Introducing JICMAIL â now live

Introducing JICMAIL – the new Joint Industry Committee for Mail. A new era for how we analyse audience measurement for mail, created with our founding partners IPA, ISBA, whistl and Royal Mail.

Advertising mail is the third largest media channel in the UK, worth an estimated £1.7bn annually.

Yet, the channel has never had a recognised audience measurement system.

Until now. Introducing JICMAIL – the new Joint Industry Committee for Mail.

A new era for how we analyse audience measurement for mail, created with our founding partners IPA, ISBA, whistl and Royal Mail.

Why a JIC for mail?

Putting mail alongside other major media. Advertising mail is the third biggest channel in the UK, but is alone in not having a recognised audience measurement system.

JICMAIL is gathering new data for mail, producing metrics relating to its reach and frequency that sit alongside those for all other major channels. This means for the first time, mail can be planned in the context of, and in head-to-head comparison with, other media.

The board is made up of members of those partner organisations, supported by a specialist Technical Committee helping to determine how research is constructed and data collected.

That data is gathered by Kantar TNS on behalf of JICMAIL, then provided to the industry to help in their planning of mail as a channel.

The benefits

JICMAIL will aim to provide robust audience data for mail, measuring the readership, reach and frequency of exposure to each item that comes through the letterbox.

From annual reports to key metrics, the benefits of the committee reach industry-wide, capturing what consumers do with their business mail and also what commercial activity they take with their mail and door drops.

Reports reach and frequency on advertising mail is both addressed and unaddressed, and can also be distinguished by business sector.

Words from the industry

‘What this does for the first time is normalise mail’ says founder and CEO at MC&C, Mike Colling ‘it brings it in line with every other major media channel in the UK.’

‘I think mail is perhaps one of the most important canvasses that we creative people can paint upon’ from chief strategy officer at Karmarama, Mark Runacus.

‘People are starting to challenge the veracity of the data they get from digital’ says head of strategy at Publicis, Kevin Allen ‘this is starting to give a voice to mail.’

Data strategy consultant at Customer Kind, Janet Snedden spoke ‘This could be quite transformational for econometric modelling, not least in that it will help mail get into the econometric models in the first place by having this advanced understanding.’

Head of customer engagement at Proximity London, Adrian Hoole believed ‘Mail isn’t a one off thing in a box, it’s about building connections over time.’

‘There is a reluctance to spend money on those softer engagement pieces’ from Oliver planning director, Sarah Barrett ‘if we can prove, as the research is showing us, that these pieces will live, that will make those decisions much easier’

‘We’ve never judged it on exposure, we’ve always been obsessed with the 1% that respond rather than the 99% that don’t respond’ says CEO, WDMP Gavin Wheeler.

A pivotal moment for the industry, JICMAIL marks another milestone for insight and how we engage with the consumer.

To access the new JICMAIL data please visit JICMAIL.org.uk or contact admin@JICMAIL.org.uk