The DMA’s response to this summer’s Panorama episode entitled “Why hate junk mail?” has earned the trade body a place on the shortlist for the Crisis & Issues Management Award at the 2011 PRCA Awards.
Broadcast in July, the Panorama programme promised to investigate the true cost of “junk mail” and scam mail to the public and the environment. However, as industry insiders feared, the programme presented a confused account of the complex issues surrounding both and failed to distinguish them from legitimate direct mail marketing.
The programme also repeated factual errors, such as the cost of disposing of
direct mail.
The DMA took action to protect the multi-billion pound UK direct mail marketing industry from damaging adverse publicity resulting from the programme.
In a coordinated PR campaign, the DMA and its PR agency Eulogy turned to media relations and social media to set the record straight in the public’s eye, and produced a toolkit for its members to deal with issues stemming from the programme.
The DMA gave over 20 radio and press interviews to present the industry’s point of view and protect the image of direct mail.
DMA executive director Chris Combemale said: “The DMA’s role is to protect and promote the interests of the direct marketing industry. We needed to pre-empt any negative publicity that would harm consumer perception of direct mail, so acted decisively through a concerted PR campaign. The outcome could not have been better for the industry, so we’re pleased to have our crisis management skills recognised by the PRCA Awards.”
The winners of the 2011 Awards will be announced on November 15 at a ceremony at the Park Lane Hilton.
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