Direct Mail

At a time when the U.S. Postal Service is fighting to survive, along comes news of the latest disruptive model: BareDeal.com, which calls itself "Groupon meets Netflix."

Using a multi-store e-commerce strategy can significantly increase customer acquisition, loyalty and conversion rates. Leading online retailers are currently benefiting from an effective multi-store ecommerce strategy, now is the time to learn how.

Sure, many multichannel retailers today are testing postcard mailings in an effort to drive web traffic in place of mailing catalogs. But, while mailing postcards is less expensive than catalogs, do they really work? And are they cost effective?

Choose designers who specifically know the mail order market. Catalogs/mailers accustomed to generating sales via mail/internet ordering are a very different animal from a branding vehicle. They may look similar, but companies that create mail order catalogs and direct mail know exactly how to leverage creative that not only builds their brands, but also sells product. What looks simple is actually highly specialized and technical.

There's growing pressure on list performance. It's more about contribution to profit and overhead, as it should be, but this has caused mailers to reduce circulation and prospect less. As a result, 12-month buyer counts are down, and there are fewer housefile names to leverage — a real dilemma. Here's how to improve list performance for email and print.

The housing market and employment levels are among the biggest factors economists monitor to get a fix on the state of the economy. Overall retail sales is the other major bellwether, particularly as we head into the fall and holiday seasons. At this point, it's tough to get overly optimistic about an economic recovery for 2009. But amidst the negatives, there are some positive signs on the horizon worth tracking and reacting to.

With company-record net income of $58.4 million and sales gains of 15.2 percent (including comparable store sales rising 8.9 percent) for its fiscal year that ended Jan. 31, JoS. A. Bank was a rare 2008 success story.

The 71-year-old story of Kent, Wash.-based Recreational Equipment Inc. (REI), which sells camping and hiking equipment through catalogs, stores and the Web to customers who have the option to join its co-op, has taken a deliberate turn into the modern age.

Lifetime value (LTV) is the value of all purchases a given customer has made to date, plus the value of purchases that customer is likely to make (discounted for present value) over time. LTV helps determine how much you can afford to invest in new buyers looking beyond their initial purchases.Lifetime value (LTV) is the value of all purchases a given customer has made to date, plus the value of purchases that customer is likely to make (discounted for present value) over time. LTV helps determine how much you can afford to invest in new buyers looking beyond their initial purchases.

Catalog Success recently took two of its longest-standing columnists to task. Strategy scribe Stephen R. Lett and Catalog Doctor Susan J. McIntyre have spent the better part of their careers producing or helping clients produce print catalogs. But do catalogs have a future in this integrated selling environment?