Direct Mail

Direct Mail Campaigns

One of the strongest ways to get your message out is to send it directly to your prospects. Hoping and waiting for them to find you takes much longer.

Mail vs. Email

Direct mail is generally thought to be a low-cost and low-response method to promote one's business. For the cost of a stamp, you can get your message delivered to the address of your prospect.

But delivery does not mean your recipient actually receives it. In fact, most times mail gets intercepted by administrative help who may be given free will to dispose of unsolicited advertising.

Combine this delivery problem with the known fact that a person must be touched nine or more times with different pieces of direct mail before they will make an inquiry or be moved to make a purchase, and you have a long, long sales cycle with a low, low rate of return.

Email, on the other hand, is free -- relatively speaking -- and it is almost certain to get to directly to the recipient (except for those companies where management may be PC illiterate and allows their admin to pull their email -- actually this is quite common). The chief problem with email is in crafting the SUBJECT line so it does not appear to be spam (unwanted, unsolicited email). If the recipient believes otherwise, they will hit their delete button in a split second. Most people receive far too much junk email, and their patience is thin.

Email also tends to allow people to communicate in a friendlier, less formal fashion. This can be great is used correctly and professionally. Come on too familiar, and you will be brushed aside, but if you use just the right touch of "folksiness" then you may gain some mind share and penetration.

Gimmicks

Direct mail letters are usually best if they are long. The longer the better. Statistics have proven people will trash a one-page letter, but they will take the time to read a booklet.

It's best to consider the costs and value of including gimmicks, or what is commonly known as trinkets and trash. Don't give something away for nothing. Commit to delivering something of value if the recipient takes a step closer to get to know you better (ie: asks for further information, sets up an appointment for a demonstration, etc.).

Including a gimmick is usually better targeted for those instances when you are dealing with a person whose time is short, and when you need the influence and power of a top decision-maker. For instance, in one campaign we included a brass, desktop hourglass with the name and logo of the company on it. A letter stated "time was precious", and as a result, several high-level responses were received.

Newsletters

One of the best ways to stay in front of your prospects and customers is through a newsletter. These tend to have some shelf-life, and if they contain educational information in addition to promotional information, recipients tend to retain them and refer to them in the future.

With the advent of the Internet and web sites, more and more companies are giving visitors the option to "opt-in" to their email mailing list to receive a newsletter in electronic format. We've used this on the web sites of our customers as well as our own, and usually find we can generate a substantial mailing list of hundreds of people within a few weeks.

News Groups

Using Internet news groups is a Catch-22: you can use them to carefully promote your message, but in doing so, you stand the distinct chance of being perceived as a spammer. The net result is you could spend an inordinate amount of time fighting with people via email. This is not a good use of your time, and can frequently result as bad press -- no matter how misunderstood your intentions may have been.

The best thing to do before beginning a news group campaign is to read the FAQ -- the frequently asked questions and rules of engagement for a news group. These vary from group to group, so don't assume what works in one group will work another.

Once you are familiar with the rules, establish yourself as a helpful participant by scanning questions and responding with advice. You may add a signature file to your email which includes your company name, contact info and a slogan. After many months, you can begin to campaign more visibily and aggressively.

Services

Want to get started but not sure how? Contact us today to discuss your specific needs, and we'll generate a bunch of viable ways for you to get started with direct marketing quickly and easily.