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B2B Direct Mail Lists: Ask These Questions Before Renting.
If the most important part of any business-to-business direct
mail package is the list, how can you be sure that you have a
good list before you drop your money (and your reputation) in
the mailbox? Answer: Ask the right questions before you...
Direct Mail
Direct Mail The web is a most versatile and often misused medium for direct marketing. In this email, I will share tips and techniques to make the web a major advertising tool for your sales and marketing efforts. Do you have a website? A Web...
Direct Mail and The Real Estate Agent
For many agents, the most utilized forms of advertising and lead generation are former client contact, which may or may not lead to referrals for new business, and the old standby, the local real estate magazine. All are great ways to generate...
Direct Mail Envelope Tips For Successful B2B Lead Generation
In business-to-business direct mail lead generation, more prospects see your mailing envelope than will ever see what is inside. That's because prospects spend only a few seconds examining your envelope before deciding whether to peruse it or pitch...
Direct Mail your money
I did a quick, very unscientific survey of 25 of my friends. I asked them to put the mail that they do not open or read in a specific trash bag. At the end of one week they gave it to me to be weighed. Guess how much the bag weighed? Remember, most...
Eleven Ideas to Generate More Direct Mail Responses
Eleven Ideas to Generate More Direct Mail Responses
1. When writing copy for your direct mail marketing pieces, make sure to indent the first line of each paragraph. It, literally, pulls your potential customers into the copy you've written.
2....
Increase Direct Mail Response Rates With Double Window Envelopes.
Here's something to test.
Take your existing business-to-business direct mail package and
make just one change: put two windows on the mailing envelope
instead of one. Mail it and see what happens.
According to direct mail...
Redirecting Your Mail When You Move
Have you recently moved into a new apartment? Wonder why your mailbox is empty? Did you remember to redirect your mail? It's difficult to remember all of the things you need to take care of before leaving your apartment. You've got hours of...
Self-mailers in B2B Direct Mail: Advantages and Disadvantages
Business-to-business direct mail marketers have learned through
testing that a letter in an envelope will usually generate more
sales and pull more inquiries than a self-mailer will.
Why is that? And on what occasions are you wise to use...
Writing direct mail that really, really works
So, you have something you want to sell. It may be a product, a service, or a cause. It could be a membership, a subscription, or a motor car. It might be paper, health products or the idea that the humane society or the Alzheimer’s association is...
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Deliver Profits with Direct Mail
If you are in business, you might want to consider using direct mail to find new customers or drum up more business from your existing ones. If using a print broker or a direct mail agency isn't within your budget, you might opt to do the mailing yourself.
Experts say that increasing your leads through direct mail is both an art and a science. However, you'll improve your response rates if you keep these "secrets" in mind:
1. Your mailing list accounts for 603f your mailing's success. It must contain recipient's name (not just the title) and must reflect your target market. Additionally, it must be fresh, groomed to remove duplicates and incorrect postal codes, and recently updated.
You can rent lists for $75 to $140 per 1,000 (M) names. However, if you want "selects", expect to pay an additional $5-10/M per select. (For example, if you want names of advertising managers working in Chicago and Hong Kong, you might be asked to pay for three selects -- one for advertising managers and two for the geographic locations.
As a rule of thumb, the better you can target your market, the better it will be. For instance, if you are selling a golf book, you could send the mailing to every postal address within a zip code (expensive), or you could target the list to members of golf clubs or persons who have expressed an interest in hearing about golf-related products.
2. A direct mail package outperforms a self-mailer by a 4:1 ratio. Typically, a mail package includes an outside envelope, a one or two page sales letter and a reply device. The less-expensive self-mailers are not sent in an envelope.
3. Postcards are the most economical means of direct mail. Moreover, the recipient does not have to open them to read the message.
4. Personalized messages perform better than non-personalized. Messages sent by first class mail that at least give the appearance of being hand typed and hand stamped will outperform those that appear to be bulk-mailed. Yes, first-class is more expensive, but perhaps you can cut corners in some other area.
5. The call-to-action part
of your mail-out is critical. Be sure to tell your recipients what it is you want them to do, and provide a compelling reason why they should act. For example, you could include a no-risk, no-obligation offer that encourages recipients to contact you promptly for more information. Or, create urgency through time- limited offers, mention of an upcoming event, etc.
6. Put a teaser, testimonial or strong benefit statement on the envelope. You must induce the recipient to open the envelope, or all is wasted.
7. Encourage the recipient to contact you. Ask for the contact and provide more than one way in which the recipient can act. If you include a postage-paid Business Reply Envelope, you will only pay postage on the actual responses that are mailed.
8. Your sales letter can contain long copy, but only if it is written to hold interest. Write in a conversational manner, avoid jargon, write at an eighth grade level, and use an authentic-looking signature. As in any copy, use eye-catching headlines and stress benefits not features.
9. Remember to add a PS. After the envelope and headline, it's the most read element.
10. Analyze the results of your mail out, and learn from it. Use tracking so you know how many sales or contacts resulted from your mailing. Ask customers how they heard of your offer. If (or more likely, when) undeliverable mail is returned to you, remove these addresses from your list.
Interested in publishing this article in your ezine, website or print publication? This article is available for your use provided you include the info box below.
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About the Author
June Campbell is a self-employed writer. Her work has been published many time in various international publications. Visit June on the web for resources and guides for small business.
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