It’s official. Kiwis have an on-going love affair with junk mail. Kiwis can be fanatical about free coupons, love free samples and read junk mail, even in bed, according to a survey just released.

With all the hype about digital marketing, this piece of research will give marketing gurus some food for thought.

Printed marketing still resonates among those who like to take time to sort their mail, with about 55% of respondents saying they like to “take their time” and read the circulars sitting down.

Four percent of Kiwis admit to reaching for the junk mail instead of each other, when it comes to bedtime.

The CEO of Reachmedia Greg Radford says despite common perception of unaddressed mail as rubbish, it remains one of the most popular advertising mediums.

“As consumers, much of the advertising messages we are exposed to is when we are on the go, or increasingly in a digital format which makes it hard to store and access when we need it. Unaddressed mail is one of the few mediums of marketing communication where we get take our time and absorb the information.”

Shoppers have a clear desire to stay informed about a new product release or ways to save money, he says.

The Reachmedia survey, which covered 1000 people, investigated New Zealand attitudes towards unaddressed or junk mail, and despite our assertions otherwise, Kiwis are actually fans of the advertising medium.

Key survey points:

• Over 88% of circulars delivered are actually being read by someone in the household.
• Four in ten (43%) are so riveted by the bargain shopping content, they read it standing up or walking back from the letterbox.
• Almost three in ten (28%) of those surveyed said they liked the access to new product information provided in the circulars.
• 28% like to read material in their own time.

Despite Kiwis’ early adoption of digital marketing, six percent of those surveyed said they liked having a hard copy of information they could refer to.

Unsurprisingly, the most popular types of unaddressed mail were those that bought us financial benefits – either free samples (67%) or coupons and vouchers (55%).

“The research showed that shoppers have a clear desire to remain informed. Whether it is about a new product release or a way to save money and make our lives easier, advertising does serve a valuable purpose in society,” he says.