Yes, there’s the Internet and Search Engines and Pay-Per-Click and Blogging and E-Mail blasts and cyberspace and pod casts, but good old-fashioned direct mail is still a very effective marketing tool, both in business-to-business and business-to-consumer marketing. Here are 10 practical tips for making it even more effective.
1. Targeted Mailing List: Mail to as focused, pre-qualified and targeted a list as possible. This is not always an option, but when you can, it saves paper, postage, time, money and aggravation.
2. Solve a Problem: Start with your prospect's problem, then quickly present your solution. Example: “Like most business owners, you probably need working capital. We specialize in funding sources your bank does not even know exist!”
3. Do NOT Try to Sell Everything You Have: The purpose of your mailing should NOT be to make a sale! It is very difficult to “sell” via direct mail. The purpose should be to get pre-qualified prospects to call you (where one of your telephone sales reps can close the sale) or get the prospect to your website so it can do the selling.
4. Talk TO...not AT...Your Prospect: Get out of the third person. Communicate as if the prospect was sitting in your office. Replace "Most businesses probably need..." with "you probably need..."
5. Mail Postcards: Oversize postcards are neither high tech nor innovative, but they are very effective, they are economical, the recipient does not have to open an envelope, you can put your message on the address side, and they get results!
6. Use a Mailing House to Process Your Mailing: They have software that will append +4 zip codes to your prospect list, and equipment that will print the address, bar code and mailing indicia in one pass, saving you time and money, and creating better looking pieces. Look in the Yellow Pages under Mailing Services if you do not know of a mailing house in your area.
7. Use Standard Mail: This used to be called Bulk Rate. A mailing house can pre-sort your mail and save you about 30% on postage. In fact, what you pay them for their service you will make back in savings on postage!
8. Give Your Recipients Options: We all want to be in control. We want choices. But not too many choices. Give prospects a website to visit and a number to call. Preferably a toll-free number. Prospects are far more likely to call a toll free number, even though calling your regular number is a local call.
9. Accurately Track the Results: Put a unique toll free number on your direct mail and set up a separate website for recipients to visit so you can accurately track exactly how many responses you are getting. Without such a tracking system, leads from your direct mail get mixed in with all your other programs, and you do not really know what is working for you and what is not.
10. Give Recipients a Deadline: “Act Today!” or “Call Now!” is fine, but why? Give recipients a real reason to respond right away. "Call us before June 30, and receive free shipping." or "All digital copiers delivered in August come with one year of free toner!"
Direct mail still works, it's affordable and effective, if you know what you are doing.
10 Tips to More Effective Direct Mail - To learn more about this author, visit Glen Anderson's Website.
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