Catalogers Adapt Their Print Editions to Online Success

Everything Old Is New Again

If anything, the increase in online ordering has led many catalogers to increase their print catalog circulation, rather than decrease it. “Multiple tests have proven that the catalog is still the key driver to pushing online sales,” Boyle of J. Schmid says. “The ‘tap on the shoulder’ that a catalog provides is still more intrusive in nature than a Web site will ever be, and helps keep the brand at the top of the consumer’s mind. We’ve seen a direct correlation between an increase in online activity when mail circulation is increased. Furthermore, the mailed catalog still upholds retention rates.”