The Debate Has Begun

This new law has no effect on direct marketing in the UK currently. Still, debates have begun on websites which discuss whether or not it is a foregone conclusion that all email and direct mail will soon be required to conform to a stricter opt-in policy than is currently enforced. We’d like to contribute to the debate by offering a few points on this issue.

According to UTalkMarketing.com, one person in the marketing and data field, Peter McCormick, co founder and general manager of ExactTarget, feels that the new law is of no concern to organizations whose communications philosophy has the customer at heart. He feels that by having stricter opt-in laws marketers would be guaranteed to only contact warm prospects who were interested in their products and therefore would be more likely to respond.

Cost is a Built-In Incentive For Mailing List Accuracy

While it is generally true that most people don’t want to be flooded with unwanted ‘junk mail’ there is the general idea that out of quantity comes quality. Let’s face it, businesses do have an incentive to use quality mailing lists when sending out direct mail. Each piece costs money and too many dups and too many duds can hammer your ROI. By using an accurate mailing list marketers already have a built-in incentive to make sure their marketing dollar is not wasted.

Direct Mail to Cold Prospects Reaches New Customers

Another point in favor of mass mailing is that without reaching brand new cold contacts, there is no expansion or reach into new territory. Direct mail to cold prospects is an effective way to reach brand new customers who would otherwise not be mailed to if businesses were to only send mailings to ‘warm’ prospects.

Businesses Are Already Required To Remove Names From Mailing Lists

Still, if some prospects absolutely object to receiving unsolicited direct mail, then it would most likely be a waste of money to send a mass mailing to them anyway because they would find it so objectionable that it is unlikely that they would respond to an offer. Most businesses who have any direct mail experience at all have received requests to be removed from future mailings and Postal regulations are already in effect that require this. So it works both ways – the customer is happy and the marketer is happy.

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The U.S. delegation is headed by Bisa Williams, who is the current deputy assistant secretary of state for Western Hemisphere affairs. The negotiations are being held at the Cuban capital of Havana. Representatives of the U.S. Postal Service were also present.

Since there is no U.S. embassy in Cuba, Washington maintains a U.S. Interests Section in Havana, a spokeswoman for which is Gloria Berbena. Berbena told The Associated Press that this is the first time State Department officials have traveled to Cuba for talks since late 2002.

The talks seem to be pretty hush hush. The Cuban government has no comment on the talks, not even to confirm they are happening … nor will either side disclose exactly where in Havana the talks are being held.

In August 1963, direct mail service between the U.S. and Cuba was suspended. Washington imposed its embargo a year later. Because of the ban on direct mail, a letter currently mailed between the two nations can only arrive by first going through a third country like Mexico or Canada … with a little bit of luck … maybe. Still, it can sometimes take months for letters to arrive.

The U.S. first attempted to restore direct service in 1999, then tried again in 2000, 2002 and 2008. Cuba finally accepted in May, of this year and agreed to host the talks when representatives from U.S. and Cuba met in New York in July when the bilateral talks on migration were held.

According to the Associated Press, Berbena stated that the talks would be limited only to direct mail service and that the talks were expected to take all day.  Berbena said that the Obama administration sees the talks “as a potential avenue to improve communication between our countries’ peoples.” The outlook does appear to be optimistic for families who are separated by this political divide and for users of mailing lists in general.

Direct mail to Cuba stopped in 1963, and since then mail has had to go through other countries. Diplomats have now arranged to meet in Havana to discuss the renewal of direct mail between the countries to put an end to rerouting direct mail through Canada or Mexico. President Obama would like to improve relations between the U.S. and Cuba. He has taken measures to see if the Cuban leadership is interested in participating. One such step taken involves the support of a recent decision by the Organization of American States to reverse its position in 1962 to suspend Cuba from the 34-country group.

This is also big news for suppliers of mailing lists and for businesses that buy mailing lists. Restoring direct mail service between U.S. and Cuba has been an issue that has thwarted previous presidents, including George W. Bush and Bill Clinton. Previous attempts had been stalled by the Cuban government. Experts say that it would not only be a big step for families that have been divided but also would be a politically critical move. The decision to have the direct mail talks comes just after migration talks in New York in July.

In a Sep 1st article from the Miami Herald, Cuba expert Phil Peters from the Lexington Institute,  a Virginia research center, stated that there is a big difference this time and that Cuba was never able to agree to talk about it and now it seems like Cuba has agreed to talk about it. Peters also said that this is important “Within the context of Cuba and all the divided families,”  and that it was also very symbolically important.

The Miami Herald article also mentions Cuban writer Manuel Vázquez Portal who says that a letter that  should take only three days to arrive can take three or four months.  He also emphasizes that this has bigger meaning because if he wants to communicate to his family in Cuba he is not restricted to calling them by phone or sending them an e-mail.

Vázquez Portal also points out that mail doesn’t get there by magic but that it gets there on ships and planes, and that mail arriving on more ships and more planes has a very important commercial and political meaning. He says, “This is the tip of the iceberg.”