The Postal Service, like other posts around the world, continues to face declining letter mail volume as a result of new communications technology. Email, texting and various forms of social media are flourishing, but recent research has shown that physical mail continues to remain relevant.
JWTIntelligence, the research arm of advertising agency JWT, conducted a survey of 800 Americans and 400 Britons aged 18-plus from February 1–4, 2013. They found that a majority of people in both the U.S. and the United Kingdom enjoyed sending physical mail, and on the receiving end, people saw real-world mail as a way to forge tight bonds.
It is particularly important to note the similarity in ratings across generations. Although the younger generation, Millennials, are known for texting and use of social media, they still derive satisfaction from sending and receiving physical cards and letters.
This finding is also consistent with online research sponsored by the U.S. Postal Service Office of Inspector General, which found that overall, 79.5 percent of the survey respondents indicated they would be significantly or moderately impacted if the Postal Service did not exist in five years. Broken down by age, although younger Americans are least likely to say they would be significantly impacted, over 40 percent still said the impact would be significant.
