Dust off the creative basics

ALLERGYBUYERSCLUB.COM

Spring is finally here, and for many people that means allergies are in full bloom. That's bad news for the sufferers, good news for the AllergyBuyersClub.com catalog.

The merchant, which sells products such as air purifiers, vacuum cleaners, steam cleaners, dehumidifiers, bedding and other allergy relief merchandise, gamely stepped up for a critique. Reviewers Jeff Haggin, CEO/president of Haggin Marketing in Mill Valley, CA, and Bill Licata, president of LCH Direct in Santa Fe, looked over AllergyBuyersClub.com Winter 2008/2009 edition. Here's what they had to say.

JEFF HAGGIN

Achoo! If you have allergies or know someone who does, the AllergyBuyersClub.com catalog is here to scratch that niche. Could the cataloger be more effective? Yes. Here's where I see some room for improvement.

First off, there are too many choices in all categories in the AllergyBuyersClub.com catalog. Catalogs do well when they edit and recommend the best item in a category.

Or, if there are several items in a given category worth offering, smart merchants deploy a good/better/best strategy, or in other ways convey compare-and-contrast points to differentiate and accent key benefits and make shopping easy and clear. Not so here.

The catalog opens with seven pages of air purifiers of different sizes and shapes and colors, all competing for the allergy-sufferer's dollar. The work required to wade through the assortment — even by a sneezing, suffering, motivated prospect — is daunting at best.

An air purifier shopping guide would help. A chart at the beginning of this section could provide various selection criteria and help the reader narrow his or her choices based on benefits and features that matter.

This catalog needs some set-up. Why buy from AllergyBuyersClub.com? Because the merchant stocks the highest quality products from the best brands? Does it have more choices than anybody else? The best service?

And by the way, is it a club? Are there benefits to being in the club? Does it cost something to join the club? What club? I found no explanation or reference to the “club” except in the name.

Interestingly, all products offered (except for accessories and add-ons, replacement filters and such) in the AllergyBuyersClub.com catalog are rated. Five stars is the best.

In the middle of the catalog, on page 25, the rating system is demystified: The staff rates the products. Approximately 90% of the items receive a four-star or higher rating. And 10% receive a three-star rating (nothing lower). Is this rating system helpful? To one skeptical critic, it smacks of subjectivity.

The catalog does achieve a strong page-unit hero product presentation treatment with the ratings system “category winner” designation. I imagine this is its saving grace, driving focus and sales in these key items.

A graphic icon conveys the award, and back on page 25 copy explains, “Sometimes a product stands out in its category.” Why? According to whom? Credibility is key, but where are the credentials?

To the point, the idea of using ratings can work, with either an advisory board comprising doctors, allergists and other professionals; or the purity of the populace in the aggregate (unadulterated customer ratings).

As for its message and voice, the AllergyBuyersClub.com catalog presents a workmanlike creative and production solution. It is dated, but it is what we expect as die-hard catalog shoppers, and we know how to navigate it.

Still-life photos are shot in situ. Overpropped but flatly lit, they show the product adequately. Most of these products are not purchased for aesthetic reasons, however, so the reader must be engaged.

But the copy is also workmanlike — it does the job, but puts out little to really help the cause. This catalog proposition is perfect for a problem-solution format, but it's not here. These merchants and marketers need to get deeper and build credibility!

The catalog's cover depicts a full-bleed image of a $1,200 vacuum cleaner. The pleasing, Pottery Barn-esque photo includes signature dappled, natural light, a sofa, Persian rug, cedar wood floors.

What's the problem? The exact same image is presented on page 3, full bleed, with the requisite block of copy appended.

This is a sin, despite the co-op dollars the vacuum cleaner manufacturer, Miele, may be providing behind the scenes. First, the price point is off-putting, and no doubt a deterrent to sales. It establishes a first impression of “expensive.”

Second, a double impression of this product? The same image on the cover and the next right-hand page, same size? It's not that good.

More important, it delivers no more information about the product to help a consumer make a more informed decision to buy. There are great product features and opportunities galore to communicate — differentiators, benefits, features — but none of that is done.

Oh, and where's the offer? Is there any urgency, special price, promotion — any reason to pay attention here?

Good intentions win. This catalog lacks consistency in the way it delivers testimonials, promos and product call-outs. Even though there are at least five different ways that testimonials are visually articulated, at least Allergy Buyers Club.com is trying.

The articulation needs work, but the opportunity is real. Pass the Kleenex, please.

BILL LICATA

The AllergyBuyersClub.com catalog does a lot right

The photography is attractive, specific product testimonials are effective, and free shipping on many items is a nice incentive. Most important, the company has positioned itself as an expert in the field through its testing program, rating system, and category winners, and by assigning a personal “product expert” to each catalog recipient.

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