Call it “ad nausea.”

It’s the consumer sickness stemming from the overwhelming glut of ads splashed across TV, the Internet, radio, magazines, newspapers, billboards and more.

According to a 2007 InfoTrends report, the average person receives as many as 3,000 advertising messages a day.

But now it appears more and more consumers are tuning out.

A recent CMO Council study reveals that 91 percent of consumers have opted out of e-mails, while 63 percent say they would consider defecting from a brand that sends them generic, irrelevant content. A startling 22 percent claim they already had defected.

“We’re living in a world where marketers have access to an incredible abundance of data, yet they don’t optimize it to help boost their bottom line,” says Sandra Zoratti, VP of Global Solutions Marketing for InfoPrint Solutions. “The lack of attention means that all communications are now noise and consumers are blocking it out.”

But wait, there’s good news

OK, so that’s the bad news. The good news is that improvements in technology, cost and data analytics now enable your company to target and shoot with the kind of precision that blasts through the competitive din.

A growing number of companies have already adopted optimization strategies that transform the impersonal traditional direct mail experience into something intimate, customized and highly personal.

So instead of doing mass mailings, maybe it’s time you demanded that all your marketing initiatives live up to their analytics-enabled potential, and that especially holds true for your direct mail.

How optimized are you?

With the magic of data analytics, you can now send your customers a one-page monthly billing statement featuring full-color ads promoting your other products and services.

Or, how about selling your transactional statement ad space to third-party businesses whose services your customers have already expressed an interest in?

Imagine a personalized catalog including content expressly selected to fit the recipient’s preferences.

These sample scenarios represent the promise of “precision marketing” — the buzz phrase for a consumer marketing strategy that leverages data analytics together with the strategic use of color and compelling design.

Indeed, more and more experts believe that the very future of marketing lies in precision marketing.

For direct marketers, one of the most relevant, popular and effective precision marketing techniques is “transpromo,” which transforms must-read transactional statements like bills and invoices into hard-working, high-performing cross-promotional tools. Valuable document white space can be used to consolidate information, thus saving operating costs.

Influenced by social media

Precision marketing techniques were popularized by analytics-driven retail and social media companies. They created computer algorithms that digitally review your e-mail content, shopping history and social network profile. Now, marketers are applying those same algorithmic principles to direct mail through must-read documents.

While experts say that precision marketing works across all channels, many believe it is particularly advantageous for direct marketers. By optimizing Postal materials like high-touch/high-read transactional statements and publications, direct marketers can leverage the trust consumers already have in mail.

Show customers you’re paying attention

“What I am seeing is an increase in direct marketing via direct mail, and a decrease in generic online marketing messages,” Zoratti says. “To me, that’s an indicator that the least expensive communications mediums such as banner ads and e-mails are losing the eyeballs and becoming irrelevant to increasing loyalty or retention.

“Marketers are missing an opportunity across all types of mail — whether that be transactional, traditional direct mail, catalogs or magazines — to show customers that they’re paying attention. One-to-one communications has been proven to increase cross-sell and upsell opportunities, brand awareness, loyalty and revenues. The same cannot be said for online marketing any longer. ”