Strategy: Promos: What Really Works?

Here are some of the most effective catalog and multichannel offers, and the best practices for them.

Most Common Offers
In order of effectiveness, the most common promotional offers are:

1. free (or flat) shipping;
2. a dollar amount off, can be a tiered amount;
3. a percentage off; and
4. a free gift with purchase.

Free shipping offers can increase revenue per catalog (RPC) by 20 percent or more. Obviously, there’s a cost associated with offering free shipping, and not all catalogers can afford to make that offer. If you’ve used a free shipping offer, test flat shipping — charging a flat shipping amount regardless of order size. I’ve tested at $2.95, $3.95 and $4.95, and seen no difference in response at those various levels. In most cases, flat shipping works as well as free shipping, and at least you’re covering some of your freight costs.