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Are we any closer to UK data protection laws?

By |2024-02-27T07:30:25+00:00February 27th, 2024|

Ummmm – in a word, no…. Last week Secretary of State Michelle Donelan brought the Data Protection and Digital Information (DPDI) Bill back into the House of Commons to secure an extension. Its expiration has now been extended by 280 days, setting a new deadline of December 12, 2024. This extension was critical; without it, the bill faced lapsing on March 8, 12 months after its initial presentation. Following a second reading before Christmas, the DPDI Bill will now make its way through the House of Lords. However, the timeframe for this phase remains a subject of much speculation among political and data circles – particularly with an election looming. One of the more formidable tasks confronting the Lords is [...]

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The Curious Case of AI-Generated Data Hacking: A Cautionary Tale

By |2024-02-05T09:30:28+00:00February 5th, 2024|

In the ever-evolving landscape of cybersecurity, a bizarre new trend has emerged, blurring the lines between reality and fiction. Picture this: a hacking forum on a quiet Sunday, buzzing with the advertisement of a stolen data cache from Europcar. The claim? Over 48 million customers' personal information up for sale. The twist? The data might just be a figment of artificial intelligence's imagination, specifically conjured up by ChatGPT. Europcar's response was swift, with spokesperson Vincent Vevaud debunking the claim after a meticulous examination. The inconsistencies were glaring: The purported number of records didn't match Europcar's database. Sample data was likely AI-generated, featuring non-existent addresses, mismatched ZIP codes, and bizarre email domains. None of the email addresses were found in Europcar's [...]

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Why Data Hygiene for Councils is Key: Lessons from a Family’s Grieving Experience

By |2024-01-18T12:13:41+00:00January 18th, 2024|

In the wake of a family's distressing experience with Wirral Council, the importance of data hygiene in local council operations has come into sharp focus. Richard Sefton-Durrant's story about his late mother, Jane Durrant, underscores the emotional and administrative challenges posed by outdated or inaccurate data handling by councils. Jane Durrant, who passed away at 63 after a battle with bone cancer, continued to receive council tax bills at her previous address, despite having moved into supported living. This situation persisted even after her death, with her family receiving multiple letters and emails regarding her council tax obligations. This not only caused emotional distress to the family but also highlighted significant flaws in the council's data management systems. The issue [...]

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2024: The Year of Do or Die

By |2024-01-08T11:54:55+00:00January 8th, 2024|

As we rang in the New Year the collapse of Communisis marked a less than auspicious start for the industry. Tom Preston-Werner’s famous quote: "You’re either the one that creates the automation or you’re getting automated” has never been more pertinent. In an era where digital transformation is reshaping industries, the direct mail sector, traditionally reticent to change, is now standing at the crossroads of innovation and tradition. The crux of this transformation is automation, a concept that is essential for the future of the industry. Automation in direct mail streamlines processes including sorting, addressing, and packaging. This mechanisation significantly reduces the time and labour involved, translating to lower operational costs and higher efficiency. By minimising manual interventions, automation also [...]

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Do I have your undivided attention? Maybe not… but your mail does.

By |2023-12-06T16:48:11+00:00December 6th, 2023|

Nearly two-thirds of people say that direct mail attracts their undivided attention, according to a new report from WARC and Marketreach. Exploring the impact of mail in an attention-scarce world, the study reveals how much attention people are giving their mail across different mail types, the value of this attention, and the role of mail in comparison to other media and within the media mix. The study is based on research by Marketreach and Blue Yonder involving 1,475 pieces of mail. The findings reveal that: 63% of people give their mail their undivided attention The average time spent with direct mail is 108 seconds The average piece of direct mail persuaded 16% of recipients to consider the brand, with 9% [...]

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2024: A year for data protection regulation reform?

By |2023-11-27T12:14:35+00:00November 27th, 2023|

Following its airing at the recent King’s Speech the much-discussed Data Protection and Digital Innovation Bill (DPDI) will have its ‘remaining stages’ in the House of Commons on 29 November. There are 21 possible amendments to the Bill all most of which have been referred to as ‘common-sense’ and it is expected to fly through parliament, meaning it is likely to become law early next year. The DMA supports the ratification of the Bill having been heavily involved in shaping many of its elements. Key differences to GDPR include: How personal data is defined Under DPDI information will only be considered as identifiable by a person other than the controller or processor if that other person obtains the information as [...]

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Cost of Dirty Data: The £900 Billion Annual Burden on UK Business

By |2023-11-14T10:23:03+00:00November 14th, 2023|

Dirty data is costing the UK economy £900 billion. The impact of unclean data is estimated to stand at 20% of an organisation’s revenue. In 2023 revenue of UK business is thought to total £4.5 trillion meaning that failing to keep customer data up-to-date cost £900bn. In terms of the impact of this on individual businesses, a single ‘inaccurate’ customer record is currently costs an organisation £81.11. Experian research reveals that 22% of customer records within the average database are inaccurate. This means that an organisation with a database comprising 500,000 customer records could be looking at a £811,000 cost to the business. The retail sector was found to have the highest associated cost of unclean data at £300bn, whilst [...]

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In the mood for giving: How well-being sparks generosity through direct mail

By |2023-10-31T17:06:16+00:00October 31st, 2023|

A new academic study from the University of Massachusetts and Georgia Institute of Technology has found a connection between donor well-being and their generosity, suggesting that designing direct mail campaigns that makes people feel happy will be an effective way to encourage donations. The concept explores the concept of “preheating,” by replicating the warm glow often associated with post-donation moods. While psychologists are familiar with this idea, the study is the first to identify the impact of this on charitable giving. Using natural language processing tools the sentiment of communications donors sent before and after they made a donation were analysed. The researchers detected a reliable and statistically significant mood boost in communications sent up to about an hour before [...]

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Direct mail effectiveness soars!

By |2023-10-03T09:17:46+00:00October 3rd, 2023|

In the ever-evolving landscape of marketing channels, email and social media often hog the spotlight. However, the continued resurgence of mail is also hitting the headlines.  In Q2 2023, the effectiveness of the mail channel reached its highest point in a year and a half, with an impressive 31 percent of mail driving positive commercial outcomes for brands. Mail's Remarkable Resurgence One of the most striking findings of Q2 2023 is that mail's effectiveness as a commercial marketing channel saw a year-on-year growth of nine percent. This growth propelled the proportion of mail items prompting actions among consumers to its highest level. This surge in effectiveness reaffirms that mail is far from obsolete in the digital age. A Comprehensive Customer [...]

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Unleashing the Magic of Mail

By |2023-09-25T12:24:44+00:00September 25th, 2023|

We are all now coming round to the fact that there's something timeless and magical about direct mail. You just have to scan the recent news headlines to see that mail’s resurgence is not a flash in the pan. According to JICMAIL its effectiveness recently reached its highest point in a year and a half, with an impressive 31 per cent of mail driving positive commercial outcomes for brands. It is also now the most trusted form of marketing by consumers and commands attention for c.2 minutes across a lifespan of 28 days in the home. Its therefore unsurprising that Marketreach has breathed new life into their "Magic of Mail" campaign, aiming to showcase the incredible attributes of physical mail [...]

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