Editor’s Take: Tracking the Most Telling Multichannel Trends

Q: What are the biggest challenges facing the catalog/multichannel industry in the immediate future?
● postal rate increases (39);
● rising paper costs (15);
● rising print, production and ink costs (8);
● measurement, source codes, matchbacks, tracking orders or, as one respondent put it, “when we can’t capture source codes on orders driven by the catalog but not mailed (i.e., store copies, pass-alongs)” (7);
● paper availability (4);
● Web generating sales on its own (4);
● the threat of multistate sales tax collection (3);
● parcel shipping costs (3);
● the threat of do-not-mail or privacy legislation, and the cost of such services needed;
● getting the info the customer needs and wants without providing info they don’t want or need;
● fuel costs, which drive up mailing expenses and wholesale/retail channel distribution expenses;
● a lack of marketing expertise/commitment from distribution channel partners;
● e-mail clutter;
● cost of pay per click;
● comparison shopping;
● maintaining relevancy of printed catalogs;
● making the transition from all catalog to partial catalog and Internet;
● USPS requirements forcing change to form factors;
● lessening opt-outs by providing better and more valuable e-communications to customers;
● lowering shopping cart abandonment rates;
● “getting online catalog search engines to work the way the customers expect them to in their minds”;
● online marketing with enhanced spam filters;
● environmental issues;
● truly understanding the link among all three channels and how customers move between them;
● finding new customers;
● maintaining good relations with vendors;
● credit card security issues; and
● predicting stock levels.