E-mail has revolutionized the way we communicate. A recent report by Forrester Research claimed that the amount of marketing e-mail will equal the volume of marketing direct mail by 2003, and that by the following year, marketers will send more than 200 billion e-mails into cyberspace.

Broadcast e-mail is in many respects a direct marketer's dream. It's quick, it's cheap, and it can be targeted just like traditional print campaigns. But it's not the answer for everyone. Notwithstanding an ever-expanding list universe, it's unlikely that e-mail will provide the sole means of reaching your target audience. Next time you're trying to decide between online and offline, consider the following:

5 reasons to use e-mail

1. It's quicker. An e-mail campaign can be created and produced in half the time that a direct mail campaign requires, often less, so you can react to market opportunities more quickly.
2. It's cheaper. No printing and no postage mean that e-mail campaigns often cost 50 percent less than their print counterparts.
3. You get results faster. Most e-mail campaigns generate 80% of their results within 48 hours. This enables marketers to gauge results immediately and respond accordingly.
4. It's easier and less expensive to test. A direct mail test typically means multiple print versions, which drives up costs. Testing with e-mail can be just as complicated, but overall, e-mail is a much more flexible medium.
5. The viral effect. E-mails get copied and forwarded more readily than does a direct mail campaign.

1. A larger universe. The number of quality, well-managed, opt-in e-mail lists is dwarfed by the number of direct mail lists. Though the ratio will change over time, today the fact is you can simply reach far more people using direct mail.
2. Better lists. The direct mail industry has been around for decades, so there's a certain consistency in the way that lists are compiled and maintained. The quality of e-mail lists varies widely. Direct mail lists also generally offer more select criteria, allowing you to target your audience more precisely.
3. Your audience may not be online, or not online that frequently. Generally, the more technical your target audience, the easier it is to reach them using e-mail. Consumer e-mail behavior in particular is erratic, meaning that your message may get read today, or not until next week.
4. Direct mail enables you to deliver a high volume of information in a more reader-friendly format. Just look at the recent proliferation of mail-order catalogs from online vendors.
5. Direct mail is less intrusive. Sure, people get annoyed by junk mail, but it doesn't interrupt the reader, nor does it force an immediate decision on whether to read it.