DispatchesPHOTOGRAPH BY TAMARA SHOPSIN AND JASON FULFORD 23in the future of the format, of
course, but his claims are borne
out by research suggesting that
even though catalogs typically
arrive un bidden, consumers
find them less presumptuous
and irritating than marketing
emails. “The internet is too
much like work,” Davison says,
while catalogs feel more like
play. “The internet is great if
you know what you’re looking
for,” he adds, “but it’s a lousy
browsing vehicle.” Instead of
being followed around online
for days by ads for a product
you already ordered (or con-
sidered and ruled out), you
can peruse catalogs at your lei-
sure and disengage fully whenyou’re done. It’s so analog, it
almost feels wholesome.
Around the same time that
JCPenney was returning to
mailboxes, catalogs began gain-
ing favor among newer compa-
nies. “You can think about a
catalog as a push versus a pull,”
says Matt Krepsik, the global
head of analytics for Nielsen’smarketing- effectiveness arm.
“On the internet, I just have
to hope that Matt discovers my
website. When I send Matt a
catalog, I’m reaching out to
him one-to-one.”
Another benefit: Catalog-
mailers can “prospect” by
sending their books to whom-
ever they choose, but most