Abstract
This paper reviews Speigel's mail order catalog -- both its aesthetics and its business impact. The author also contrasts that successful product to the on-line version, which the author finds lacking. The paper includes a detailed analysis of Speigel sales and the role of the catalog industry in attaining those numbers. The conclusion of the paper is dedicated to findings of the author's personal telephone survey of 46 household about the catalog and their usage of it.

From the Paper
"Spiegel is one of the giants in the catalog industry. Its spring/summer; fall/winter and holiday big books are chock-full of beautifully displayed designer clothes, everyday wear, home furnishings, jewelry, shoes and electronics. Competent operators who aren't pushy and will let you know if an item has been discontinued or if the sizes you need are no longer available always man the 800 number. The way of future is the Web, but Spiegel, as well as other mail order catalog companies, needs to improve this area. The Spiegel website is not well organized. While there are pluses - a framed site so you always know where you are - there are way too many negatives with this site to make you want to cancel home delivery of the catalog. The search function, for example, is very hit-and-miss. Typing in "women's shoes" gets no hits."

Tags:mail-order, Internet, shopping, clothes, website

Abstract
This paper explains that catalog-optimization is only made possible by the advent of computerization and knowledge management of the assimilated information, which is created by gathering information through product sales and other means of obtaining personal information. The author points out that the Internet and the World Wide Web have created an environment where even small companies with limited means, using smart business strategy, can compete with the market leader. The paper relates that data modeling and data mining, which are techniques and tools for knowledge management through database systems, have become more standardized and give companies additional methods for developing strategies to differentiate their products and services from their competitors.

Table of Contents
Introduction
Overview
Background
Purpose
Importance of the Study
Objectives
Limitations
A Preview of the Study
Literature Survey
Different Mediums Used for Catalogs
Knowledge Management and Use of Database
Customer Relationship Management (CRM)
Benchmarking and Evaluation of Information
Marketing, Advertisement and the Impact of Catalogs
Discussion
Recommendations
Conclusion

From the Paper
"In addition, ToySmart also works at identifying why a particular toy was not purchased, especially when a parent (or potential buyers) looked into it. This information cannot be gained from a single observation. Rather, it can do this by correlating the information from a trend from continuous observations. The company can identify if the trend can be established for any product line or segment of the customer population. Online catalog companies have also to be found quickly when a search is undertaken. For example, searching for a book on the Internet often immediately takes one to the Amazon website. Finding a book through a print catalog is often harder and more difficult in comparison."

Tags:knowledge, computerization, modeling, mining, paper

From the Paper
"HOME-BASED CATALOG SALES IN JAPAN
I. Executive Summary
The company name is the American-Japanese Catalog Sales Company. The company will be a catalog sales company that is based in the United States, but which markets its products in Japan. The products sold will be nutritional beauty supplements.

The market for nutritional beauty supplements was initiated in Japan. Ironically, however, the Japanese-produced products are more expensive in Japan than are products of comparable quality produced in Europe and North America. A major opportunity, thus, is available for a marketer based in the United States.

The crucial elements of the production and marketing strategies are.."

Abstract
This paper provides an overview of the company, IT Enterprises and explains how it is proposing to expand its current printed catalog for cars to include on-line catalog services. Eventually, the printed catalog will be eliminated and the service, which is currently concentrated in the Texas area, will expand to a global presence through the internet. This paper examines the "make or buy" decision from the point of which (if any) of the company's internet services should be outsourced to third parties. In addition, the company's "itcars.com" project is reviewed in light of a cost benefit analysis.

From the Paper
"International Trading Enterprises was established in 1985 to help individuals and dealers sell cars, homes, motorcycles and boats. The company is based in Texas, but attracts buyers and sellers from outside the Texas area. The company recognizes that the Internet is an excellent way to expand its business, and that e-commerce will be the way in which businesses and consumers conduct transactions such as this in the future. To that end, the company is researching how to build an Internet presence which meets the needs of the company as well as the needs of its consumers, and which offers a profitable solution to the company's expansion goals.
The Business Model
ITE will not be the first Internet company to provide a car-finding service (the company has determined that the car catalog will be the first to go on-line); Auto Trade and other sites such as luxurycars.com are already on the Internet. However, itcars.com does hope to learn from the experience of its competitors and put its own experience into practice, as well."

Tags:global, internet, auto, trade

Abstract
In his poem, "Beds", Charlie Smith charts his journey through addiction, through a catalog or 'heaping figure' of beds he has known throughout his life. The paper examines this technique and the importance of metaphor as tool for raking through challenging subject matter.

From the Paper
"Whatever one chooses to call the technique, Smith's handling of it is masterly. He takes an everyday object and uses it as a vehicle through which to explore a situation and its accompanying emotions. He continually implodes the object through constant re-inspection, "heaping" one kind of bed upon the other, exhausts it, turning it over and over, examining it ever closer until it ceases to be merely a bed and becomes a metaphor for each step of his journey. Smith's catalog of beds are the landmarks of his recovery."

Tags:aa, alcoholism, confessional, heroin, imagery, metaphor

Abstract
This paper explains that L.L. Bean experienced a slight decline in growth because of increasing competition and other market forces, which requires more research about the existing business to decide the proper strategies. The author points out that L.L. Bean's emphasis on customer service sets it apart from some other catalog companies and helps in its marketing. The paper stresses that inventory management is a key issue that must be addressed because goods now are shipped ready for the direct channel and not for the retail channel; therefore, a dual flow system in which the goods are sent ready-for-sale to retail centers would eliminate time and costs for a considerable savings of about $.95 a unit.

Table of Contents
The Problem
L.L. Bean Overview
Background
Retail Clothing Industry - Overview
L.L. Bean's Strategies
Case Situation
Alternatives
Evaluation
Implementation

From the Paper
"L.L. Bean dedicated to the sale of outdoor wear, clothing for hunters, campers, and those who want to commune with the great outdoors. The company is known for is outerwear, sportswear, house wares, footwear, camping and hiking gear, fishing gear, and the Maine hunting shoe that served as the company's first big success. The company sells through retail outlets and has five retail and sixteen factory outlets in the United States, as well as nine additional stores in Japan. The main means of selling, however, is through its more than 200 million catalogs sent out each year. The company also has an online presence in both English and Japanese, bringing the catalog into the computer age for the company founded in 1912."

Tags:bauer, growth, recession, inventory, service

Abstract
This paper serves to identify the features of online catalogues for children, such as the OPACs of the Science Library Catalogue and the Kid's Catalogue. The paper then compares and contrasts these two forms of catalogues in terms of training children to use them.

Abstract
This paper studies the mail order industry and analyzes several key players in it. It discusses the key trends which have influenced the mail order industry and the future expected trends. It studies the structure of the mail order industry today. It specifically discusses Land's End and its major competitors. It concludes with recommendations for the future on how to make Land's End more successful.

From the Paper
"The 1950s to the 1980s were an age of materialism. The 1980s began a new order of social thinking. People began to be more concerned about the quality of life and the quality of their home lives. The term "quality time" became a buzzword. The invention of the Internet had its beginning in 1982 [PBS.org, 1997]. Slowly over the next 10 years it grew in popularity. Today, the Internet is an integral part of our society. It is this shift in thinking that is responsible for the success that mail order and e-commerce have had in the recent decade.
"According to statistics from the Direct Marketing Association released June 4, 2001, catalog sales continue to increase at a rate more than twice that of overall retail growth. Catalog sales for 2001 were expected to reach 120 billion US dollars. That is an 8.9 percent increase over 2000 sales. By comparison, overall retail sales were only expected to grow 3.1 percent [DMA, 2001]."

Tags:mail, order, marketing, research, Banana, Republic, JCPenny, catalog, Land's, End

From the Paper
"Lands' End: Ready for the Big City?
Lands' End is a Wisconsin-based direct marketer -- or, in the firm's preferred language, "direct merchant" -- of clothing and accessories, via catalogs and a World Wide Web site, vigorously advertised recently as "the website that fits you." Lands' End has one of the more distinctive corporate cultures in American business, a culture characterized by a folksy, Midwestern style, very much in the spirit of Garrison Keillor's NPR radio show, "Prairie Home Companion." It comes as no surprise, in fact, that Lands' End identifies itself with Keillor's show, going as far as to carry program listings on its website. The challenge facing Lands' End is whether this small-town culture can meet the big-city challenges of the contemporary global marketplace."

Abstract
This paper presents a step by step guide for a hospital for implementing changes which will make the system run more smoothly, minimize wasted resources and be more cost-efficient. The program is laid out in five steps - 1. Amalgamate acquirement receiving with copy cataloging; 2. Combining complicated copy cataloging, copy-assisted cataloging, and some record maintenance; 3.Consolidating original monograph cataloging units; move responsibility for pub recall; 4.Digital initiative support and 5.Consolidate database management.

From the Paper
"The objectives of this change plan are few and to the point. The need for this change arose when we felt the need for this new department due to the loss of work. In order to make the hospital a more manageable place and for its records to be easily available to doctors and nurses the following points must be taken in view. The flow of work as we lose staff through attrition, reassignment, retirement, etc. The staff has to be moved in a staff development direction, i.e., to broaden skills for future flexibility within and outside of the hospital."

Tags:cost, efficient, staff, medical, database, management, catalog, saving, skill, doctor, nurse, data, entry