I am a marketing advisor.  I spend most of my working hours helping businesses understand the marketing tools available to them and the relative cost (in terms of time and money) of each.  I also talk to them about prioritizing the best ideas ahead of the good ideas, because no one has unlimited resources.  

This one got my head shaking. 

I have, on many occasions, endorsed the creation of hard-copy, offline (gasp!) catalogues that capture the power of photography, paper finishes and tangibility.  It works.  Especially for companies that offer high-end products.

What I don't get is using 615 pages (oversized no less) to do so.  Granted, they sell a lot of products.  615 at least!  But here are the issues that cause some concern:

• Has it not long been established that this much tree-killing causes real corporate brand damage?
  
• Can the same outcomes not be achieved with, say, 200 pages?
  
• They are clearly pandering to the abundantly wealthy, which I am not.  Could they not do a better job of customer segmentation?  They sent me TWO of the same catalogues, 3 weeks apart.  Think of the savings in postage alone!
  

THE LESSON FOR BUSINESS:

• Catalogues work.  They can be an important component of you marketing mix.
  
• Shorter catalogues work better.  There is no harm done to your brand by creating a, say, 32 page catalogue that highlights the product categories and some featured items, then clearly points readers to a corresponding web page for more products.  You earn positive brand association by saving trees, and you gain valuable customer buying behaviour data by encouraging them to browse online.  Everyone wins.  
  

YOUR TURN:
Tell me what I'm missing?  The good people at Restoration Hardware are clearly doing most things right.  Why, in your opinion, is this part of their marketing strategy?