Once one of the heaviest direct mailers in the country, with a million-plus prospect mailings the norm, Grolier is now applying a more selective and targeted approach to its business expansion efforts.

After virtually giving up on direct mail prospecting two years ago, thanks in large part to the high cost of addressed Admail from Canada Post, Grolier Canada is using the method once again to test several new continuity programs it hopes to roll out in the new year.

Primarily a children’s book publisher, Grolier wants to develop a number of new products for the adult market. To this end, the company recently launched a ‘low-end’ line of collectible Disney Christmas ornaments and is looking to develop other collectible programs with similar themes.

‘We’re trying to develop other products besides children’s books, largely because we want to be able to offer something to the parents who are making purchases for their children,’ says Grolier general manager Robert Furlonger, adding that the new offerings might cover such themes as cooking and do-it-yourself decorating.

One program already scheduled for testing in 1997 is a ‘family bible card’ continuity series featuring pictorial depictions of various biblical events. The cards, which can be stored in a specially-designed collector’s box, will be mailed to subscribers monthly.

Grolier is also testing the pre-recorded video market, with a series of children’s titles that include Hanna-Barbera cartoons and a number of Canadian-produced ‘edu-tainment’ programs. However, Furlonger says, Grolier is not yet prepared to roll out the video offering, as it first wants to test various title mixes and product combinations.

Selected media will be made up predominantly of alternative direct response channels such as package inserts, catalogue ride-alongs, fsis and statement stuffers.

Furlonger says he begrudgingly added direct mail to the mix, despite serious concerns about its cost, because a number of previously reliable and cost-effective alternative distribution channels had ‘fallen by the wayside.’

Beset by steadily rising postage rates, Furlonger says Grolier was prepared to give up on direct mail two years ago, ‘because we really didn’t see a light at the end of the tunnel.’ A corresponding deterioration in response rates because of stale creative and fatigued lists simply exacerbated the problem, he says.

In the past year, however, Grolier has tested some new creative approaches and found some responsive lists that should allow the company to try a little more direct mail in the future. ‘We’re going to start developing more mailings to our own customer database as we go forward,’ says Furlonger, adding that the days of million-piece mailings are over for good.

‘That just won’t happen anymore,’ he states. ‘We’ll be getting a lot more personalized with our messages.’

Highly critical of Canada Post’s record of raising rates without providing much advance notice, Furlonger says the decision-makers in the post office don’t seem to understand how important direct mail is to the Crown corporation’s overall performance.

‘It appears that (Canada Post managers) just go into a room and close the doors and decide for themselves what they think is right. Then they come out and wait for a reaction.’

He says Grolier is just one of many companies that have cut back drastically on the amount of mail they put into the mail stream. According to Furlonger, Grolier’s annual mail volume has gone from ‘millions’ to ‘maybe 500,000 pieces’ over the past two or three years.

Grolier’s prospecting efforts suffered a blow with the recent loss of the Consumers Distributing catalogue ride-along program. Describing it as a low-cost medium which delivered both a large circulation and decent response rates, Furlonger says Grolier’s plans called for it to use the Consumers program twice a year.

Allowing that it will be a challenge to find a program with equally large distribution and economical rates, Furlonger says he’s talking to companies like Reader’s Digest and Sears, as well as banks and other major mailers, about the possibility of having Grolier’s inserts ride-along with their mailings.

‘I think this industry needs more alternative media, because the old ones seem to be drying up,’ he says.

Although he won’t reveal who he’s been talking to, Furlonger says Grolier has started discussions with other large-volume mailers about the possibility of getting into some co-ventures.