Build Your Business Faster With Direct Mail Advertising
My first business, a printing company, was built almost entirely using direct mail advertising. We began by mailing about a thousand flyers a month. When we sold the business at a huge profit three years later, we were sending monthly mailings to every business in the county - about 30,000.
We built our brand name into one of the best known printing businesses in San Diego county in under four years. I've since used direct mail to build many businesses, and have found that it works for businesses of any size or industry.
Let's outline a direct mail program that you can use on a small scale first, then ramp-up as your business grows. Remember, direct mail doesn't have to be simply a letter or brochure.
Small Scale Promotion
Post Cards. Post cards are effective because they are delivered with the message right there in front of the recipient. And since they don't require opening, a higher percentage get read.
There are many inexpensive, quality printers online that will print from your digital files. With the online printer I use, you can buy 500 full color post cards, 5-1/2" x 8-1/2", printed both sides, for about $100. That's about 20 cents each. Add postage, and for a little over 60 cents you have a great mailer. You can send out about 100 a week until they're gone.
I use a professional graphics designer and ad copywriter (me!) to create the images and message. Always have an offer of some kind, which I call "the hook." Your message should be benefits-oriented. Think: what can you do for them that their current supplier isn't? Why should they do business with you?
You can get a mailing list by searching online, or build your own from existing lists augmented by some good research. I usually get one to three inquiries per hundred mailers. Imagine the results if you sent 5,000!
Larger Scale Promotion
This may take some further planning and research. Hand pick 100 companies that meet your ideal client matrix. Mail your Company Brochure to the owners of each of those 100 companies with a personal letter introducing your company and stating, in bullet points, how they can benefit from utilizing your firm. Follow up with a phone call and set face-to-face appointments. You should be able to get at least three to five appointments from each hundred phone calls.
For ideas on more complex, larger-scale direct mail promotions, see my articles: "Small Business Advertising - How Baseball Theme Direct Mail Campaign Hit Home Run" and "Small Business Advertising - Direct Mail Candy Promo Gets Sweet Results."
Build Your Business Faster With Direct Mail Advertising - To learn more about this author, visit Jerre Blodgett's Website.
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Stephanie RobeyStephanie Robey is President and CoFounder of Pivot Positive, LLC - an Internet marketing business focused on helping people start work at home ventures. Previously, she was employed at The Search Agency with over 20 years experience in graphic design and 10 years experience in online marketing. She was responsible for launching the Conversion Path Optimization (CPO) unit where she and her team have conducted hundreds of optimization tests for online companies across multiple verticals. She is a successful entrepreneur having started and sold 2 companies and remains on the board of directors of the third, PhotoSpin.com Stephanie began her career in the direct marketing realm creating and producing direct mail for many of the major cable television companies and directly attributes her understanding of Internet marketing to those early offline experiences. Stephanie is a graduate of San Diego State University with a BFA in Graphic Arts and also holds an Executive MBA from the Graziadio School of Business and Management at Pepperdine University. Read Steph's Blog Meet Steph and Dave Sign up for our Free 7-Day BootCamp: Self Employed & Rich - Visit Stephanie Robey's Website |
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Kim CastleWith nearly two decades in the advertising and design business, with clients like Domino's Pizza, General Motors, Direct TV, Pedigree, Wolfgang Puck, Higher Octave Music, Hollywood Celebrity Products, Disney, and Paramount, as well as thousands of entrepreneurs around the world define, structure, communicate, and position their business for greater profits, BrandU(R) co-creators Kim Castle and W. Vito Montone discovered that entrepreneurs could experience the same power that big brands command for a fraction of the cost with the world's only process-based results-drive Integral approach to business creation. BrandU(R) is helping entrepreneurs grow with the power of extreme clarity from idea...to brand...to market(TM) and helping one million entrepreneurs become successful and whole so that they can make a difference in the world. Are you one of them? If you want to experience clarity all the way to the bank(TM), get started now at http://www.brandu.com. - Visit Kim Castle's Website |
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Cheryl MatthynssensCheryl is a life skills coach, licensed Chemical Dependency Counselor and a 20 year entrepreneur. Cheryl's dedication to achieving a life of balance led to her expanding her teaching from the simple managing of life's daily challenges to adding financial well being as well. A direct marketer with DrinkACT, she is gaining ground in the online community with her concepts of making sure business owners, entreprenuers and employees have well rounded life styles. She opened up a small affiliate site - The Balance Guide- to help others find resources for mental and emotional well being. Visit Cheryl's blog to see more of the diversity beyond business she has began offering online at www.thebalanceguide.blogspot.com - Visit Cheryl Matthynssens's Website |
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