Lillian Vernon’s mail order business has grown from a black-and-white space ad to nine catalogs

By Alicia Orr , Editor In Chief and Catalog Success

Both Web and direct mail orders share the same fulfillment system handled by its national distribution center. However, Green says, the front end of the Web server is not yet integrated into the back.

Also in the Virginia Beach facility is a large call center that during peak holiday season has more than 1,400 representatives assigned to take catalog orders and answer customer service questions by phone. The department has a special team of representatives who are trained to respond to e-mails sent by online customers. “We are also finding that more and more customers, regardless of whether their order was placed online, by phone, fax or mail, are using e-mail to communicate with customer service,” says Vernon. “In the future, we plan to provide a live customer service option which will enhance our online communications and provide immediate response to the customer.”