Despite today`s "paperless" corporate environment, faxes still continue to rank highly as a preferred method for customer communication, says Majestic Interactive CEO Scott Cundill.
Although e-mail is perceived as a more efficient and seamless communication system, many people do not see it as being 100% reliable, Cundill claims.
"Spam, firewalls and bulk e-mails often dissuade people from relying on electronic communication. In addition, people often want papers to file and want to see fax signatures," he states.
Many senior managers have still not bought into the concept of e-mail, says Cundill, adding that these managers and CEOs are far more likely to peruse all faxes that arrive on their desks, but less likely to read all their e-mails.
"Faxing is critical for any true customer relationship process and it is very powerful as a lead generation tool. Faxes must be automated in order to successfully integrate into your marketing mix and the results must be measured. The more quickly and easily you can send them, the higher your return on investment," he says.
SA is still a traditional market and small and medium enterprises, as well as big corporations, still rely heavily on faxes, says Cundill.
Short-term, he says, e-mail is not expected to replace the fax, but the change will come within about three to five years.
The changeover from fax to e-mail will probably be gradual, Cundill anticipates, and will be driven by e-mail`s increasingly legally binding status, as well as improved security around electronic communication. In addition, the personalisation of e-mail will improve its power as a CRM tool, while measurability is expected to make it ideal as a direct marketing method.
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