May Catalogue Log

Pop quiz: Out of 91 catalogues received in May, what percentage would you say promoted a sale or discount on their front covers? If you’ve answered almost half, you’d be right. Forty-five of catalogues we logged during May 2011 featured some sort of price-related promotion on the cover. That almost matches superpromotional February, which saw 51 catalogues out of 104 offering a sale or discount.  The offer was popular in a number of product categories including apparel (Cotton Traders, Wrap), office supplies and promotional products (IJT Direct, 4imprint), and IT products (Dell).

Now compare this with a year ago. While a discount was still the most popular special offer in May last year, the percentage was appreciably lower. In May 2010, just 32.5 percent of covers promised a special-price offer, compared with 49.4 percent last month. The discounts offered this year were also quite deep, with plenty of apparel cataloguers offering more than 20 percent off—including Pure Collection, The Shoe Tailor, Hotter Comfort Concept and Damart.

Much more popular last year was free delivery, which was offered by 24.1 percent of covers. In May 2011, free delivery was only offered by 16 catalogues, or 17.8 percent. Again, a wide cross-section of product categories promoted free delivery on the cover including apparel (Brora), gardening (Garden Bird Supplies, Wiggly Wigglers), and office supplies (Staples Direct).

One offer that was almost twice as popular last year was a free gift with purchase. We noted that 20.5 percent of catalogues logged in May 2010 offered a freebie, compared with just 11 percent in May 11. Incidentally 11 percent was also the figure we recorded in May 2009. Looking back at the data, most of the free gifts in 2010 were offered by business-to-business cataloguers, with the exceptions including homewares catalogue Really Linda Barker and gifts marketer The Owl Barn—two catalogues we did not receive this May.

The percentage of catalogue covers not offering any sort of special deal fell from 47 percent in April to 37.8 percent in May, or 34 out of 91. One of those catalogues choosing not to tempt us with promotions was gifts marketer NotOnTheHighStreet.com, which instead sent two versions of its Perfect Gift Guide 2011.

Both were 36-page catalogues, but one was mailed naked on thick-grade matt paper, while the other was a smaller format on thinner, silkier paper stock. Playing spot the difference with the mailings showed subtle differences in the layout and design of the spreads, but the products were mostly the same. If this was a test mailing to see which yielded a better response, it’s odd that I received both editions. I ran quick poll in the Catablogue e-business office to gauge preference. Sixty percent opted for the smaller, glossier catalogue for tactile reasons. The larger format won kudos for seeming to be more environmentally friendly, though the paper carried no eco-friendly credentials that I could see. In case you’re interested, I chose the larger format because of standout appeal—it looked different to the other 90 catalogues I looked at last month. Whether that’s a good or bad thing is up to NotontheHighStreet to analyse.--MT

Compare and contrast: Radley

British accessories brand Radley claims on its website that its “love for hand-crafted, distinctive designs is reflected in all of our products, as is our slightly eccentric Britishness!” We’ve often written about the appeal of British brands to American consumers. Julian Granville of apparel retailer Boden once said that in the US, Boden makes a point of “turning up the Britishness on the dial” to help distinguish the brand from local apparel catalogues. So how does Radley translate its appeal on its website? Let’s take a closer look…

Radley’s UK website is at www.radley.co.uk, while its USA website is www.radleylondon.com. This tactic is also applied by apparel cataloguer Wrap, which in the UK is found at www.wraponline.co.uk, while US customers shop through www.wraplondon.com/. I assume this is because Radley.com was already taken by a Michigan-based supplier of supply-chain software. Nonetheless, for me RadleyLondon.com works as a domain name as it actually strengthens the brand’s British appeal. American customers shopping for Radley may be more enamoured with a brand that’s more clearly linked with London.

The page name is also different. In the UK, Radley is known as “Radley London :: Luxury Handbags, Purses, Luggage, Gifts and Accessories – Official Store”. The US page data reads: “Radley London Official US Store :: Luxury Handbags, Wallets, Luggage, Gifts and Accessories – Official Store”. The reiteration of the word official may suggest that Radley suffers from copycat sites. In my opinion the second mention of Official Store adds nothing and should be removed. Doing so reduces the meta title to fewer than 100 characters, which is much more in line with best-practice. I also noticed that Radley doesn’t include the word purses on its US page title—is this because of the confusion of the meaning of the word purse, which in the UK means ladies wallet, but in the US means handbag?

On the home front
The Radley UK and US home pages look very similar, but you’ll notice that the UK site (above) has more product categories. Most notably, the US website (below) does not stock Radley’s shoe range. In addition, the US site, in contrast to the UK, does not sell gift cards. You’d think that electronic gift cards would be easy to implement, so it’s strange that this option isn’t available in the States. It would seem an ideal gift for a UK resident to purchase for an Anglophile friend living in the USA—for start because there wouldn’t be any shipping costs involved.

I like, however, that the company has thought about prices. On the UK Radley website the Gift Shop tab promotes gifts starting at less than £25. On the US website, prices start at $50. Once again, all instances of the word purse have been changed to wallet.

Visitors to the UK website will also notice that the home page image rotates between a nautical-themed scene that’s also on the home page of the American site, and a call to shop Radley’s canvas bag range. In contrast, the US site stays static for no apparent reason. The offers on home pages are different too. The UK site promotes a mid-season sale, while the US site has a “buy 2 get 1 free” offer prominently displayed in the top right corner. Radley also chooses to promote different ranges to its international customers. The Grosvenor design gets two mentions on the US home page, suggesting this might be one of its best-selling items overseas. This is further reinforced by the accompanying copy that states “Grosvenor is back…” as though popular US demand had called for its reintroduction.

Curiously, the Discover Radley tab on the home page has been slimmed down for US consumers. I would have thought American customers would need more brand-building copy than their UK counterparts. Gone are the Collection and Your Stories sections, leaving the US customers access to News, As Seen In, About Us, and Our Handbags. Not entirely sure why Radley dropped these two categories. It would make sense to also allow American customers to share their Radley experiences on the website and make Radley a truly global brand. The UK prize is a gift card, so that may restrict US customers, but I am sure Radley could credit the winning customer with $200 towards their next purchase.

Neither site displays a phone number on the home page, but a click through to the Contact Us page displays different information depending on the region the customer is from.  US customers can call local number, as well as contact the UK head office.

Perusing product
From the home page I picked the Purses category on the UK site and the Wallets category on the US website to compare more closely. Each click took me to an identically laid-out product category page. From there I chose the Plain Sailing large wallet. At time of writing, the UK site had the purse on sale, down from £75 to £53. The US site still had it at $120, roughly equal to £75. The copy for each wallet was the same, and each site included links to bookmark, print, and share the product. Strangely, the UK version of the purse has 10 likes on Facebook. The US version has none. Similarly absent on the US site are product reviews. For the Grosvenor Medium Across Body Bag, for example, the UK site has eight reviews (above), where the US equivalent has none (below). In fact, having browsed the site extensively, I struggled to find five product reviews on the US website. Against each product is a clear call to action to submit a review, so either American customers aren’t interested in reviewing Radley’s products, or Radley isn’t interested in publishing their comments.  Where Radley does get top marks is in sizing. In the US, each bag and wallet has its dimensions described in inches.

Overall, the US site is just as cleanly designed at its UK counterpart and features all of the same functionality. A little more uniformity is needed when it comes to user-generated content though. I would also like to see a bigger story made of Radley’s Britishness on the US website. As it’s a fairly new brand—just 13 years old—it doesn’t have the heritage of, say, a retailer like Smythson, so it may need a little more differentiation to make it stand out--MT

Slingsby magalogue works it

By now we’re all familiar with the magalogue format. Part magazine, part catalogue, the magalogue’s aim is to sell through engagement. As Sean King, chief executive of customer publishing agency Seven Squared once told me, “owning your own media—magazines, websites, blogs, Twitter feeds—is an effective way of reaching and engaging with customers, existing and potential,” something a catalogue alone cannot do.

By that token, there is no reason why a magalogue should be the preserve of consumer brands. DIY giant Kingfisher, for example, launched a customer magazine in January called Trade Talk. The publication, created by John Brown, is distributed to customers via Screwfix's trade counters and at TradePoint counters within B&Q’s stores.

Most recently I received a copy of Slingsby’s Work-it magalogue. Landing on my desk in April, Work-it combines the workplace equipment provider’s seasonal items, including spring cleaning items and outdoor equipment, with features and news articles.
Slingsby says it will produce the 64-page publication twice a year and feature supplier and customer interviews, buying guides, tips, ideas, news articles and, of course, product. The first issue contains six interviews, special offers, competitions, product reviews, and health and safety advice. According to Lee Wright, Slingsby’s marketing director, the first issue was circulated to a wide range of customers across a variety of industries. So far, he says, “response has been fantastic and we are delighted with the feedback we have received.”

Creating editorial content is much more than including a competition or publishing a recipe, something Slingsby seems to appreciate. It appears to have worked hard to create a publication that warrants a second and third flick-through. There are tips on site maintenance, a case study on Slingsby customer and engineering firm WFEL and an interview with the chief executive of the British Institute of Facilities Management. My favourite feature was the “To-do board”. Designed to look like a cork noticeboard, the spread on pages 24 to 25 has tips on the most important jobs of the season—pest control, road maintenance, outdoor furniture, and drains maintenance. A handy reminder for readers, it’s also a perfect way to showcase commodity products that customers may not have associated Slingsby with. I also liked the feature on health and safety in the workplace detailing all the regulations with which businesses must comply—a feature that can be kept for future reference.

Work-it is a very comprehensive magalogue, with plenty going for it but there are also improvements to be made. Slingsby uses Feefo to gather customer feedback online, and featured a spread of reviewed products. I would have liked more to be made of this as the idea seemed a little half-baked. For example, for the £97.05 air cooler, the Work-it magalogue included 103 words of descriptive copy, compared with only 11 words of customer review. For the next edition, I’d like to see Slingsby print the entire customer review. After all, it’s commonly accepted that people trust other people’s opinions more than they trust sales copy. I would also like more “good, better, best” features. Slingsby included a “compare it” column on the same spread as the feedback, which in my opinion could be much improved and used more often throughout the publication. I’d like to see real-life examples as to why a particular item costs £200 more than a similar model and some pros and cons so that users can make a truly informed choice.

Evidently, this is an ideal vehicle for Slingsby to demonstrate its expertise in facilities management. And if it can work for that sector, it could work for any business-to-business merchant. There’s plenty of scope for an educational supplies cataloguer, for example, to produce a magalogue with the latest on the curriculum, interviews with recognised professionals in the sector, and ideas on “back to school”. A supplier of hair and beauty products to salons could use the format to create seasonal magalogues, such as hair and beauty at wedding season, or a summer special with advice on tanning or waxing. An IT products supplier has the potential to feature hints, tips and tricks of the trade to get the most out of the hardware it sells, plus expert advice and how-tos for specific IT projects--the opportunities are surely endless. I look forward to seeing all your magalogues very soon.--MT

April Catalogue Log

Catalogue volume took a dive in April. The Catalogue Log tracked 83 catalogues last month, compared with 140 in March and 104 in February. I suspect the three bank holidays in April had something to do with it.

Nevertheless, the good news is that volume was almost double what we tracked in April 2009—when we logged a mere 42 catalogues—and more or less in line with April 2010, which recorded 96 catalogues.

The continuing trend for catalogues to feature more promotional front covers was evident in April. More than a third of catalogue covers promoted some sort of sale or discount. Although this was significantly lower than March and April, the figure is higher than we recorded in previous years—34.9 percent compared with 29.2 percent in April 2010 and 30 percent in April 2009. Among those using discounts to woo customers were apparel retailer Crew Clothing, which gave us 20 percent off everything, and vitamins and supplements mailer Higher Nature, which offered us 15 percent off our next order.

Free delivery was also marginally more popular in April 2011 than it was last year, with almost a fifth, or 16 catalogues, touting free shipping on the cover. Business-to-business marketers Staples Direct, Rajapack and Ironmongery Direct all offered their customers free next-day delivery. On the consumer side, clothing catalogues Hush and Pure Collection were among those to offer free delivery coupled with free returns.

Last month we also noted that 16.9 percent of catalogue covers offered a free gift with purchase. This is an appreciable increase on March, when only 10.7 percent of covers did so. Again, it was mostly offered by gardening and b-to-b catalogues, but we also saw sporting guns and shooting accessories cataloguer William Powell and apparel catalogue La Redoute use the tactic to encourage sales and/or higher average order values.

We noticed a trend for more magalogue-style mailings too. We’re getting quite accustomed to picking up customer magazines from merchants that have store networks, for example M&Co, New Look, Office or B&Q. Less common, as far as the Catalogue Log is concerned, is a b-to-b customer magazine. I think the reason we may not receive many b-to-b magalogues is that they are predominantly used as retention rather than acquisition tools. Because we’re less likely to purchase, say, building supplies on a regular basis, we probably don’t qualify to receive such a mailing. That said, we did receive a magalogue from industrial and commercial equipment cataloguer Slingsby in April.

The 64-page, glossy, perfect-bound magalogue titled Work-it features articles on health and safety in the workplace, a day in the life of one of its key staff, as well as product news and money-off vouchers. A more thorough review of the magalogue will be featured in an upcoming blog post. We’d love to know what Slingsby’s ROI is on the publication, because it’s certainly a great idea. Our favourite feature is the “To-do board”—but more on this later. --MT

Royal wedding emails we love

The old adage is true, be careful what you wish for. I had initially lamented the lack of royal wedding merchandise.But that was back in November. Since then we've been subject to a deluge of royal wedding-related memorabilia, including this £10 plastic tray spotted in a souvenir shop outside the London Eye.

There have also been plenty of royal wedding emails from marketers keen to boost sales ahead of the big day. Here are three that caught my attention. Feel free to send me your favourite Wills & Kate emails--and why you love them. We'll do another roundup in an upcoming blog post, email miri@catalog-biz.com.

Firebox
Why we love it: Think Channel 4’s alternative to the Queen’s Speech at Christmas and you’ll get the gist of the Firebox email. Titled “Wills & Kate: 100% Unofficial Merchandise with FREE UK Delivery!”, the Firebox email has everything for those who like their royal weddings with a pinch of salt. Presented against a backdrop of cheerful bunting, there are “Thanks for the day off” commemorative plates and Royal Wedding Top Trumps that rate guests on their age, style icon-ness and VIP status. If you want something less cheeky, there are Union Jack sky lanterns and a royal wedding heart mug.

Cosyfeet
Why we love it: Did you know that if Prince William were to get married before his 25th birthday he would have needed the Queen’s consent? No, neither did we, but thanks to Cosyfeet’s themed email we do now. Cosyfeet, a seller of extra roomy footwear, sent an email to its customer base with details on occasionwear to celebrate the royal wedding. The email, with the subject line “Cosyfeet magazine - Issue 8 - 10% off selected footwear” included a number of other factoids about the royals—as well as that all-important special offer. These features combine to give Cosyfeet real inbox staying power.

Notonthehighstreet.com
Why we love it: Breaking away from email marketing convention, this missive from gifts etailer Notonthehighstreet.com has no immediate call to action in the subject line. However, with the title “Weddings, weekends and winning” the recipient has a clear idea of what’s on offer. The wedding is clearly the royal wedding, with themed products including badges, biscuits, and bunting. The weekend is covered by travel bags and passport holders. And the win involves taking part in an Easter egg hunt. As the win element was consigned to a small graphic at the top right of the email, we would have liked to see more made of it. But otherwise this was a delightful email that made us long for a cream tea and a street party.--MT

Missing a trick--part 3

Regular readers will know I have a bit of a beef with the levels of personalisation in pet supplies emails. I’ve blogged about it at least twice (here and here), and commented on it countless times. So imagine my delight at finally receiving an email from a UK-based pet-supplies merchant that said it was creating an email preference centre.


I envisaged a world where I entered the type of pet I own (dog), his age, breed or size. I thought it may even ask me what I usually fed him, whether he had any medical conditions, what flea treatment I used and when the next one was due, all in the name of creating a 360-degree view of me as a customer. I pictured the retailer sending me superpersonalised emails with offers I couldn’t refuse. Think what you can do to your repeat-order levels if you knew the last time I bought a dog-worming tablet and could schedule to send me a reminder three months later. Think also of the goodwill you’d generate by showing me more products suited to a Labrador than a Chihuahua--I don’t quite think my dog would carry off the tiara look.

Then came the disappointment. Pets at Home only wanted to know if I had a dog, cat, horse, bird, reptile, fish, small pet, or “other”. There wasn’t another page to fill in. That was it. I can’t help but feel that Pets at Home really missed an opportunity to get to know its customers.--MT

Fat Face and the multichannel mailer

Of the mailings that landed on my desk in the last few weeks, the Summer 2011 Fat Face direct mail piece immediately caught my attention. The 6-page foldout mailer is a mini catalogue featuring a small selection of men’s, women’s and childrenswear. And while I found the design to be a little “busy” and crowded at times, I like the way Fat Face cleverly uses the mailing as a tool to drive both online and in-store sales.

There are two offers on the cover: Free delivery and a prize draw. To enter the draw customers need to hand in a tear-off section of the mailer to a shop assistant. Presumably, this then allows the shop to capture the customer’s email address and build a fuller picture of that buyer’s activity online and in-store. Alternatively, customers are automatically entered into the draw by shopping with Fat Face’s website. Rather telling, Fat Face doesn’t give recipients the option of posting back the form, or filling it in online without buying something. This demonstrates the two aims of the mailer: to generate an online sale, or acquire the customer’s email address in-store.

The second offer of free delivery adds a further incentive to buy. To qualify for free delivery, customers need to spend £85 or more and enter a media code found on the front page of the mailer at the online checkout. Or they can quote the code to a contact centre agent. This tactic means Fat Face can match back the order to that precise catalogue mailing, important in deciding where to allocate marketing spend.

What all this goes to prove is that the print medium plays a key part in the multichannel marketing arsenal—with a role in driving store sales as well as online transactions. And while none of this should come as a surprise to seasoned direct marketers, Fat Face’s mini catalogue shows just how uncomplicated it can be.--MT