Catalogues are considered more trustworthy than the internet, according to the Annual Catalogue Industry Report 2012/2013. 
The industry report incorporates the findings of AMP Capital’s Shopping Intent Report 2012, which concludes that the medium with the highest level of influence on shopper purchases remains the catalogue, ahead of television and search engines.
Catalogues, which reach around 18.25 million Australians every week, are still ranked among the most useful by consumers when making purchasing decisions, with more choosing the traditional medium over online.
This is apparent even among young shoppers, with 28 per cent 18 to 24 year olds and 30 per cent of 24 to 34 years old nominating the catalogue as their first preference.
Kellie Northwood, executive director of the Australian Catalogue Association, said the report is an important step for the catalogue industry in presenting evidence in support of its place in performance along analysis and reporting alongside more traditional marketing platforms such as television and radio.
“We’ve always known the relative size and popularity of the catalogue industry, but this is significant because there is real data behind why retailers invest so much in catalogues and why consumers find them so useful,” she said.
“Catalogue volumes have achieved a record high in production numbers, reaching 8.2 billion in 2012 as the confidence in catalogue effectiveness continues for retailers.”
Grocery and discount variety stores are the most prominent users of catalogues, with the pharmacy, auto, hardware, take-away, utilities, fashio,n and outdoor industries showing a strong increase in catalogue volumes in the 2012 financial year.
“Catalogues are reaching 18.25 million Australians every week, which is a testament to their effectiveness and popularity,” Northwood said.
“For consumers, the inherent value of catalogues remains the same – they are engaging, tactile and effective. For retailers, catalogues provide the opportunity to communicate both product and brand messages to an undistracted audience.”
Readership in women remain the highest readership across all categories, excluding automotive, while the largest catalogue readership was within department, discount variety stores, and supermarket promotions.
“This is reflective of catalogues’ value, in that they are read and utilised by the main purchaser of household goods,” Northwood said.
Data collected by Roy Morgan from January to December 2012 asking Australians to rank the media most useful when making purchasing decisions, revealed that catalogues ranked in the top three across 17 of the 28 categories.
Across all population cohorts, catalogues are considered more trustworthy than the internet, excluding ‘youthful digilovers’ who view catalogues equally as trustworthy as internet advertising.
