Christian gift store C28 increases order values by mixing web and catalog
Taking a cue from other apparel retailers, C28 has increased its average order value by a third among shoppers who use both its web site and its new catalog, says Justin Palmer, web site administrator. C28, a Christian-themed gift store, recently launched a catalog, for the back-to-school market, and found that its average online order size of $60 increased to $80 among catalog users who shop online, he says.
“We were pleasantly surprised to see the large increase in the average order amounts from catalog shoppers,” Palmer says. “It appears to be very effective to offer customers a tangible way to view our products in addition to an online store.” C28 expects to do about $1 million in online sales this year, or 13% of total sales of $7.5 million, up from $500,000 web sales last year, or 9% of total sales of $5.5 million, he adds.
The catalog also is helping to re-activate customers who have not been responding to e-mail promotions, he adds. “While cataloging has its difficulties such as high cost and difficult-to-track ROI, we see the end result justifying the difficulties,” Palmer says. “Our mail order catalog has served to both increase the average order size and bring back inactive customers who weren’t responding to our e-mail promotions anymore.”
C28 (which stands for a Bible passage in Colossians 2:8 and carries the motto “Not of this World, All about Jesus”) also has eight stores in California, including two that are franchises, and is planning to open a franchise store in Florida.
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