Mary Holz-Clause                                                    Revised, October 2006   Co-Director, Ag Marketing Resource Center   Iowa State University Extension   mclause@iastate.edu

Mail Order and Mail Order Catalogs

Mail order offers good potential with relatively low start-up capital requirements. Start-up costs depend on how much time and money you want to commit, how fast you want to grow, and what your product requires.

Mail order opportunities arrive regularly at virtually every household with credit card statements, as advertising supplements in the daily newspaper, in mass mailings, and even with utility bills. Catalogs offer a way for anyone with a viable product or service in demand by consumers to compete successfully with bigger companies. American consumers are conditioned to shopping by catalog and now receive catalogs for most essential items.

When using mail-order catalogs, sales volume can be controlled by the number and type of catalogs sent. It is important to know the number distributed and the characteristics of the readers. For example, if 400,000 people receive the catalog and 1 percent of them order the product, that means there will be 4,000 orders. If 5 percent of them order the product, there will be 20,000 orders. Producers need to understand and be prepared for the potential volume of mail orders. Conversely, there could be very few sales, and there could be products left over.

Some experts say that catalog presentation of products is simply mail order at its best. There are some considerations before rushing out to print up that catalog, however. Deciding what product to sell is the most critical decision in mail order marketing. When deciding on an item to sell, try to develop one or find one that will appeal to all ages. Look for items that work for men, women, and children, and search for goods that are low cost and frequently reordered.

Many businesses have found mail order to be an effective way to merchandise meat products. However, all meat that crosses state lines must have been harvested and processed at a federally inspected plant, and the plant’s inspection number must be noted on the box or package of meat. In addition, federally inspected products must provide info about the product on the label. For raw products, the species, the cut, the net weight, the ingredients statement, and the safe-handling statement are required. No ingredient may be added to fresh meat or poultry unless the ingredient is listed on the label.

The USDA provides the following food safety suggestions:

• Send perishable foods, like meat or cheesecake, cold or frozen and packed with a frozen gel pack or dry ice. Warn recipients about the use of dry ice by noting “Contains Dry Ice” on the box.
• Use a sturdy box and pack the food item in foam or heavy corrugated cardboard. Fill up any empty space with crushed paper or foam popcorn; air space in the box will cause the food and cold source to thaw faster.
• Deliver the food item as quickly as possibly—ideally overnight. Ensure that the delivery address is complete and correct. To alert the recipient, clearly label the outer package of any perishable item “Keep Refrigerated.”
• Inform the recipient via phone or e-mail that the package “is in the mail” so someone can be there to receive it.

For more food safety info about meat, poultry, or eggs, call the toll-free USDA Meat and Poultry Hotline at 1-888-674-6854. The hotline is staffed by food safety experts weekdays from 10 am to 4 pm Eastern time, but recordings can be accessed at any time.

Safe Handling of Mail Order Foods

These short but safe time limits will help keep refrigerated foods from spoiling or becoming unsafe to eat. Because freezing keeps food safe indefinitely, recommended storage times are for quality only.