Lett Direct Inc.

Selecting a marketing vendor such as a printer, list broker or consultant may not sound like a difficult task. But, how do you know if you're selecting the "right" vendor for your business? The relationship you have with vendors, particularly with your printer, is important. (Your printer probably is your largest, unsecured vendor.) Two basic points that come up when selecting a vendor are price and attitude. Negotiate the best price you can with your vendor, but then cultivate the relationship.

By Stephen R. Lett Changing your marketing strategy is one of the most difficult and risky things you can do as a cataloger. Is there a right time to do it? And just which way will work? Some would argue that a change in strategy should be gradual and implemented over time. Others might recommend making all strategy adjustments at once — a precarious move. This month, I'll discuss how to effectively change your marketing strategy and identify ways to best accomplish your objectives. Time For a Change When sales have been flat or in decline two or three years in a row,

By Stephen R. Lett Promotional offers such as free shipping, 10 percent off, $5 off and a free gift can be extremely effective in boosting response and sales. But are you using promos correctly, or are you over-using them? Many catalogers offer promotions to all customers and prospects. There's sometimes no objective behind the offer, other than to increase sales. What's more, offers are used without prior or proper testing — in fact, they're offered without any financial analysis at all. This month I'll focus on when and how to use promos — and whether you should use them at all. Some

As circulation professionals, we know that when sales are good, it’s the merchandise. Yet, when sales are off plan, we tend to feel responsible. Is it the lists mailed to, the mail date or the way the merge was run? Just what’s causing the sales shortfall, and what can be done to avoid this in the future with proper advanced planning? In this column, I identify some pitfalls circulation professionals may encounter in the planning and forecasting stages, and provide tips on how to reduce the risk of failure. 1. Manage Outside Prospect List Usage List testing and usage should be based on

By Stephen R. Lett How to improve planning and forecasting. As circulation professionals, we know that when sales are good, it's the merchandise. Yet, when sales are off plan, we tend to feel responsible. Is it the lists mailed to, the mail date or the way the merge was run? Just what's causing the sales shortfall, and what can be done to avoid this in the future with proper advanced planning? In this column, I identify some pitfalls circulation professionals may encounter in the planning and forecasting stages, and provide tips on how to reduce the risk of failure. 1. Manage Outside Prospect List

By Stephen R. Lett How to improve planning and forecasting. As circulation professionals, we know that when sales are good, it's the merchandise. Yet, when sales are off plan, we tend to feel responsible. Is it the lists mailed to, the mail date or the way the merge was run? Just what's causing the sales shortfall, and what can be done to avoid this in the future with proper advanced planning? In this column, I identify some pitfalls circulation professionals may encounter in the planning and forecasting stages, and provide tips on how to reduce the risk of failure. 1. Manage Outside Prospect List

Your relationship with your print suppliers should be strong and cohesive. After all, your printer may be your largest vendor in terms of dollars spent annually. Your printer is important to your business, and you should view it as your company’s business partner. When deciding on a printer, price certainly is important. No direct marketer should pay a large premium for the privilege of dealing with a particular printing company. But there are other factors, such as service, lead times and technology, that should be taken into consideration. In this article, I’ll offer tips for maximizing your relationship with your printer.

What to do about declining results to prospect lists. Response rates to outside prospect lists have been on the decline, and last year was no exception. In some cases, results to tried-and-true continuation lists are off by as much as 50 percent. This isn’t a trend that’s likely to reverse itself anytime soon. This month, I’ll look at some reasons why response rates have declined and what you can do to compensate. Why Prospect Lists Trend Down Response rates to prospect lists have declined for several reasons: unseasonably warm weather during this past fall and holiday buying season, large amounts of consumer debt

Your direct selling expense ratio is as important to track as your cost-of-goods ratio and other key metrics on your income statement. Indeed, controlling your direct selling expense ratio plays a major role in helping to improve your catalog company’s profitability. This month, I’ll focus on ways you can reduce your direct selling expense ratio. But first, let’s look at what normally comprises direct selling expenses: - catalog creative costs; - printing and paper; - ink-jet addressing and mailing expenses; - bind-in order forms and envelopes; - postage; - outside list expenses; and - merge/purge costs. Direct selling expenses

As any experienced cataloger knows, it’s difficult to over-mail a housefile — at least certain segments of it — when mailing by recency, frequency and monetary (RFM) value. Catalogers generally want to maximize contribution to profit and overhead by leveraging their customer bases. Customer-reactivation techniques make it possible to mail deeper and more often to your previous, or “older,” customers. This month, I’ll discuss some sound strategies for mailings to your own housefile. To Customers Consider this: Today’s circulation plans include fewer new-to-file names because catalogers rely more on reactivating older segments of their housefiles in order to grow their 12-month