Should sale catalogs still be mailed out?

[Show Dad]

I have quit using the hard copy catalogs. I dropped my subscription to my breed magazine which took me off a lot of sale lists. I now go online to look for cattle and sales. The days of me flipping through snail mail delivered catalogs are over. It was a hard habit to break but after some withdrawal I have come out the other side just fine. So many of the catalogs were the same old thing many with just pictures of the AI sire and none of the cattle, BORING!

Now if you want my attention you need videos and the catalog on your website. (the videos with commentary are even better! And please show me more than just a profile walk.). I then make notes in my Ipad and go off to the sale.

And make sure there is a big enough parking lot that I can land my new space yacht  <alien>

SD

 

[oakview]

Please send me the hard copy.  I like to have the reference material in a better package than something I printed on typing paper and stapled together.

 

[ruhtram]

In my dream world I like to have a hard copy cataloge  and see more recent  vidioe of the sale cattle on line somewhere.

I'm the same way!!

 

[sue]

I love  full color direct mailers ( post cards).  Jason I agree with u, some of both. online and paper mail.  Slightly off the topic ... I would not rely on "online live  bidding" especially when the auctioneer is comfortable with internet.

 

[leanbeef]

As a graphic designer who designs some sale books, I'm glad to see that people like getting them! A sale catalog can sometimes be my favorite thing to find in the mailbox! I know how to use a computer, but I like to hold the book in my hands, and if I go to the sale and especially if I buy, I want a book! I may still have every catalog from sales I've bought cattle out of...

I usually design an online version for every book I do. I think printed books are part of the cost of having a sale, and I think if sale expenses are too high, you might look at the number of books you're printing and mailing and consider your potential for return. There is some promotion/advertising in sending books out, meaning just because someone doesn't buy out of that book doesn't mean the money is wasted, but you have to draw a line.

I'm also bored with catalogs that look like every other book, and especially with catalogs that only picture reference sires and ET dams...come on! We try to picture every lot in our own sale book, and more and more, I think having video online is just as important for folks outside your immediate area.

Great post!

 

[Doc]

Everybody talks about the cost of the catalog & I know from experience that they are. But , the thing that kills me is how elaborate some of these catalogs are. It's like they are in a competition for the fanciest with one the most full page pics of cows or calves. I mean they are nice & I enjoy receiving them, but I could get by with a black & white catalog especially if you posted it on the internet as a color one.
The one thing I like for sure about online catalogs is that you usually get to see them 3 to 4 weeks before you get the hard copy.
One thing that I still kills me on either type catalog is someone sells a bred female and they list the service sire by his nickname or not all of his registered name & not tell you how he is bred. You can't look him up because you don't have his full name.

 

[justintime]

Everybody talks about the cost of the catalog & I know from experience that they are. But , the thing that kills me is how elaborate some of these catalogs are. It's like they are in a competition for the fanciest with one the most full page pics of cows or calves. I mean they are nice & I enjoy receiving them, but I could get by with a black & white catalog especially if you posted it on the internet as a color one.
The one thing I like for sure about online catalogs is that you usually get to see them 3 to 4 weeks before you get the hard copy.
One thing that I still kills me on either type catalog is someone sells a bred female and they list the service sire by his nickname or not all of his registered name & not tell you how he is bred. You can't look him up because you don't have his full name.

I aqree with you regarding the service sire being listed by a nickname, as it can sometimes drive you crazy. If he is listed someplace else in the sale catalog, with both his registered name and his nickname, I'm OK with it.

In regards to elaborate sale catalogs, we have found that the costs of using color in sale catalogs has dropped signifigantly in recent years. The printer we use for our sale catalogs gives us full color for a very small amount more than the cost of a B&W catalog. They have such good equipment now that color is very similar in printing as B&W. In older days ( just a few years ago) a color magazine had to be run about 4 times to add each color, but the process is done in one pass now. For this reason, I always opt for the full color as I think it is much more attractive.  I have nothing against B&W catalogs other than when you are trying to get the attention of the buying public, you use the best pictures you have and the best presentation ( sale catalog) upi can design.

 

[ZNT]

My preference is that breeders put the full color PDF on their website so I can print it out.  I can look at it on the computer in full color, and print it out in B/W to take with me to the sale.  I can put marks all over my hard copy that I printed out just as well as a catalog that has been mailed to me. 

Breeders do need to archive old sales catalogs on their website.  Very good reference for buyers to be able to go back and look up information on cattle they purchased or we interested in.

These online versions need to be able to be viewed with a smart phone.  I have had several instances with a breeder, where I have needed to go to their website and look up some cow information while out in the pasture.  That's just part of customer service, and it is better for the breeder because they do not have to field a call asking for information that they do not have immediately in front of them.

JMO.

 

[flacowman]

I'm young and tech savvy but there's nothing I like better than thumbing through a full color catalog.  I can see cutting your mailing list down but there needs to be a hard copy at least sent to your customers from the past few years and people who have expressed interest in your cattle.  I don't mind printing an online catalog if I'm not planning on buying anything but semen/embryos, but if you want me to buy an animal for many thousands of dollars then you have to spend the money to send me a nice glossy catalog.  Maybe I'm in the minority on that but if you don't think enough of me to spend a few dollars to send me a catalog then I'm not going to grow that few dollar investment by a thousand percent or so...

 

[Telos]

I think this is something that each breeder needs to sort out and see if their budget can handle the extra expense. You can get into trouble asking other folks what they would like. A hard copy of a sales catalog would be desirable to everyone but they're not footing the bill. This can be a difficult decision and sometimes you just have to ask yourself if you can afford it. Go with your gut. I think online info is accessible to most and they can figure out a way to have it printed if desired.

 

[tcf]

Sale catalogues and Sire directories will never phase out. They are a critical part of establishing the brand of your program. They are a heck of a lot of work, cussing, re picturing, proof reading, designing and so on but they work. Lots have begun to run small ads in their books helping to cut costs or enable them to print in color. Having the book on the internet on the other hand is a must, especially in flip book form. This increases marketing substantially and is viewable anytime and anywhere. It is also a great enticement for those looking to find advertisers for increased exposure.
We are fairly up to tech around here and look a lot on the internet but when i get a hard copy, make my notes and take it to the sale with me that is a darn good piece of backup.

 

[Mitch]

Thanks for all the input.  Everyone is like me they want the full color catalog in hand.The Internet catalog is a must, but I think the mailing list have to be reviewed each year with some names eliminated  Here is an example looking forward to next years sale.  Just had a sale and 200 people came with 50 of them buyers. Of the 50 buyers    15 bought last year, 15 bought in the last 3 years and 15 were new.  So who do we send catalogs to next year.  15 of current years buyers  15x3=45  people who bought in the last 3 years.  15 new buyers plus 150 who came to sale and didn't buy, some of them could be in the prior years buyer list.    Know that adds up to only 225 people. We print 3500 catalog.  Well know I think we concentrate on people say with in a 150 mile radius.  Also people could request a hard copy from a Web site.
How farther out do you go.  I know people say if we don't think enough of them to send them a catalog they won't come and buy.  Some won't come anyway. 
At the Expo sale last year had 5 people call me who had received a catalog.  Not one of them has had Cattle in the last 4 years or more either retired or sold out.
I know it is a hard decision but I think one of the biggest expense on putting on a sale is mailing and printing more catalogs then necessary.  The big question how many are necessary.
Thanks again for the input.  I am sure we will continue to send out more then is necessary.

 

[Okotoks]

Thanks for all the input.  Everyone is like me they want the full color catalog in hand.The Internet catalog is a must, but I think the mailing list have to be reviewed each year with some names eliminated   Here is an example looking forward to next years sale.  Just had a sale and 200 people came with 50 of them buyers. Of the 50 buyers     15 bought last year, 15 bought in the last 3 years and 15 were new.   So who do we send catalogs to next year.   15 of current years buyers   15x3=45  people who bought in the last 3 years.  15 new buyers plus 150 who came to sale and didn't buy, some of them could be in the prior years buyer list.    Know that adds up to only 225 people. We print 3500 catalog.   Well know I think we concentrate on people say with in a 150 mile radius.   Also people could request a hard copy from a Web site.
How farther out do you go.  I know people say if we don't think enough of them to send them a catalog they won't come and buy.  Some won't come anyway.   
At the Expo sale last year had 5 people call me who had received a catalog.   Not one of them has had Cattle in the last 4 years or more either retired or sold out.
I know it is a hard decision but I think one of the biggest expense on putting on a sale is mailing and printing more catalogs then necessary.   The big question how many are necessary.
Thanks again for the input.   I am sure we will continue to send out more then is necessary.

Trying to guess who the new buyers will be is a challenge. I would actually include extra information in the catalogue about your program as a catalogue is excellent advertising for your herd even though some people may not buy at this years sale, they could well buy privately in the future or go to a future sale. Advertising is cumulative and a catalogue is several pages of advertising compared to an ad in a magazine that might get missed.