Bookspan Parent Firm Trims Staff, Possibly Mail

Direct Brands, the parent company of book club marketer Bookspan, has let a handful of employees go over the last few months.

The company may be reducing, if not eliminating, its reliance on direct mail as a prospecting tool, sources speculated.

Bookspan confirmed only that “as a result of current business conditions it has reduced staff in certain areas, including marketing, IT, transaction processing and customer service.”

The company did not reveal the number of individuals let go, although industry sources put the figure at between six and 10 middle- and senior-level managers.

The staff reductions came in four locations: Terre Haute and Indianapolis, IN, and New York City and Garden City, NY.

According to Bookspan, “These changes will not affect the level of service current members receive, and we will continue to seek new members through all appropriate channels.”

While the company hasn’t commented on marketing plans going forward, industry sources said that direct mail prospecting activity for the remainder of 2008 and 2009 has likely been suspended. Mailings to the 15 book clubs under the Bookspan aegis total around 200 million pieces, sources outside the company speculated.

Bookspan did not confirm this number,, nor that prospecting mail had been suspended.

If this is the case, it will likely mean changes for the Bookspan customer base. Unless the company is willing to invest in television, radio, publications and billboards, it may have to rely on a combination of telemarketing and online channels, including search engine optimization, e-mail prospecting and banner ads.

With the exception of telemarketing and e-mail prospecting, those channels are passive mediums. If Bookspan wants to actively pursue new buyers, it will need a substantial quantity of consumer e-mail addresses or telephone numbers. Even if the sheer quantity of consumer e-mail addresses needed is available, both mail order buyers and constant readers tend to skew older than the demographics traditionally captured online, an industry observer noted.

Najafi Companies acquired Direct Group North America, which includes Bookspan, Columbia House and Book-of-the-Month Club, as well as other brands, from Bertelsmann AG in July. Najafi Companies changed its name to Direct Brands in August.