumers’
preference to receive permission-based marketing through email has actually Messaging using an app on a mobile device
increased 5% since 2008. A staggering 77% of consumers told us that they 19% 5% 6% 70%
prefer to receive permission-based marketing communications through email.
This dwarfs both text messaging (5%) and social channels (6%) while further Twitter
highlighting how email has become the principal channel that consumers use to 14% 6% 9% 71%
manage interactions with brands.
LinkedIn
In fact, email is the top channel in terms of acceptability across all types of marketing
message we asked about in the survey. From travel alerts and purchase receipts
10% 8% 14% 68%
to promotional messages and polls, email is viewed as the most appropriate direct
channel for brands to communicate with consumers. Looking across all messaging Source: 2012 Channel Preferences Survey, February 2012 www.ExactTarget.com/SFF
communications studied, we find 94% of consumers prefer at least one form of N = 1,481 US Online Consumers, age 15 and older
marketing communication come through email. The only exception is unsolicited,
commercial messages that come from an unknown sender (i.e., SPAM). In short,
if you’re looking for a solid foundation for your direct marketing communications
look no further than email—because it’s where the vast majority of consumers are
willing to engage brands.


1.4 change in preferences from 2008 to 2012 Batch and
Personal Communication Vs. Permission-Based Promotions 2008 2012 Blast is Dead:
Personal Communications
The Relevancy
Email
66% Imperative
45%
Despite the positive attitude consumers have
Text Messages toward email, many marketers have seen
16% their overall email marketing response rates
36% decline. This performance doesn’t indicate
Social Networks failure of the channel, but rather failure
of their marketing communications to
3%
resonate in the inbox.
13%
Sophisticated interactive marketers continue
Direct Mail
to see strong response to email marketing
5%
messages even in the face of increased
2% volume from other senders. This combination
suggests there’s an erosion of the “middle
Permission-Based Promotions class” in email marketing—a growing
disparity between email marketing “haves”
Email who implement more automated, data-driven
72% programs and “have-nots” who batch and
blast. Even if the subscribers of these
77%
“have-nots” never see their competitors’
Text Messages emails, they are likely to grow dissatisfied
1% with batch and blast programs because they
5% see other companies in unrelated industries
sending compelling, targeted messages.
Social Networks
0% The bottom line? Audience segmentation,
6% data-driven insights, and personally
relevant content are no longer “nice to
Direct Mail haves” in email—they are “MUST haves”
26% for any marketer who wishes to stand out
9% in the inbox.

Sources: 2012 Channel Preferences Survey, February 2012, N = 1,481 US Online Consumers, age 15 and older
2008 Channel Preferences Survey, February 2008, N = 1,555 US Online Consumers, age 15 and older
In 2008, we asked about “Social Networking Sites” (e.g., Facebook, MySpace). In 2012, questions were asked about specific social
networks. 2012 statistics for Facebook, Twitter and Google+ were aggregated for the purpose of comparison to 2008 statistics.

Pros &
Cons of
Direct Mail
4. DIRECT MAIL LIVES!
It’s an online world, but printed
SMS ALERTS! SOCIAL EVOLVES!
mail isn’t dead. The fact that Of all the channels we surveyed, perhaps none face as uncertain a future as direct mail. With
65% of consumers have made mounting debts and the likely elimination of Saturday delivery on the horizon, the US Postal
a purchase as the result of a Service has direct marketers fearing the worst, but hoping for the best. Perhaps we can provide
direct mail piece is a testament a bit of comfort.
to the ongoing value of including
it in your marketing mix. But While email has overtaken direct mail as the most acceptable channel for the full range of
brands that rely too heavily on marketing communications, direct mail is a very close number two. In the face of always-on
this channel might quickly find channels like email, SMS, and social networks, consumers appreciate direct mail’s tangibility,
themselves in a negative ROI flexibility, and once-a-day pace. It also remains the only channel where unsolicited messages (i.e.
situation. So, what’s the best SPAM or junk mail) are acceptable to a majority of consumers—perhaps in large part because
use of direct mail dollars? the production and mailing costs of direct mail force today’s senders to be even more
relevant and targeted than in the past.
Of all the available channels,
direct mail is the only one As we examine chart 1.5 a bit further, we quickly see that the telephone and
where an unsolicited message SMS (text messaging) channels index well for alert-based communications. This
isn’t viewed as inappropriate stands to reason since both phone and text hold a place of higher communication
by consumers. Using direct priority in most consumers’ lives. If the phone rings, you answer it. If a text arrives,
mail as a foot into the you can read it quickly. This is vastly different than email and social media updates
consumer’s door—and then which tend to get checked in batches. It’s also proof that consumers are willing to
inviting them to connect via let brands into channels usually reserved for personal communications when the
another channel—makes great stakes—or convenience factor—are high enough.
sense. For example, a mailed The final major insight we can draw from our acceptability research is that users of social
postcard that promotes a text- networks—Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn, are largely on the fence about whether to open
to-win campaign is an excellent these channels to direct communications with marketers. This isn’t to say that they won’t “like”
way to draw new audiences to or “follow” your brand, just that these channels are evolving so fast that brands would be wise to
your digital channels—where wait for consumers to initiate contact before sending any direct messaging. Consumers
ROI is exponentially higher— clearly have distinct ways in which they want to receive marketing messages. Violating
and the cost to communicate these preferences—by sending the wrong types of messages through channels
is lower. consumers have not authorized—is likely to raise suspicion, reduce response, and
reflect poorly on your brand. And that’s not just true in social media—it’s true in each
of the channels we surveyed.


1.5 Please indicate the level to which you feEl it would be acceptable for marketers to send you
different types of messages through each highlighted channel (1=completely unacceptable, 5=completely acceptable)
Message type direct mobile
email
Acceptability mail app telephone sms facebook twitter linkedin

Confirmation, “Thank You,” or purchase
receipt for a transaction you initiated 3.2 4.5 4.2 3.1 3.3 3.0 2.6 2.3 2.3

Financial alerts (such as fraud detection)
3.2 4.4 4.1 3.7 3.5 3.0 2.2 2.3 2.1
from your bank or financial institution
Travel alerts such as flight delays or
3.1 4.3 3.5 3.7 3.6 3.1 2.4 2.2 2.2
cancellations from an airline
Delivery of tickets to event (sports,
music, theater, etc.) you purchased 3.0 4.4 4.3 3.0 3.1 2.9 2.4 2.3 2.1

Regular status updates or statements on
an account you maintain with a company 2.9 4.1 4.1 2.8 2.9 2.8 2.4 2.2 2.1

Promotional messages from companies
whom you have granted permission to 2.9 4.0 3.9 2.7 2.8 2.7 2.6 2.3 2.3
send you ongoing information
Customer service messages about general
product or service questions 2.7 3.6 3.6 2.7 2.5 2.6 2.4 2.3 2.2

Polls, surveys, or questionnaires related to
a company’s products or services 2.7 3.6 3.7 2.6 2.4 2.6 2.4 2.2 2.2

Sweepstakes invitations from a company
you know 2.6 3.3 3.4 2.4 2.3 2.5 2.4 2.2 2.2

Promotional messages from companies with
whom you regularly conduct business, 2.3 2.8 3.1 2.1 2.1 2.1 2.1 2.0 2.0
but have not asked for ongoing information
Promotional messages from a company
2.0 2.1 2.6 1.9 1.8 2.0 1.9 1.9 2.0
with whom you have never interacted
Channel Acceptability 3.7 3.7 2.8 2.8 2.7 2.3 2.2 2.2
In addition to asking consumers about which channels they PREFERRED companies use for sending them different types of messages, we asked how ACCEPTABLE it is for companies to
send them these different messages through various channels. Consumers were asked to indicate how acceptable it would be for marketers to send them these messages through each
channel based on a scale of one (1) to five (5), with 1 being completely unacceptable and 5 being completely acceptable. Green indicates message types and channels that consumers
generally consider acceptable for marketing communications (based on one standard deviation above the overall mean), whereas red should serve as a warning (one standard deviation
below the overall mean).
Source: 2012 Channel Preferences Survey, February 2012 • N =690 US Online Consumers, age 15 and older www.ExactTarget.com/SFF


5. TEENS: A NEW KIND OF NORMAL
Chances are that you don’t wear the same kinds of clothing today as you did
when you were a teenager. The channel preferences of consumers, much like 1.6 DAILY CHANNEL USE FOR TEENS (15-17)
wardrobes, evolve and mature with age. Without major life responsibilities—a COMBINATION OF EMAIL, FACEBOOK, AND TEXT MESSAGES
job, a spouse, a mortgage—teens have lots of time on their hands to dress and
communicate as they please. Email, Facebook, & Text 63%
Teens are more likely than any other age group to use text messaging,
Facebook, and Twitter. They are also more likely to communicate through a
Email & Text 10%
greater number of channels on a daily basis, picking the right channel based Facebook & Email 8%
on speed, convenience, and privacy.
Facebook & Text 5%
When it comes to marketing communication preferences, however, teens
aren’t that much different from the rest of us. In fact, teens also told us that Text Only 4%
they prefer email over other channels for most marketing communications.
Email Only 4%
How can this be? The fact is that teens are very savvy communicators. They
may not use email to engage as many brands as their older counterparts, but
Facebook Only 1%
when they do, they’re interested in hearing from those brands in a private No Daily Use of Email, 5%
forum, where they can take action on their own time. Facebook, or SMS

Furthermore, while the historical focus on teens has been how they use Source: 2012 Channel Preferences Survey, February 2012 www.ExactTarget.com/SFF
emerging channels like text and social media more than older consumers, N = 196 US Online Consumers, age 15 and older

the reality is that all age groups are increasing their use of these channels. In
the period between 2008 and 2012, even consumers over the age of 45 have
significantly increased their preference for using text and social media when
communicating with friends.
While age is a significant indicator of
While age is a significant indicator of channel preferences, the channel preferences, the purpose of the
purpose of the message is an even more significant indicator of the
channels consumers—even teens—are likely to leverage for marketing
message is an even more significant
communications. Consider this the new “normal”—a fragmented landscape
in which consumers are the gatekeepers to nearly every form of direct
indicator of the channels consumers—
messaging available. even teens—are likely to leverage for
marketing communications.


C H
O TB OTFL WT
F XO
BR B :) X OX K O MG BFF
OL R A
JK O
MG L R8 J :) CY TBH
FF 4LIFE G TF BRB Teen (15-17)

R8 C YA B TBH W XOXO
B :) OX O OTFL JK OMG RB :) C Channel
BR R
growth of Text and Social Media for Communication PreferencE
K O with Friends OMG
1.7
J
84% email at least
BRB BFF
2008 2012 once per day

82% text at least
JK O TB
Text Messaging social media
R 8 once day
per

OTFL
58%
BFF 78% use Facebook
at least once per day

4LIFE O TB
51% check in using
F BRB 37% 39%
A BF location-based services
like Foursquare or
K T Facebook Places at
R8 J OXO least per day
once
C
F BRB 20% 17% 18%
B :) 46% chat via instant
16%
messaging at least once

R8 JK 9%
6% O
MG per day

BR BF 39% use smartphone
4% 3%

WTF 15-24 25-44 45+ YA
1%
messaging apps like

WhatsApp or Blackberry
8 OXO
15-24 25-44 45+
GR Messenger at least once
per day
TF B
Sources: 2012 Channel Preferences Survey, February 2012, N = 1,481 US Online Consumers, age 15 and older

TFL
2008 Channel Preferences Survey, February 2008, N = 1,555 US Online Consumers, age 15 and older

O W
In 2008, we asked about “Social Networking Sites” (e.g., Facebook, MySpace). In 2012, questions were asked about specific social networks. 2012

LI
statistics for Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn were aggregated for the purpose of comparison to 2008 statistics.
32% use Twitter at
K
4LIFE :) CYA B TBH 4 OL R R8 J
least once per day
L G
R B X O BFF 4LIFE T
W TF B G XO B :) CYA O TBH LO L RO
J K OM F BR X OX F F LIF
GR8 YA B
15
WT MG H 4
© 2012 ExactTarget | www.ExactTarget.com/SFF

O C

6. PURCHASE BEHAVIORS CROSS CHANNELS
In order to better understand how channel preference translates The last point to draw from this data is that marketing messages
into action, we asked our survey respondents to identify the don’t just come from marketers. The holy grail of marketing these
channels where marketing messages had actually inspired them days is to “go viral.” The rising purchase influence of Facebook
to purchase. While email and direct mail topped the charts again, and Twitter likely includes the influence of such viral messaging, as
we saw telephone, Facebook, text messaging, mobile apps, and well as some influence from the “Sponsored Stories” distributed
Twitter register significant purchase influence even though they through users’ feeds. It bears watching whether the increased push
may not be the preferred marketing channels of our respondents. to monetize users’ “organic” message feeds with paid marketing
messages will boost the purchase influence of Facebook and
So what does this mean? First and foremost, it means that
Twitter—or cause consumers to further restrict interaction with
while consumers may have a preferred channel for marketing
marketers on these services.
communications, they tend to use many more than one. Therefore,
brands who receive permission to message consumers through Another way to put this data into perspective is to examine how more
multiple direct channels may dramatically increase their sales traditional, mass media continues to influence purchase behavior.
potential. At the very least, such cross-channel vis bility certainly
As these numbers indicate, traditional mass media like print
stands to increase brand recognition and campaign awareness.
and television advertising continue to drive significant purchase
The second conclusion we can draw is that the channels where behavior. In fact, our research shows that magazine ads influence
consumers are most strict with marketers is also where they are apt more teens to purchase than a Facebook message (37% vs. 32%).
to be most responsive. Consider SMS (text messaging). The SMS So, while digital direct media may be in full bloom, their mass media
channel has two gatekeepers—the provider and the consumer. counterparts still provide critical ways to reach consumers.
Spammers are shut down quickly at the provider level. And
Our research into marketing-inspired purchase behavior
consumers tend to use the channel most often for short burst
illustrates that we live in a multi-channel world where
communications with friends and family. When they do
brands that can execute campaigns across both mass and
subscribe to a company’s SMS messaging, it signals a
direct media will have a distinct advantage over their less
high degree of trust and interest. As a result, consumers
coordinated competition. Today’s consumers are cross-channel
may not broadly indicate a preference to receive marketing
communicators, and they’re ready to reward those brands that
messages via SMS—but they are more inclined to act upon the
abide by the unique rules that govern each channel.
messages from those companies they do let into this inner circle.

Our research into marketing-inspired purchase behavior illustrates
that we live in a multi-channel world where brands that can
execute campaigns across both mass and direct media will have
a distinct advantage over their less coordinated competition.


1.8 HAVE YOU EVER MADE A PURCHASE AS A RESULT OF A MARKETING MESSAGE YOU RECEIVED
THROUGH THE FOLLOWING CHANNELS
OVERALL 15-17 18-24 25-34 35-44 45-54 55-64 65 Plus
Email 66% 50 65 68 64 71 68 65
Telephone 24% 21 20 22 22 30 23 27
Facebook 20% 32 24 27 24 16 8 6
Mobile App 10% 22 14 17 11 6 2 1
Twitter 6% 16 11 10 5 2 1 0
Linkedin 4% 10 4 8 4 1 1 0

1.9 Which of the following have influenced you to purchase a product or service
in the past 12 months?
OVERALL 15-17 18-24 25-34 35-44 45-54 55-64 65 Plus
A commercial on television 53% 59 51 59 57 59 40 45
An advertisement in a newspaper 32% 28 15 23 31 43 46 47
An advertisement in a magazine 30% 37 24 26 28 38 31 32
An infomercial on television 18% 16 20 17 16 16 21 16
A banner or other advertisement on a website 18% 19 18 22 16 18 14 13
An advertisement on the radio 16% 12 12 18 15 22 14 11
An advertisement on a billboard 8% 9 11 12 5 7 5 3
A video advertisement on YouTube (commercial,
8% 22 16 8 5 6 5 1
ad played prior to start of your video, etc.)


SECTION
TWO MARKETING SCENARIOS
In this section, we dig deeper into specific
marketing communication scenarios to uncover
how context impacts consumer preference. While
some of the examples are industry-specific
such as financial alerts, most are applicable
to any marketer looking to prioritize their
communications across the channels
that consumers prefer.


1. PERMISSION-BASED PROMOTIONAL MESSAGES
Thanks to the good work of Seth Godin, the email channel has always been linked with the concept of “permission marketing”—namely, that brands should first
seek permission before sending customers email marketing messages. As you may have gathered already, the tenants of permission marketing now dictate
the terms of engagement through an expansive set of direct channels, including SMS, Facebook, and Twitter. In each of these channels, any brand that sends
marketing messages without permission is likely to find itself blocked, unliked, or unfollowed.
where do you look online
Even in the face of these new, permission-driven, direct communication channels, email still
commands the lion’s share of consumer preference for permission-based communications— 2.5 when you want a deal from
even among the trend-making teens and finicky 65+ crowd. a company you know?
Since this data reinforces much of what we’ve shared in the previous sections, here we explore 1st choice 2nd choice
a different angle, asking consumers where they look online when they want a deal from a Email 44% 27%
company they know. Here too, email came out on top followed closely by the company website
with search engines and Facebook rounding out the top four. Company website 43% 32%
Search engine
Let’s be clear: If you’re not making deals available via email, you are ignoring the largest, direct 6% 15%
(e.g. for coupon codes)
audience for this content. People prefer email over Facebook for deals because it’s harder
to miss deals in the inbox than it is in the waterfall of posts that is the News Feed. Use social Facebook 4% 10%
networks to spread the word about your offers, and push consumers to your website for email Source: 2012 Channel Preferences Survey, February 2012
subscription. At present, other approaches leave money on the table. N = 791 US Online Consumers, age 15 and older • www.ExactTarget.com/SFF

Preferred channel for promotional messages from Companies whom I have
2.6
granted permission to send me ongoing information
OVERALL 15-17 18-24 25-34 35-44 45-54 55-64 65 Plus
Email 77% 66 74 75 81 79 81 79
Facebook 4% 8 7 3 4 3 1 0
Telephone 2% 0 5 3 2 1 1 2
Twitter 1% 4 1 1 0 0 0 0
Mobile App 1% 2 1 1 0 1 0 0
LinkedIn 0% 0 0 1 1 0 0 0


2. SHARING To put it another way, if your brand is emphasizing only that consumers share
via social networks, you’re reaching just the tip of the iceberg. Below the
In November 2008, Mark Zuckerberg took the stage at the Web 2.0 surface are the introverted, the private, and the cautious consumers who
conference and made the following proclamation: “I would expect that next year, share content off your radar via email and word of mouth (telephone). These
people will share twice as much information as they share this year, and next year, they will be private sharers don’t get as much press as the “likers” and “retweeters”
sharing twice as much as they did the year before.” precisely because their activities cannot be seen publicly and they are
difficult, if not impossible, to track. Private communications, however, are
One can debate the merits of what has come to be known as “Zuckerberg’s extremely valuable to brands, as a friend’s thoughtful personal endorsement
Law,” but there’s no question that sharing is now a fundamental component will often realize a better response than one broadcast to thousands.
in every company’s marketing plans. Implicit in this shift is the belief that
consumers who share their experiences will ultimately help companies That said, the power and appeal of social networks to reach an exponentially
generate more and better business via a network effect. This got us thinking, larger audience cannot be denied. The audience of Facebook, Twitter,
so we asked consumers which channels they’re currently using to share Google+, LinkedIn, and Pinterest all provide one-click sharing that is
content with their friends and family. measurable, and we expect that the continued promotion of social sharing
will help Zuckerberg’s Law flourish—at least for the time being.
That’s right—email tops the sharing charts and even beats Facebook
by 30 points. Of course, if you dig into the response by age, you see that One final note on sharing—while social sharing may spread the word, the
teens prefer sharing information on Facebook over email—but the gap is information may not be relevant to friend-of-a-friend recipients. As a result,
surprisingly small (54% to 47%). This isn’t just further proof that teens are brands should always encourage sharing via consumer-selected channels.
using email, it’s a clear indication that there are two types of sharing taking Where you can make it easier to share via one-click buttons, do so—but
place—one Zuckerbergian (in the public sphere) and one more reserved always give the consumer the ability to personalize the message so they can
(through private channels like email and telephone). increase its relevance to the audiences they reach.

2.2 What channels are you currently using to share content with your friends & family?
OVERALL 15-17 18-24 25-34 35-44 45-54 55-64 65 Plus
Send an email 63% 47 55 58 63 65 74 76
Post it on Facebook 33% 54 46 38 37 27 17 11
Call them on the phone 29% 21 28 33 19 35 34 27
Post it on my blog 6% 14 8 11 4 3 0 0
Post it on Twitter 5% 17 5 6 5 3 2 2
Post it to an online forum or discussion group 4% 12 5 5 4 3 1 0
Send them a letter 3% 8 6 3 2 3 2 4
Post it on another social network (Pinterest, Tumblr,
2% 2 5 2 2 0 0 0
Instagram, etc.)
Post it on LinkedIn 1% 4 1 2 1 0 1 0
Post it on a coupon deal site (SlickDeals, RetailMeNot, etc.) 1% 2 1 1 2 1 0 0


The Interest in
Pinterest 3. FINANCIAL & TRAVEL ALERTS
If your bank account has been compromised or your flight departure has changed,
Facebook has long
you’d want to know as soon as possible, right? It turns out that consumers
maintained that posts with
agree, and they welcome alerts across multiple channels so long as time is of the
visual content—pictures
essence (see charts 2.3 and 2.4 on the following page).
and/or videos—receive
more likes, comments, This position represents a significant change for consumers from our 2008 Channel
and shares than plain Preference Survey. Back then, consumers were generally negative toward any text
text. The rapid rise of messages from companies. Today, however, consumers have changed their tune:
Pinterest, a virtual “pinboard”
• 15% of consumers would prefer to receive financial alerts via SMS over
where users can curate visual content
any other channel.
from across the web, underscores
just how powerful images are. In little • 25% of consumers prefer to receive travel alerts via SMS over any
over a year, Pinterest has become the other channel.
fastest growing, independent social
network with more than 17 million Of all the message types surveyed, financial and travel alerts are where
registered accounts as of March 2012 companies should offer consumers the greatest variety of opt-in options.
according to comScore. With consumer preference distributed across email, telephone, and SMS,
brands that offer all three options will stand the greatest chance of
The lesson of Pinterest for marketers pleasing their customers.
is right there in its name—interest. To
inspire consumers to share content, Brands tackling alert communications may also see an
it must be of interest to them. Unless interesting phenomenon develop—consumers who request
you’re a daily deal site whose brand alerts through multiple channels. Why the duplication?
is built upon offers, most marketers Consumers may not know which channel will have their
would be wise to build their sharing attention at the moment an alert posts. As a result,
strategy around the creation of they do something rare in today’s environment—
great content. Breathtaking imagery, invite companies to over-communicate. If you
humorous comments, and videos that find your brand in that situation, resist the
appeal to average consumers, and temptation to expand the content beyond
not just your C-Suite. That’s the key the alert the consumer has requested—
to a great sharing strategy—inspiring at least not without obtaining express
consumers with content that is too permission beforehand.
good not to share.


2.3 Preferred channel for Financial Alerts
OVERALL 15-17 18-24 25-34 35-44 45-54 55-64 65 Plus
Email 52% 45 48 56 48 53 59 50
Telephone 18% 8 13 12 18 19 24 32
Facebook 4% 8 5 5 5 3 0 0
Mobile App 1% 2 2 0 1 1 0 0
Twitter 0% 0 1 0 0 0 0 0
LinkedIn 0% 0 0 1 0 0 0 0

2.4 Preferred channel for Travel Alerts
OVERALL 15-17 18-24 25-34 35-44 45-54 55-64 65 Plus
Email 43% 40 43 42 44 40 47 40
Telephone 18% 10 11 20 10 17 27 42
Facebook 3% 6 5 6 2 4 0 0
Mobile App 2% 4 0 3 4 0 1 0
Twitter 1% 0 2 0 1 1 0 0
LinkedIn 0% 0 0 0 1 0 0 0


4. CUSTOMER SERVICE INQUIRIES
While social media headlines tout the customer service aspects of both Overall, consumers’ preferences in this arena reinforce two
Twitter and Facebook, our research indicates that a majority of consumers key aspects of customer service—privacy and immediacy.
prefer to deal with customer service issues privately through three A majority of consumers still view public complaints
channels—email, regular mail, and the telephone. aired over social networks as inappropriate and even
exhibitionistic—especially if the complaining party hasn’t
Email’s dominance here may be surprising at first, but keep in mind that it’s
communicated through traditional customer service
not only a private channel but also one that allows consumers to keep a
outlets (telephone, email, etc.). However, if the consumer
digital paper trail of their complaints and correspondence.
has exhausted all other outlets and failed to receive
Of all our messaging scenarios, customer service may have the immediate relief, prior SUBSCRIBERS, FANS, & FOLLOWERS
greatest divide between old and young. Our older respondents are focus groups have shared that they see Facebook and Twitter as “steam
disproportionately inclined to write a letter of complaint or make a phone valves” where they can expose or “get even” for poor customer service.
call whereas teenagers are taking to Facebook in relatively large numbers
One thing is for certain, if your brand finds itself inundated with customer
(12%). That latter trend may be of some concern to brands as Facebook
service complaints via your social channels, the problem may be as much
has just enabled its users to direct message brands. As a result, if your
your customer service department’s response time as it is your products
brand maintains a page and interacts with consumers via Facebook, you
and services. Either way, best to deal with the matter quickly and patiently
would be well advised to monitor your “Messages” and “Messages: Other”
because you never know who’s watching—or sharing—these days.
folders religiously for complaints. While this adds another duty for social
media teams, it will be well worth it if it keeps an angry, young customer
from boiling over on your brand page.

2.1 Preferred channel for customer service Messages (general product / service questions)
OVERALL 15-17 18-24 25-34 35-44 45-54 55-64 65 Plus
Email 76% 69 73 76 82 81 73 76
Telephone 4% 4 7 3 3 5 4 6
Facebook 4% 12 7 5 4 1 1 0
Mobile App 1% 1 0 1 0 3 0 0
Twitter 0% 2 1 1 0 0 0 0
LinkedIn 0% 0 0 0 2 0 0 0


5. PURCHASE RECEIPTS
& TICKETS

77%
Anyone who’s ever dealt with a wallet full of business receipts likely
shakes their head when they hear we’re becoming a paperless
society. While it’s true that paperless solutions are a ways off for some
transactions, consumers certainly told us that they are receptive to
receiving both purchase receipts, order confirmations, and tickets via
email when possible.
of consumers
Seventy-seven percent (77%) of consumers today are open to receiving today are open
purchase-related communications via email. The next closest channels
are barely in the picture—regular mail at 9%, Facebook at 5%, and to receiving
text messaging at 4%. What’s astounding is that outside of online
transactions, very few retailers are even offering the ability for consumers purchase-related
to receive their receipts electronically. This is a huge missed opportunity
as electronic receipts give brick-and-mortar retailers the opportunity to communications
open a new line of communication—email—with their customers. While
companies shouldn’t assume this equates to permission to market via via email.
email, it at least provides an opportunity to ask and upsell in a limited
fashion as part of the emailed transaction communications.

In the case of ticket delivery, email again tops all other channels;
however, direct mail performs well across the board, and SMS shows
signs of promise within the younger demographics. What’s interesting
about these results is that tickets are something consumers must have
to gain entry to an event. The trust they therefore place in email, direct
mail, and text messaging suggests both a familiarity and reliability that
has yet to transfer to other channels.


2.7 Preferred channel for Confirmation, “thank You”, or purchase receipt
OVERALL 15-17 18-24 25-34 35-44 45-54 55-64 65 Plus
Email 77% 67 70 71 81 83 83 85
Facebook 5% 8 11 5 7 5 0 0
Telephone 1% 2 1 2 1 0 1 2
Twitter 1% 2 0 3 1 1 0 0
LinkedIn 0% 2 0 0 0 0 0 0
Mobile App 0% 0 0 2 0 0 0 0

2.8 Preferred channel for Delivery of tickets to an event purchased online
OVERALL 15-17 18-24 25-34 35-44 45-54 55-64 65 Plus
Email 60% 49 59 56 70 65 62 40
Telephone 4% 2 2 3 3 5 3 6
Facebook 4% 8 8 5 4 2 0 0
Twitter 1% 4 0 3 1 1 0 0
Mobile App 1% 2 1 2 1 1 0 0
LinkedIn 0% 0 0 0 0 0 0 0


SECTION
THREE INDIVIDUAL CHANNEL ANALYSIS

In this third and final section, we analyze what consumer
preferences mean for each marketing channel surveyed. Our
intent is not to provide a be-all, end-all statement of each
channel’s marketing value but rather a snapshot of
strengths and challenges as this moment in time.


DIRECT MAIL
“Response is one of the five keys of
successful direct marketing. And if you
have that, the other four don’t matter.”
-Dean Rieck, Copywriter
There’s no question that direct mail has taken a significant hit in recent years. When we
Direct Mail conducted our 2008 Channel Preferences Survey, the majority of US online consumers
considered direct mail the most appropriate channel for companies to use for nearly all
Strengths: types of marketing messages.

• IMPACT In the intervening years, the internet has become ubiquitous in the US thanks to the
proliferation of Wi-Fi, 3G/4G, PCs, smartphones, and tablets. Email, IM, SMS—and most
• Novelty recently—social networks have trained entire generations to correspond instantly and
• Prospecting electronically leaving the handwritten letter a quaint relic of the past. As for bills, they’re
moving online thanks to the cost-cutting efforts of financial institutions and other billers.
• RESPONSE The net effect has been to force the US Postal Service to consider cutting Saturday
• Tangibility delivery—but that’s just one of many cuts that will have to be made if mail service in the US
is to survive as we know it.
• Targeting
If there’s a silver lining to this dark cloud, it’s that direct mail still works and consumers
still want it! Consumers told us that direct mail was second only to email in terms of its
acceptability across a wide range of marketing communications. Our survey also found
that 65% of consumers report having made a purchase as the direct result of a catalog,
postcard, or other piece of direct mail.

So, while the post office may be struggling, the fact remains that direct mail is a critical
channel for marketers. It still opens some doors that digital channels can’t—even among
young consumers—principally because it’s the only direct marketing channel where
permission to send is not required. Indeed, direct mail’s only gatekeeper is the cost to
design, print, and ship.

Marketers should consider using direct mail to either draw consumers into a deeper
relationship or to establish new relationships with prospects. Well-timed direct mail
communications can be highly effective, especially when used in combination with other
channels where your message can be reinforced more frequently at a lower cost.


email

“If you want to drive retention and repeat usage, there isn’t a better way to do it than email.” Email
–Fred Wilson, Managing Partner, Union Square Ventures & VC Blogger (www.AVC.com) Strengths:
• Alerts
• Cost
If there’s one flashing headline from our 2012 Email owes much of its success to its versatility. No
Channel Preference Survey, it’s that email is the other channel at present can deliver the broad range • Coupons
channel consumers prefer over all others when of messages—from promotions and newsletters • Flexibility
it comes to a broad range of direct marketing to receipts and alerts—in a format that provides
communications. Consider that email is: privacy and familiarity. Neither does any other direct
• Loyalty
channel command email’s near universal adoption. communications
• The most used channel for written, personal
communications (45%) In an age of ever-changing social interfaces, there’s • Measurability
something to be said about email’s simple, nearly
• Checked daily by more users than any other
unchanging inbox format that trains users to check • Newsletters
channel (91%)
each and every message—even on a smartphone. • Promotions
• The preferred channel for permission-based
marketing communications (77%) If email has an Achilles’ heel, it may be that it’s • Reengagement
• The direct channel that influences the most
not flashy enough in today’s social-centric world messaging
to generate marketing headlines. Rest assured,
purchases (66%)
however, when properly leveraged with the right • Retention
• The preferred channel for financial (52%) and mix of permission, customer data, and actionable marketing
travel (43%) alerts intelligence, the ROI of email will make headlines • ROI
• Preferred even by teens over all other direct within your marketing department.
channels for permission-based, marketing
• Transactional
communications (66%) communications


facebook

“I would expect that next year, people
will share twice as much information Our current research also underscores that
Facebook has a lot of room to grow as a direct
as they share this year, and next year, marketing channel—if it so chooses. It’s impressive
that messages on Facebook have inspired purchase
they will be sharing twice as much as activity from 20% of the consumers we surveyed. Facebook
they did the year before.” –Mark Zuckerberg It’s also astounding that 54% of 15-17 year-olds
Strengths:
and 33% of all consumers now use Facebook
to share information online. However, when one • Articles
digs into critical messaging (alerts, transactions,
customer service), Facebook barely registers with • Branding
most consumers. Moreover, where privacy and • Consumer
control are an issue for consumers, Facebook
interaction
As we detailed in our Facebook X-Factors research indexes poorly.
report (SUBSCRIBERS, FANS, & FOLLOWERS #5),
• Contests
While consumer attitudes are inconsistent about
the key to marketing on Facebook is fun. Survey how prevalent brands should be on Facebook, • Games
after survey, Facebook is the only destination where
consumers link “fun” and marketing” together in
this is not a reason for brands to shortchange their • Pictures
investment in the platform. First, some consumers
the same sentence. By engaging consumers in an really want to interact with brands on Facebook— • Polls
entertaining fashion through simple posts, brands in fact they expect to find brands engaging there. • Sharing
can humanize themselves in ways far beyond that Second, Facebook is driving the sharing of brand-
of other marketing channels. related content in ways that positively impact sales.
• Video
When it comes to one-to-one marketing however, So while it may not be a pure, one-to-one, direct • Viral
consumers are split over whether they want direct marketing channel, Facebook is evolving in ways promotions
marketing communications on Facebook or not. In that will keep it high on marketers’ priority lists the
SUBSCRIBERS, FANS, & FOLLOWERS #10, The foreseeable future.
Meaning of Like, we determined that nearly 40%
of the consumers who click the “like” button on a
company’s Facebook page do not think that their
action should give that company the right to market
to them via their News Feed.


LINKEDIN
You may have noticed that we included LinkedIn as a direct messaging channel in our survey. While LinkedIn is
clearly more of a B2B communications channel, we included it for two reasons. First, since it’s a highly-trafficked
social media site, we wanted another familiar point of reference that would allow us to look at how consumers view
LINKEDIN communication with brands across social media sites in general, not just Facebook and Twitter. Second, since we
Strengths: asked questions about a number of “formal” types of communication, we felt it was only appropriate to include
the leading “professional” social network.
• professional Based on our findings, it’s clear that consumers aren’t using LinkedIn as a place to receive direct marketing
networking messages. This doesn’t come as a surprise, nor does it suggest anything about the site’s efficacy for B2B
marketing communications. In fact, it makes us a bit more anxious to assemble our SUBSCRIBERS, FANS, &
• Formal
FOLLOWERS research team and dig into what communications do make LinkedIn tick. For now, however, our
Communication conclusion is that LinkedIn does not currently factor into the B2C direct marketing communication picture.

GOOGLE+
Eagle-eyed readers may have also noticed that Google+ was not included in our report. The fact is that we made every
effort to include Google+, but despite our best attempts to distinguish Google+, the social network, from Google the
search engine, survey responses indexed Google+ exponentially higher than its reported usage figures. Accordingly, we
opted to remove Google+ from our report as the consumer responses were deemed unreliable.

As Google+ grows and better distinguishes its brand from Google Search, we hope to include them in future SUBSCRIBERS,
FANS, & FOLLOWERS research reports. Until that time, we feel it’s safe to treat Google+ much as you would Facebook—
an environment that requires consumer permission to engage and holds the potential for viral sharing. Admittedly, we’re
curious to see whether Google’s continued integration of Google+ into its other messaging channels—Gmail, Google
Chat, and Android mobile devices—will deliver on the promise of the “social inbox.”


MOBILE APPS &
PUSH NOTIFICATIONS
“The ability to talk to your players is vital, but you also have to educate
your players what to expect from these communication channels.”
-Vijay Thakkar, Zynga

Mobile apps are one of the newest communications channels available to marketers

Mobile today. Since the launch of Apple’s App Store in July 2008 and March 2012, consumers
have downloaded 25 billion mobile apps on their iPhones, iPads, and other Apple
App & Push devices. Another 10 billion apps have been downloaded from the Android app store
Notification by owners of phones running Google’s Android operating system.

Strengths: When a consumer downloads your branded application, it opens up new possibilities
for engagement—not least of which is push notifications to the home screen of
• App their mobile device. The allure of push notifications is that they require the user to
reengagement take immediate action by opening the application; however, poorly executed push
messages have the potential to alienate users such that they delete the message or
• Geo-targeted turn of push notifications altogether.
messaging
While push notifications hold a great deal of potential, they are early in the adoption
• Social alerts cycle. This is the primary reason app-based notifications failed to register as
• Transactional more than a blip within our survey. With time and the emergence of better mobile
messaging analytics, we may see both consumers and marketers warm to new uses
messages
of push messaging. Until such time though, our recommendation is to limit your push
• Update alerts notifications, if any, to only those communications which are crucial to the usefulness
of your app and consistent with consumers’ expectations.

For all other communications, seek to obtain customer email opt-ins during initial
app registration. That way, you’ll have a channel to communicate with your app users
regardless of whether their push notifications are enabled.


SMS (TEXT MESSAGING)

“People’s mobile number may be the
SMS most guarded number they have after
Strengths: their Social Security number.”
-Jeff Lee, Distributive Networks
• Alerts
• Event
interactions
Text messages are short, quick, and very personal. Consumers who
• Event invite marketers into the walled garden of SMS do so much more
messaging
selectively than any other channel. As a result, senders who fail to
• In-store deliver relevant, useful text messages are quickly greeted with a
promotions “STOP” reply.
• Mobile opt-ins
• Personal
messages
As we’ve discussed, the SMS channel is particularly adept at
• User-Initiated
delivering unobtrusive alert messaging. In fact, this is the one type of
communications
messaging that indexed high enough to be considered appropriate
by a majority of consumers. That’s not to say, however, that you can
simply assume that consumers who provide their mobile numbers
want to receive text messages from you. You must be absolutely
certain to get their express permission and follow all of the rules
set by the carriers. Failure to do so could result in blacklisting that
prevents you from sending any text messages to consumers.


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.
Telephone
Strengths: 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
• Alerts percentage also prefer to receive financial and travel alerts by phone. The last place we
• Customer saw significant phone usage from consumers was when they wanted to share a marketing
Service message with others. Nearly 30% of consumers told us they use the phone for such word
of mouth marketing.
• Inbound
communications 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
• Sharing space best used for urgent, customer service, and peer-to-peer communications.
(Consumer
to Consumer)


TWITTER
“What happens on Twitter doesn’t stay on Twitter”
–SUBSCRIBERS, FANS, & FOLLOWERS #4: Twitter X-Factors

Fast approaching the 500 million user mark, no one can argue that Twitter is a phenomenon built 140
characters at a time. Consumers love using it to share timely information, make snarky observations,
and even help citizens topple ruthless regimes. For all its versatility however, Twitter did not register as
one of the preferred marketing communication channels in our 2012 survey. This isn’t too surprising
Twitter since Twitter is more of an information stream where consumers tune in at-will, as opposed to a

Strengths: channel like email where they must check and manage every message in some fashion.

The Twitter results get very interesting when one compares these three data points in the two
• Breaking news youngest age groups.
• Company
updates 3.1 TWITTER USAGE AMONG 15-24 YEAR OLDS
• Influencer 15-17 18-24
outreach % Who Prefer Permission-Based Marketing Messages Via Twitter 4% 1%
• Insider % Who Share Via Twitter 17% 5%
information % Who Purchased Because of a Message on Twitter 16% 11%
• Last-resort
customer This chart illustrates that it’s quite likely that sharing on Twitter (retweeting) is driving a significant
service amount of purchase behavior—far greater than what the permission-based engagement level with
brands on Twitter might indicate. While this warrants further exploration, it certainly underscores why
• Product brands should continue to build their follower base—Twitter users are sharing and acting on
updates marketing-related messages through the service.
• Share-worthy Another reason to leverage Twitter comes from our Twitter X-Factors research report (SUBSCRIBERS,
content FANS, & FOLLOWERS #4). Daily Twitter users tend to create content on the web at a rate of two to six
times that of everyone else online. Your active followers are more likely to be bloggers, reviewers,
• Viral
commenters, and creators. Harness their power and what happens on Twitter will have a positive
Promotions impact for your SEO efforts, your brand visibility, and your bottom line.


conclusion
Marketing is in the midst of a sea change. New devices, social networks, and mobile technologies
have fragmented consumer communication channels in ways that would have boggled the mind just
“...those
a decade ago. The new, “post-PC” reality is here, however, and the marketer’s challenge is finding a who respect
way to stitch together a cross-channel communication strategy that “makes the numbers” without
alienating consumers. consumer
The good news is that consumers have a clear preference for an established, direct marketing channel preferences
with a proven track record—email. To some, this may come as a surprise, but consumers have stated
their preference clearly in our 2012 survey. Email is the most-preferred channel for direct, one-to-one
will soon find
marketing communications with consumers. themselves
We found additional good news in the growth of mobile and social channels to positively impact able to reach
sales and facilitate specific types of brand/customer conversations, such as customer service-related
inquiries. However, if there’s a bold headline to this report, it’s that marketers should not confuse consumers
personal communication preferences with marketing communication preference. In fact, there’s
probably no clearer path to angering consumers than filling channels that they reserve for personal
in new and
conversations—such as SMS, Facebook, and the telephone—with unwanted marketing messages. more relevant
Consumers may love talking to friends and family through numerous channels, but their engagement ways across
with marketers is much more selective. Marketers who ignore the strong gatekeeper function that
consumers play in mobile and social channels will quickly find themselves blocked, blacklisted, or a greater
banned. On the other hand, those who respect consumer preferences will soon find themselves able to
reach consumers in new and more relevant ways across a greater number of channels. That’s not only
number of
smart marketing—it’s a distinct competitive advantage in today’s ever-changing marketing landscape. channels.”


MANY CHANNELS. ONE SOLUTION.
While consumers move seamlessly from one channel to the
next—as you’ve seen in this report—marketers strive to unsilo
communications and integrate data.
Powering interactive marketing across email, mobile, social, and
websites, ExactTarget’s Interactive Marketing Hub™ provides
a holistic solution. Instead of juggling multiple vendors—or the
responsibilities of multiple jobs—you can focus on delivering
relevant, real-time communications. The Hub gives you:
UNITY. Integrate data from disparate sources—from CRM and
social media networks to point-of-sale information and web
analytics to gain a single, unified view of each consumer.
CONTROL. With access to real-time tracking and first-class,
graphical reporting, the Hub gives you immediate visibility and
ultimate control over all of your marketing campaigns.
SPEED. Ensure your communications are as relevant as they
are timely. Automate advanced, sequenced programs and
deliver personalized cross-channel messages from a single,
intuitive console.

SEE FOR YOURSELF
Visit www.ExactTarget.com to discover the
power of the Interactive Marketing Hub!

www.ExactTarget.com

This document may not be copied without the prior written consent of ExactTarget. © 2011 ExactTarget.

The 2012 Channel Preference Survey Web

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The 2012 Channel Preference Survey Web