Anthrax scare derails Economist campaign

<p>HONG KONG: The Economist has pulled a direct mail campaign in Asia </p><p>after the promotional material became enveloped in the anthrax scare </p><p>gripping the world. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>A statement by the magazine said the DM piece was withdrawn after it </p><p>caused "alarm to some recipients, fearing it was connected to terrorist </p><p>activity". </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>It stressed that the "assumption is wildly untrue", but added: "Given </p><p>the current world situation, we will discontinue this marketing campaign </p><p>to avoid further alarm among our potential subscribers." </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>At the centre of the controversy was the specific design of the outer </p><p>packaging, which featured the names of some of the world's most </p><p>prominent political and business leaders - Richard Branson, Lee Kwan </p><p>Yew, George W. Bush, Nelson Mandela and Bill Gates - crossed out in red </p><p>ink. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>The Economist Asia-Pacific advertising director, Rupert Harrow, </p><p>described the incident as unfortunate. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>"Some people saw these recognisable names on the packaging and, </p><p>unfortunately in the current climate, many put two and two together and </p><p>got six," he said. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Peter Bakker, regional marketing director of The Economist, said the </p><p>campaign was rolled out on September 20, just over a week after the </p><p>terrorist attacks on New York and Washington, but weeks before the </p><p>anthrax scare erupted. "We had no way of recognising the potential </p><p>negative response to these mail ads," he said. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>The scare has been exacerbated by events linked to The Economist in </p><p>Europe, when issues of the magazine were withdrawn from the market after </p><p>white powder was discovered in the mailing envelopes. "This was traced </p><p>to the print production firm in Holland which had used the powder as a </p><p>drying agent, designed to combat print dampness and, following </p><p>laboratory testing, revealed as non-toxic," said Bakker. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>The Economist has started developing a new marketing package, likely to </p><p>be published and distributed by early 2002. The design is expected to </p><p>follow a number of new guidelines that have been established, primarily </p><p>by the US Direct Marketing Association, to promote the security and </p><p>integrity of the business. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>These include avoiding plain envelopes, using a clear and identifiable </p><p>return address, including a phone number and/or website URL on envelopes </p><p>and using an email/telecommunication campaign in conjunction with a </p><p>letter drop. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>It is understood the anthrax scare has led other direct marketers to </p><p>reconsider distribution channels, focusing more on email campaigns </p><p>instead of the regular mail service. The shift, said McCann Relationship </p><p>Marketing managing director Henrik Monefeldt, has also been driven by </p><p>advertisers looking to reduce costs. </p><p><BR><BR> </p>