OPTUS TELECOMMUNICATIONS
Dear Sir/Madam,
I enclose two items with this letter. The first is an image of my letterbox. The second is the bulk of the contents of my letterbox, collected by me on the evening of Monday 6th August 2007 - not one, but ELEVEN Optus catalogues, which were unceremoniously stuffed in the available space.
I don't think the word 'incensed' quite covers the way I feel.
I make every effort to cut down on my ecological footprint by reducing the amount of resources that I consume. This extends to the small but (usually) effective step of putting a "No Advertising Material" sticker on my letterbox for the purposes of letting you guys, the advertisers, know that there is less demand for paper catalogues. Finding eleven catalogues for products that I do not want shows a complete lack of respect for my lifestyle choice.
Furthermore, this is not the first time this has happened with your catalogue. It occurred about a month ago with the appearance of three catalogues. At the time, my "No Junk Mail" sticker had faded so I printed the less ambiguous "No Advertising Material" sticker, which, as you can see from the image provided, is clear and visible. I did not contact Optus at that time, though considering the current situation I feel that keeping quiet was a mistake on my part.
I remind you that Section 144A of the Protection of the Environment Operations Amendment (Littering) Act 2000 defines ‘advertising material’ as: ‘any paper product (including a leaflet, brochure or magazine), or other material thing, that contains advertising or promotional matter.’
While placing advertising material in a letterbox that clearly expresses "No Advertising Material" is not against the law, it is against the industry Code of Practice as enforced by the Distribution Standards Board. I would expect that Optus contract their direct marketing services to a company that follows this Code of Practice, and I would further expect that the distribution company hire literate people who understand the meaning of "No Advertising Material". If this is not the case, I suggest you change contractors.
Please notify your distribution company of this gross misconduct and unequivocal breach of the Distribution Standards Board's Code of Practice. You should also REDUCE your print run by ten percent if the distributor feels they need to get rid of excess catalogues in this most disrespectful manner. I hope and expect never to pursue this matter with you again.
Yours faithfully,
Dr Witmol
[More or less the letter I wrote to Optus regarding the eleven wretched catalogues in my letterbox, identifying details removed].
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