The costs of digital advertising are skyrocketing. By some metrics, prices on major platforms such as Meta, Google, and TikTok grew by anywhere from 61–184% year-over-year in 2021. At the same time, returns are plummeting; recent changes in privacy policies, such as those by Apple, have made it more difficult to target ads to consumers, who are increasingly likely to tune out the advertising that they see anyways. All of these trends are making digital advertising increasingly unprofitable and ineffective, forcing companies to rethink their marketing strategy and spending. Increasingly, companies that are rethinking their strategies are turning to an analog method: physical paper catalogs. And it’s not just traditional retailers that are increasing their catalog investments either. Even online disrupters such as Amazon, Bonobos, and Wayfair have entered the catalog game. But does this mean that every retailer should consider a direct mail strategy? If not, when does it work best?

Consumer sentiment plunged in early April to the lowest level ever recorded in the more than 70-year history of the University of Michigan’s survey. The Index of Consumer Sentiment’s preliminary reading for April  fell to 47.6, down 10.7% from March, extending a decline that began with the start of the Iran conflict. Year-ahead inflation expectations rose to 4.8% this month from 3.8% in March. Comments show that many consumers blame the Iran conflict for unfavorable changes to the economy, according to Joanne Hsu, director, surveys of consumers.

Consumer confidence rebounded slightly in July as Americans felt more optimistic about the future even as they continued to worry that tariffs would lead to higher prices. The Conference Board’s Consumer Confidence Index rose by 2.0 points in July to 97.2 from 95.2 in June. The Present Situation Index — based on consumers’ assessment of current business and labor market conditions — fell 1.5 points to 131.5.  The Expectations Index — based on consumers’ short-term outlook for income, business, and labor market conditions — rose 4.5 points to 74.4.  “Consumer confidence has stabilized since May, rebounding from April’s plunge, but remains below last year’s heady levels,” said Stephanie Guichard, senior economist, global indicators at The Conference Board. “In July, pessimism about the future receded somewhat, leading to a slight improvement in overall confidence.”