March Catalogue Log

At face value, March 2011 and March 2010 look almost identical in terms of catalogue volume. We received 140 catalogues last month, compared with 141 in March last year. There were familiar names too—we logged catalogues from Flowercard, Joe Browns, Kettlewell, and Tesco Direct in March 10 and March 11. But there were also names missing this year. For instance, we didn’t get a mailing from Bella di Notte, Cox & Cox, or Extremepie this March. Nevertheless, catalogues from Feather & Black, Garden Trading, and Shop Direct’s new isme title, brought March’s catalogue volume in line with last year. Evidently, marketers are being more careful with mailings and removing unprofitable names from their mailing files.

Digging a little deeper into our data, however, shows several differences. Although March 2011 was only marginally more promotional than last year—58.6 percent of catalogues featured some sort of offer on the cover, compared with 57.4 percent last year—we tracked a 29 percent increase in the number of catalogues promoting a sale or discount. Of the 140 catalogues we received in March, 41.4 percent, 58 catalogues, had a price-related offer on the cover. Among those offering knock-down prices were children’s furniture cataloguer Great Little Trading Co, apparel retailers Joules and Toast, and the new JD Williams brand Williams & Brown.

In March last year we noted a record number of catalogues offering free shipping—22 percent. That record has since been broken twice, and was almost matched this March, with one in five catalogues a conditional or unconditional p&p offer. Commonly this year, free shipping was combined with free returns as a further incentive to purchase. This was adopted by womenswear catalogues Penny Plain, Hush, and Brora, among others.

Free gifts was less popular than it was last March, and indeed the least popular it’s been in 2011 so far. The offer appeared on 15 catalogue covers this month, mostly used by business-to-business merchants and gardening catalogues.--MT

Seven companies reach Catalogue e-business Readers’ Award shortlist

Seven highly respected direct commerce businesses have reached the shortlist of the inaugural Catalogue e-business Readers’ Award. Having received some 462 votes, it was too close to call between Asos, Boden, Charles Tyrwhitt, Kiddicare, Lakeland, Net-a-Porter, and The White Company. As a result, it will fall to delegates at the CatEx Round Table Day—held on the same day as the ECMOD Direct Commerce Awards on 6th April—to cast their votes so that the outright winner can be named. The outright winner will then be invited to accept the trophy as part of the ECMOD Direct Commerce Awards evening.

In related news, congratulations to Carol Cade of the Book People who, by making her nomination for the readers' award, won our prize draw of two tickets to the Awards evening. Enjoy the night!

For information on booking a seat at the ECMOD Awards visit www.ecmod360.co.uk.

For information on attending the CatEx Round Table Day visit www.catalogueexchange.co.uk.

Friends in high places

It’s always satisfying to receive a compliment or testimonial from a happy customer out of the blue. So imagine the delight at the offices of Wall London, an upmarket apparel retailer/cataloguer, when its ethical way of doing business was mentioned during a debate at the House of Lords. On 3rd March, Baroness Young of Hornsey raised the debate on the government’s plans to support and promote the ethical and sustainable clothing industry. It was during this discussion that Baroness Rendell of Babergh gave Wall her seal of approval commending its ethical heritage alongside that of Stella McCartney, saying that Wall “set an example that could be a standard for [fashion] companies”

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Cross-Atlantic Insight's most wanted

As we enter the second quarter of 2011, now’s the perfect time to review the first three months of the year. Here are the most popular internationally focused articles on our website since January.

1. European online sales overtake the US--European online retail sales now exceed those in the US, according to a new report.

2. H and M to open US online store--apparel retailer H&M announces plans to open up an ecommerce website for American consumers.

3. International study indicates huge potential for mobile retail--a report on mobile shopping shows that UK consumers are increasingly willing to shop by mobile and closing the gap on their US counterparts .

4. Double-digit ecommerce growth predicted for US and Europe--originally published in March 2010, this article on growth predictions experienced a surge in popularity during the quarter.

5. Compare and Contrast: Best Buy--analysing the differences between Best Buy's US website and its UK cousin.

To subscribe to the free fortnightly Cross-Atlantic enewsletter visit www.catalog-biz.com.

Magicbox gets social

We like to think that all the catalogues and websites we’ve reviewed read the articles and act upon the advice they’re given. When an email from magic-tricks retailer Magicbox landed in my inbox this week, I was instantly reminded of the website review we published in September by BT Fresca’s Sarah Hughes.

In her review, Hughes commended Magicbox for using video on its website and making use of user-generated content, but suggested it go a step further by “inviting happy customers to post videos of themselves performing their newly acquired magic tricks”. The email I received this week confirmed that Magicbox was indeed taking this route.

In the email titled “Want to win £100 of free magic?”, Magicbox invited recipients to celebrate the launch of its new customer video reviews feature. Taking up more of Hughes’ advice, Magicbox incentivised customers by offering the best video £100 in free products from the Magicbox website.

Adhering to further customer engagement best-practice, Magicbox then introduced additional social elements to the email—customers could enter the competition by posting their videos on YouTube and sending a link to Magicbox as well as by uploading them directly to the Magicbox site. A shortlist will then be posted on Magicbox’s Facebook page and fans will be invited to vote for their favourite.

In her review, Hughes said it was clear that Magicbox is committed to improve its online presence where possible. Certainly that seems the case with Magicbox integrating more content-rich features and social-media elements into its website and its emails. Wonder what more tricks it has up its sleeve.--MT

February Catalogue Log

More than two-thirds of all the catalogues we received and logged during February 2011 featured some sort of special offer on the cover. That makes February the most promotional of the past 12 months. Up until now, the honour belonged to August 2010, when 65.6 percent of the front covers we tracked mentioned a sale, discount, free shipping, or free gift offer.

In February 2011, we noted a rise in each type of promotion tracked. Almost half of the covers featured a sale or discount—49 percent, compared with 44 percent in January. Among those touting a sale were promotional products marketer 4imprint, angling supplies catalogue Fishtec, and shirt maker Charles Tyrwhitt, which used inserts and mailings to promote its latest deals. In fact, we received three Charles Tyrwhitt catalogues in February, one with an offer for Sunday Times readers, one with an offer for Lands’ End customers and a third carrying the rather curious offer code of Elliot.

Free delivery was the second most popular offer, with 22 percent of catalogues promoting free shipping on the cover. That’s up from 16 percent in January, but only marginally ahead of December, and behind September’s crop of catalogues, which saw the highest percentage of catalogues promoting free delivery, 24.3 percent. Some merchants, like Boden, Figleaves, Healthspan, and Hotter Shoes, combined free delivery with a price-related promotion for an even better deal for customers.

Also on the up was the popularity of free gifts. Eighteen percent of the covers we tracked featured a free gift with purchase, including gardening supplies business Wiggly Wigglers, which gave away three bars of Divine chocolate with orders of £30 or more. It’s the highest percentage we’ve seen for several months, up from 16 percent in January and three times more what we logged in December.

Now compare this with February 2010 and you’ll find stark contrasts: Last year we only received 89 catalogues during February, and promotions were down across the gamut of offers we track. What conclusions can be drawn from this? Does increased volume herald a strengthening of the sector? Are mailers confidently investing in upping circulation to lift response? On the other hand, does a more promotional approach indicate that direct sellers are focusing on sales in expense of margin? All thoughts welcome.--MT

Most popular articles January - February

The March issue of Catalogue e-business lands on desks next week, and if you’re a subscriber you can look forward to our special feature on international expansion with advice on selecting the right market, handling international distribution, media options overseas, and pitfalls to avoid.

But before you tear open the latest issue, let’s take a look back at the most popular articles on our website in the first two months of the year.

1. European online sales overtake the US
2. 2010 in review
3. December Catalogue Log
4. Seven email marketing trends for 11
5. Catalogue review: H&M

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