A Peep Inside (Montgomery Ward promotional booklet)
The pattern
This still is filed under Mail-order catalog.
Define
A catalog that is the store: browse, choose, order, without a clerk and often without a website.
Mechanism
Assortment as argument. Density, numbering, and an order path do the closing. The book is the funnel.
Verdict
We have a range, remote buyers, and a way to take the order on the same object.
Why it works
It brilliantly solves the logistical problem of distributing a heavy, expensive 6-pound catalogue. By incentivizing customers to make a bulk freight purchase of staple groceries, Ward gets the customer to pay for the freight delivery of the catalogue while feeling like they got an incredible bargain.
Steal this when
When you have a high-value piece of marketing material that is expensive to ship, and you can bundle it with a physical product order to subsidize the cost.