A major research project carried out on behalf of the Direct Mail Information Service also shows that fears over potential damage to the Direct Mail medium appear unfounded. Direct Mail is cited as the most commonly adopted medium to drive traffic to websites and over 60% of companies mail consumers whose data was captured on line.

These are just some of the key findings of the qualitative and quantitative research exercise, which was carried out among 100 UK companies from a wide range of sectors. On average, the companies had an advertising spend of £5.3m with Direct Mail accounting for 10% of the total budget.

The research was designed to establish the role of new media within the overall marketing mix and ascertain overall commitment in terms of budget, current and potential future functions and likely impact on direct mail usage. The companies chosen were mainstream advertisers who currently use Direct Mail and have interactive websites.

The research found that websites were essentially seen as providers of information or services, a means of placing orders and a way to enhance the company profile. Customer care, data capture and CRM were generally seen as secondary, rather than principal, functions. However the vast majority of those quizzed (90%) were actively collecting basic contact details on their customers and 87% were collecting basic contact details on prospects.

The principle reasons cited for collecting data were to improve targeting, to profile the database or to build or enhance the database. Some 62% of companies said they were mailing, either "frequently" or "occasionally", people whose data had been captured on line.

In terms of media used to generate traffic to the website, Direct Mail was cited by 59% of respondents, well ahead of regional press and sales promotion (28%) and national press (23%).

For most companies, websites were seen as simply an addition to the media mix and, in the majority of cases, did not replace functions other media had previously carried out.

In terms of the positioning of websites within the marketing mix, the research shows a degree of integration. On a ten-point scale, with ten indicating "completely integrated" and one "stand alone", the average score for the level of integration within the overall marketing mix was 5.7.

While 92% of companies referred to their website in other media, only 43% referred to it specifically as a means of initiating a call to action.

The research also showed that when clients undertook marketing campaigns websites were commonly used in conjunction with Direct Mail - much more so than with any other medium.

Asked specifically which media were likely to be used more or less over the next two years as a result of web based activities, 21% cited Direct Mail. Some 17%, however, said they may use less Direct Mail, although this dropped to 2% when companies were asked about usage "in the immediate future" - i.e. the next 12 months.

So while some companies believe Direct Mail usage may decrease in the medium term, the overall picture suggests the medium will generally benefit, rather than suffer, from the growth in web-based activity.

Commenting on the findings, DMIS Managing Director, Jo Howard-Brown, says: "With the buzz surrounding new media beginning to wear off, reality has set in. Few companies believe that websites will revolutionise the way they conduct their marketing. While they see web based activity as strategically important to their business it is in a complementary role, alongside existing, traditional routes to market. As the research very clearly demonstrates, no medium faces extinction, least of all Direct Mail."