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So, now the planned pre-Christmas postal strikes have been deferred.

Everyone breathes a sigh of relief because the festive retail period may just run as planned, stockings will be stuffed, mailshots will be mailed and we can all keep calm and carry on until the New Year.

But have we actually learned the lessons of the chaos we were all thrown into? Were our biggest brands and most prolific mailers set up to cope with the strikes? I'm not so sure.

I think the strikes highlighted a fundamental truth - brands are not as digitally prepared as we expect them to be.  

Neither do I think we are meeting consumers' expectations in this multi-channel society.  Adam Crozier himself pointed out the obvious early communications casualties of Royal Mail's monopoly over that last mile of the consumer postal journey.

But, if anything, the postal strikes didn't just highlight the fragility of Royal Mail's business – they highlighted questions every brand owner should be asking of their customer communications strategies. And I think the answers reveal a series of successes and failures - in worrying equal measures.

I got into a flap when I had to finalise my car insurance in the midst of the postal meltdown.  The Co-op wanted me to post them the original copy of my old insurer's No Claims Discount. Luckily it arrived at Coop HQ in time.

But that hasn't been the case for everyone else. We currently do not have any other legally approved means of delivering this and other similar important notifications.  

Similarly, the banks still seem reluctant to accept online communications of any kind so great is the inherent security risk. The last time I tried to send an e-mail to my bank I was told it wasn't recognised as a secure means of communication.

Surely security innovations should be developing in line with the way customers are choosing to communicate? It seems strange that a brand I go online to interact with everyday still insists that important messages are conveyed offline.

But, despite those examples, in other areas the public sector may be leading the way in digitalising its customer-facing channels.  I can and do e-mail my doctor with great success. The same surgery will text me to remind me of an upcoming appointment.  
 
Equally, some brands saw the postal strikes as an opportunity to engage with customers. Photo printing supplier Photobox.com sent me a great email, roughly along the lines of, "Hi, we haven't heard from you in a while- but just in case you were thinking of developing any photos with us during the postal strike, don't worry - we've put the following measures in place. Oh, and we've also got the following offers on...."

Reassuring? Yes. Opportunistic? Of course. But it gave Photobox a helpful way of engaging with a potentially lapsed customer.

It's clear there are huge differences in brands' abilities to deliver against consumers' communications expectations. Whilst one brand can quickly and effectively communicate and transact with a customer online, another cannot. BT has a phalanx of people monitoring Twitter to help them avoid being Stephen Fry'd. Moan about BT's service on social media and you'll get an efficient response.  

Of course, some communications will remain offline.  Come what may, I will be posting Christmas Cards this year. Before you jump on the greenwash bandwagon, I am confident I have made significant carbon savings elsewhere.

I just think this is one time when I like to reach out as personally as possible to friends and family. A Facebook emoticon or an animated GIF in an e-mail just won't cut it for my 92 year-old Aunty Betty in Nottinghamshire.

And I'm not castigating all brands' online strategies. I'm just suggesting that those who think the worst is over, and they can go back to communicating in the same old way, could miss an opportunity to evaluate their brands' behaviour under pressure.

Much has been made of the digital switchover in the broadcast industry - the postal strikes gave direct marketers the chance to experience our own mini digital switchover, and some brands quite clearly fared better than others.

Brands will know which camp they fall into and should use the opportunity to get it right for next time.

Mark Runacus is chief strategy officer at HS&P. He writes a monthly column for marketingdirectmag.co.uk and the DM Bulletin. Mark has served twice on the DMA's agency council committee and currently sits on the IPA's Direct Marketing Futures Group.