Returns To Sender

"The fastest way to make money in the catalog business isto mail more frequently to your known customers," says MaxwellSroge, owner of Maxwell Sroge Co. Inc., a mail order consultingfirm in Evanston, Illinois. In addition to that advice, Srogeoffers the following pointers to mail order entrepreneurs who wantto beef up their profitability:

1. Create packages, and offer them at a savings. Puttogether bundles of related products, and sell them as a package ata discount.

2. Up-sell or cross-sell. When a customer is on thephone, try to increase the volume of the order. This is calledup-selling--offering a special on two or more products of a similartype. Another idea is to try to sell related products to thecustomer (this is known as cross-selling). "Once somebody ison the phone and you're doing business with them, it'susually easy to move them into another category," says Sroge."It's the same telephone call; it just takes a few moreminutes."

3. Ask suppliers to pay for space in your catalog. Alsoknown as co-op advertising, this can be a great way to makeprinting your catalog mutually beneficial to you and yoursuppliers.

4. Ship fast. The rule in the mail order business: Thequicker you ship, the more orders you'll receive. "Peoplewant things very fast today," says Sroge. "They wantimmediate satisfaction."

5. Offer bonuses for large orders. Reward customers whobuy in bulk with bonuses (this might include discounts oradditional merchandise). After all, by purchasing large quantitiesof your products, they rewarded you first.