The volume of direct mail credit card solicitations continues to decline steadily, according to Mintel International Group Ltd.
The company said Monday that mail volume in February declined 6% from January and 24% from October, to 689 million pieces.
Mintel said on April 3 that January's volume fell by 3% from December and 19% from October. Volume has fallen consistently since October.
Existing cardholders were the most affected. Credit card issuers increased the number of offers they sent to noncardholders by 7% in January, from December, but trimmed the number sent to existing cardholders by 30%, Mintel said. Four of the nation's top 10 mailers curtailed volume in 2007 to both consumer groups, and six increased their solicitations of noncustomers.
Lisa Hronek, a senior analyst at Mintel, said in a press release that the credit card industry is "pulling back and readjusting" its marketing strategies in an unsteady economic environment. "With the market unstable and people worried about financial risk, companies are rethinking how they use direct marketing to generate business."
Ms. Hronek also attributed some of the increase in mail to noncustomers to a post-holiday change in strategy. "Card issuers are hoping that increased emphasis on acquisition will help them capture new business and steal balances from the competition," she said.
