Retailers changing ad strategies

This Reuters article discusses the changing strategies of retailers, in response to the fragmentation of media.

The "new" strategies mentioned didn't strike me as innovative.

For consumers, it means they can expect more direct mail, more targeted e-mail pitching products based on what Web pages they have visited, and more in-store advertising.

You wouldn't kid me, would you? Certainly I'm getting a lot more direct mail, especially catalogs.

Gap Inc., the largest U.S. clothing retailer, did away with television advertising for its namesake brand during the crucial holiday shopping season in 2005 -- a risky move that left some on Wall Street scratching their heads.

Gap instead sent out a greater number of thin catalogs -- known as "magalogs" because they are about the size of a magazine. Retailers are finding that those magalogs can be highly effective because they can showcase more clothes and literally stay in the hands of potential shoppers in a way that no 30-second TV spot can match.

Even so, Gap's sales were down sharply in December, typically the biggest shopping month of the year.

Sounds like a lot of their targeted customers sort their mail like I do. I have to pass my garbage can on the way from the mailbox to my door, so the junk mail never even gets inside.

It's going to be tough finding the mix of media that works, and there will be a lot of trial and error along the way. All the more reason to invest in analytics packages that tell you which media/promo types are working, and under what circumstances.