Conducted among 2,000 UK consumers focusing on the retail, travel and financial sectors, the research found that new marketing techniques such as text messaging are damaging consumer trust in brands.
Among the key findings were that unsolicited text messages were more than twice as likely to irritate their recipients than outbound telemarketing if received outside of working hours.
Outbound telemarketing was the biggest bugbear of consumers, with 21% dissatisfied with this area, more so than after-sales service at 11%.
Cable & Wireless claims that text messaging, email and other new marketing techniques are growing at 17% a year and consititute a 拢525m industry. It says that by 2005, new-media marketing techniques will have cannibalised 13% of the direct mail market.
Mark Quartermaine, director of marketing and services at Cable & Wireless, said that the research has clear warnings for marketers.
"This research sets out a clear warning for organisations to consider how and when to promote their products or services. We commissioned this study to help our business customers better understand what makes consumers tick, and through that to choose the media channel most appropriate to their message," he said.
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