Strategy: Catalog Circ Planning Will Never Be the Same Again

4. Increased marketing costs. Paper prices have increased more than 30 percent in 18 months. Postage costs, which skyrocketed a year and a half ago, continue to rise. Increased expenses are eroding the bottom line, all of which creates a need to use the Internet more.

The New Database
Traditional catalog company operators who know how to use their databases effectively across all channels will be successful. Customers of multichannel marketers spend an estimated 30 percent more than those of single-channel sellers. The one-message-fits-all-channels approach no longer works. Relational databases must be designed to incorporate and allow analysis of data from multiple channels because each channel presents different opportunities and challenges. Tailor your message to the medium.