ECMOD 2008 Preview
A decade of change
Abacus, a specialist in the management and use of
transactional data, is sponsoring the “21st-Century
Media Mastery” module at ECMOD on 2nd October.
It’s also celebrating its 10th anniversary this year. To
mark the occasion, client services director Lara Bonney
looks back at the decade in direct marketing
I
n 1998 the White House was gripped by the toes into the UK market, but only a handful,
Lewinsky scandal, France won the football including Lands’ End and Orvis, have stayed
World Cup in its own backyard, Cher topped the distance.
the UK music charts with “Believe”—and the Then again, some catalogues that were just
direct marketing industry was about to undergo starting out in 1998 are now firmly established
significant changes. in the mail order market—Joe Browns and
Ten years ago the “big book” catalogues— The Cotswold Company spring to mind. And
Littlewoods, Empire Stores, Grattan, of course, catalogue players as diverse as
Lara Bonney
Freemans—which recruited agents and offered Scotts of Stow and Direct Wines are today just
credit accounts, enjoyed a higher profile and as big as, if not bigger than, they had been
mailed significantly more than they do now. a decade ago, when the catalogue market
Credit offers have been in decline, was booming. Credit was widely available
with Empire Stores being sold off then, and house prices were on the increase,
this year after almost 90 years of ensuring that consumers had money to spend
catalogue trading. Direct brands and contributing to high response rates.
now dominate the industry, and such Making money from catalogues was easier
long-established companies as in 1998 than it is today, although businesses
JD Williams have acquired brands still needed to embrace innovations and be
like House of Bath and Gray & creative in their marketing.
Osbourn to consolidate their standing The digital world was establishing itself
in this space. 10 years ago, and many cataloguers were
Indeed, as market seeing the benefits of using the internet
conditions have toughened, as both an order channel and a means to
the catalogue market has recruit customers. As web marketing evolved,
consolidated, with big some people even declared that the printed
players such as Scotts & Co catalogue would be dead within years,
and Findel buying up brands superseded by buyers shopping exclusively
with a strong proposition online—a claim that can still be heard today!
and using economies Some cataloguers, particularly those with a
of scale to ensure their transactional website aimed at the computer-
profitability. In 2008 there are savvy generation, saw online sales rocket.
fewer catalogue owners in Seduced by the seemingly huge return
the UK, although there is a on investment realised via the web, many
broader range of brands. marketers flirted with diverting budget away
Some of the well-known from print and onto the internet.
catalogue brands of 10 Those undertaking full match-back analysis
years ago are no longer on all channels and advertising media,
around: Innovations, McCord, Past Times. however, quickly discovered that web sales
US cataloguers such as Eddie Bauer and weren’t magically or cheaply generated;
Hammacher Schlemmer were dipping their it was the established paper catalogues
12
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