With experts like Jack Merlis, Director of Marketing at Go Outdoor and Magnificent Wine Brands, Director of Content and PR, direct mail and catalogs play a crucial role in increasing loyalty and spending from existing customers and attracting new customers. .
Jeff Howarth, director of omnichannel marketing at Matalan, says, “We send an average of five email newsletters a year to over 2 million subscribers.
"We know that our customers respond particularly well to seasonal catalogs as they give them an unobstructed view of the latest offers and ranges in stores and online, which can help increase sales through membership in our extensive loyalty program, Matalan Me."
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For The White Company, brochures have become an integral part of their marketing strategy, which creative director Mark Winstanley says is part of their heritage.
"They still make up a large part of our communication and marketing mix today and are very popular with our long-standing customers."
The increased interest in online shopping does not have any negative impact on the environment, he added. “The rise of online shopping and digital channels will impact the role of brochures, but not necessarily in the way many people think.
"The role of brochures has evolved from our primary sales channel to a tool that we can use in conjunction with our store, social media, email and our beautiful website to provide our customers with a 360 degree shopping experience."
Angela Porter, ProCook's head of marketing, agrees. For home improvement retailers, catalogs are important and help provide a full omnichannel customer experience, he says.
"Our volume has grown along with the number of subscribers, and while we've considered direct mail before, we keep coming back to it because our subscribers continue to respond well to it," he says.
“In an increasingly digital world, catalogs and direct mail still have their place and purpose.
"Recent testing has shown that customers who receive our catalog via email are more likely to purchase, so it's important that we share our reach with customers in the right way."
Retailers are also trying to blur the lines with QR codes in physical catalogues.
The catalog will be creative
Porter sees real value in the DIY retailer's marketing strategy of integrating catalogs and online channels: "It's important to us to share valuable content such as recipes, tutorials and videos with as many of our customers as possible.
"We are seeing a growing demand for easy ways to access digital content from printed media, such as QR codes. Once again, we are focusing our marketing efforts on making it easy for our customers to access our content and purchase our products the way they want ."
Lisa Byfield-Green, director of data and analytics at Retail Week, agrees. “It is important for consumers to offer a faster and better shopping experience. After the pandemic, we used QR codes a lot.
“You can use it effectively to navigate to a product on a website for more information, to place an order, or to check if the item is in stock.
It's a useful way to mix online and offline experiences. Technology support is key, but retailers need to consider less tech-savvy, elderly and disabled customers.
To learn more about what a successful retail direct mail directory strategy looks like, sign up for free access to Directory: Connect with Consumers . Sales Transformation , co-created with Marketreach Royal Mail. You will learn:
- How catalogs offer brand building opportunities
- Why are QR, AR and VR driving innovation in the environment?
- How are the different sectors performing, from food and grocery to beauty and homecare?
