Keep Me Posted Proves Direct Mail Is a Godsend For The Vulnerable
September 2021
The new report, Multichannel Guidance for Customers in Vulnerable Circumstances, published by the DMA, revealed that throughout the pandemic, mail played a crucial role in supporting vulnerable groups with services that improved their lives and empowered individuals.
A report from the Financial Conduct Authority revealed that in 2019, approximately half of UK consumers (24.1 million) exhibited one or more characteristics indicative of potential vulnerability. As a result of the pandemic, this rose to 27.7 million.
Organisations should consider how vulnerable customers respond to communications. For example, if a consumer writes to a company, an email or WhatsApp message is unlikely to be the most appropriate response, as they are not aligned with more traditional inbound communication.
The report includes a handy checklist of responses on how 11 different forms of communication, including SMS, chatbots and email, perform when used by people with varying issues. One channel that addressed every challenge, including being visually accessible and offering personalised content, was mail.
We strongly believe that vulnerable consumers require protection and that direct marketing is essential in supporting vulnerable groups with services and opportunities to empower them as individuals, improve their lives and bring about social change. Many people prefer to receive and send information by post as they either don’t have the skills to respond online or have no access to a computer, printer, scanner or broadband. It’s a relief when they don’t have to call on a family member or friend to help them upload or download attachments, and that a paper document is still available.
Judith Donovan CBE Chair of the Keep Me Posted campaign
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