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A company wants to do a little one-to-one marketing. It determines the right audience, designs a direct-mail piece and buys a very targeted list, filtering down to exactly the right subset of people.

With today’s technology, the company can go one step further. It can customize just about every aspect of the presentation. Good idea or bad?

My full name is Andrew. But unless you’re my mom and I’m really in trouble, no one calls me that. So when I get a direct-mail piece addressed to Andrew, I know it’s not from any friend of mine.

I’m also apparently on a very popular list as Drew G. McLellan. My middle name is Michael, so again, without opening the envelope I know I’ve been purchased.

For clarity, let me say that if the direct-mail piece is done well, and the topic is of interest to me, even if it’s addressed to Andrew or Drew G. I still look at it. It’s not a question of “Will your intended audience still read the piece?” that I wonder about. It’s “How does getting their name wrong affect their reaction to your offer?”

The customization is very cool, and when you get it right it’s effective. But is getting it right worth sometimes getting it wrong?

What do you think? Do consumers excuse the misuse of their name? Or does it make them feel less kindly toward the sender? Do you think they even notice?

Studies show that people thrive on seeing their name. But does that mean it really ticks them off to see it when a mailer gets it wrong?

Salutation or irritation? What do you think?

Drew McLellan is Top Dog at McLellan Marketing Group and blogs at www.drewsmarketingminute.com. He can be reached at Drew@MclellanMarketing.com. © 2009 Drew McLellan