The Changing Role of Catalogs in the B-to-B Sales Cycle
In an increasingly digital marketing environment, are print catalogs still an essential selling tool for business-to-business marketers? Chief Marketer recently talked with direct marketing consultancy J. Schmid & Assoc.’s Philippe Graner, marketing director, and Chad Giddings, executive vice president, marketing and planning, about the changing role of catalogs in the B-to-B sales process.
Chief Marketer: Are print catalogs still an essential marketing tool for many business-to-business marketers?
Chad Giddings: We work with a lot of B-to-B folks that either started out with a catalog, or still see catalogs as a part of their overall marketing mix. The trend we’re now seeing is that people are looking at the impact of the catalog in a multichannel world. The traditional methods for looking at the impact of a print catalog may no longer work. Some are trying electronic catalogs, and looking at competitors who are getting rid of their catalogs altogether
