Despite the rapid advance of transportation and the shortening of the time between city and farm, mail order has continued to grow in popularity since its inception in the early 1870’s. Today it would be difficult to find a family which has not at one time or another made some purchase through the mails. So thoroughly integrated in the life of the community is mail order that many are unaware, when they send a subscription to a magazine, an order to the local department store, or a contribution to a favorite charity, that they are, in fact, mail order customers. The popularity of mail order, despite the easily reached, fully stocked local stores, must present somewhat of an enigma to one newly arrived in this country. The impersonal nature of the transaction, the necessity of buying sight unseen, and the waiting period would appear as disadvantages when compared with a personal shopping spree in a large nearby store. The visitor would not easily comprehend why a customer should willingly forego touching, examining and sampling the merchandise on the spot. But the clue to the success of mail order lies right here. For a good many years, the mail order catalog was the department store for most of rural America. A shopping spree meant filling in every line on the order blank. The habit has stuck, and in one way or another, an ever-increasing public has joined the parade. Our visitor to the contrary, mail order does present certain advantages to the modern shopper-yes, even to the large city dweller. For one thing, convenience, especially when work or household duties make it difficult to take time off for a trip to the store. Unquestionably many a customer has turned to mail order with a sigh of relief after a rush-hour battering in a big department store. Businessmen, particularly, show a preference for shopping by mail.
For expert in-depth information on all aspects of Mail Order, visit Direct Mail Special Report
10-31-2006
