In the Mail - May

It’s the last day of May, so we’ve taken this opportunity to take a look back at the catalogues we’ve received during the month to pick out three that stood out.

Capability’s Essentials

Website: www.capabilitys.co.uk 

Format: 265mm x 200mm, 60pp, order form on inside back cover
Special offer on the cover: no
Range: “unusual, practical and fun” gifts and gadgets
Delivery: £4.99 standard, additional charge
Why I picked it: this is a revamped Essentials by Post catalogue from the folks at Presents for Men. Named after the famed English landscape artist Capability Brown, the catalogue looks to target to likeminded garden lovers with practical items like knee pads, thorn protection gloves and “barrow boosters”, though it has plenty for those who aren't as green-thumbed. With a more unisex appeal than its sister titles Presents for Men and Gifts for the Girls, the website suggests this will become an umbrella catalogue, incorporating items from across the full range. We can certainly see it working as a prospecting catalogue for new or lapsed customers to (re)introduce them to the brand before targeting them more closely with its specialist titles.
What’s missing: The cover could do with a special offer and maybe some product shots to entice people to take a look inside.

HotSquash
Website: www.hotsquash.com
Format: 147mm x 209mm, 20pp, order form on inside back cover
Special offer on the cover: 15% off
Range: “fashion with hidden technology”
Delivery: catalogue has not published delivery charges
Why I picked it: although I’d heard of the brand, this is the first print catalogue I’ve received from HotSquash. Not just the preserve of base-layer wearing joggers, HotSquash’s thermal/cooling fabrics are for wearing all day long. The product photography is excellent and the range broad enough to warrant several flicks though. The catalogue definitely succeeds in making me want to find out more about the technology in the clothes—and see more of the range online. Another plus—the clothes are designed and made in Britain.
What’s missing: The product copy is sparse and there is no size guide or delivery costs.

I Love Gorgeous
Website: www.ilovegorgeous.com
Format: 235mm x 165mm, 40pp, how to order information on inside back cover
Special offer on the cover: free p&p and returns with a customer’s first order
Range: “beautiful clothes for gorgeous girls”
Delivery: £4.50 standard, £6.95 for UK express, £15 for same-day delivery for customers living within the M25
Why I picked it: the I Love Gorgeous catalogue lives up to its name with adorable outfits for girls. The catalogue follows many industry best practices by including a size guide, delivery costs, information on returns and gift wrapping, as well as an incentive to sign up to its newsletter and receive a special discount. Top marks.
What’s missing: Because of the paper stock, it can be difficult to see the detailing on some of the items. --MT

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Email we love: Feelunique

How’s this for a really clever—and sensible—use of technology? I placed an order with beauty products etailer Feelunique and instantly received an order confirmation email. So far, so standard.

A couple of days later my order was delivered and signed for by my boyfriend while I was not at home. I received an email just two hours later: “your recent order was successfully delivered to you at 11:48 today & was signed for by…” followed by a screenshot of my boyfriend’s autograph. Nifty, eh?—MT

Catalogue we love: George

Heading straight to the top of the class is George with its second-ever catalogue.

Received towards the end of April, the catalogue adheres to several best-practice guidelines.

The bright and inviting front cover highlights clear benefits of shopping with George, such as free delivery to store and an “exclusive” discount.

The back cover repeats the discount and features a call to action to check out the website for “even more”.

Inside, page 3 does a great job of advising customers how they can shop and further promotes the discount, while the rest of the catalogue uses QR codes, celebrity style ideas and cross-selling tactics to engage with customers.

My only criticism is that at only 16 pages, it left me wanting more. —MT

April Catalogue Log

After four months of heavy discounting, April’s haul of catalogues was a lot less promotional. We logged 119 catalogues in April 2013—a 28 percent increase on April 2012. However, whereas last April saw 63 percent of catalogues feature some sort of special offer on the cover, this year only 54 percent did so.

At individual-offer level, the biggest recorded decline came in the number of catalogues that promoted a sale or discount. In April 2012, 40.9 percent of the catalogues we tracked did so. March 2013 saw a similar level of discounting—41.3 percent of covers. Last month, that dropped to 33.6 percent, the lowest level since November 2012.

Among those using special-price promotions was the spring/summer Bodie and Fou catalogue, which offered customers 15 percent off when they spent £100 or more. Furniture retailer Myakka promised customers 12 percent off their first order, while living-aids catalogue Elderberry encouraged customers to shop and save 10 percent on orders of £45 or more.

Twenty-eight of the catalogues we received in April (23.5 percent) made mention on free shipping on the cover. That’s marginally down on March 2013, but in line with the far more promotional April 2012, proving once again that free delivery is become ever more popular with cataloguers. Of those 28 catalogues, many teamed up free p&p with another offer—a tactic popular among apparel catalogues Gray & Osbourn (20 percent off plus free postage and returns), Figleaves (10 percent off plus free delivery and returns) and Boden (15 percent off plus free delivery and returns), for example.  Those that elected to use free shipping as a solo offer to tempt customers were predominantly b-to-b cataloguers such as Toolstation, Nisbets and Viking. 

Free gifts were less popular in April 2013 than they were at the same time last year. They were also less popular than in March 2013. Just 13 catalogue covers of the 119 we logged last month offered a freebie with purchase—that’s just 10.9 percent. However, putting it into a wider context, 10.9 percent is quite high when you consider that the average for the whole of 2012 was just 7.9 percent.

Looking at the data, free gifts are most popular during March, April, May and August. My theory is that those are prime mailing times for gardening and business-to-business catalogues, which tend to be the most prevalent users of free gift promotions.

On a side note; have you picked up your copy of the Abacus Trends Report yet? The third Annual Trends Report from Abacus is the data cooperative’s most comprehensive to date. This new-look edition features the home shopping revenue trends and mailing volumes of 2012—and makes reference to our very own Catalogue Log data. In addition, it includes interviews with key industry figures including Rosemary Stockdale of Sterling Marketing, More2’s Kevin McSpadden and Direct Commerce editorial director Miri Thomas. Download your copy on the Abacus website.--MT

Venda-ECMOD Awards Highlights Video

If your memory of the venda-ecmod awards 2013 is a little hazy, you might want to check out this video.

Held at Chelsea Football Club on 18th April, the venda-ecmod awards recognise the hard work, flair and commitment of businesses in the catalogue and multichannel retail sector. With categories designed for those targeting sales to businesses as well as for those selling to consumers, these awards also seek to celebrate the achievements of businesses of all scales and at all stages of development.

Recapping the highlights from the night, including backstage interviews with the delighted winners, this video catches up with our sector’s very own champions.--MT

Congratulations winners!