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Direct Mail Catalogs & Brochures: Write Captions That Sell
Many prospects skim through catalogs and brochures, glancing at the photos and reading the accompanying captions only when a particular image arouses their interest. That's when you have their attention. And so that's when you sell them. My advice...
Direct Mail Marketing Now As Easy As Email
Is the United States Postal Service (USPS) a marketing innovator? As it turns out, the kind folks in the blue shorts are in fact making it easy for even the smallest business to duke it out with their biggest competitors by using the USPS new...
Direct Mail --- The Followup Letter
Everyone know the importance of the sales letter. But many people fail to use one of the most critical elements of direct mail --- the followup letter.
Everyone knows to send out the sales letter. Most everyone knows to put in a reply card for...
Improve Your B2B Direct Mail Response Rates With Premiums.
Premiums are an effective way to increase your direct mail
response rates. Whether you are selling a product or service
directly through the mail, or whether you are using a sales
letter to generate leads, premiums can help you boost...
In B2B Direct Mail Lead Generation, Work Backwards
Business-to-business lead generation is one of the few times in life when you should start at the end and work backwards.
Before you write a single line of copy or design a single element of your direct mail package, sit down with the sales people...
In Business-to-Business Direct Mail Sales Letters, Make It Easy To Respond
I have a client who wanted to drive prospective
customers to his online store using a
business-to-business postcard. Great idea, I
thought, and cost
effective.
He had a terrific product, a compelling offer, and a
sound business model....
RAISE FUNDS FOR YOUR NONPROFIT USING AN ANUUAL DIRECT MAIL PROGRAM
A good annual direct mail solicitation program can produce unrestrictive operating funds for your nonprofit organization year after year. And such an annual direct mail program, if done right, should produce more funding for your organization each...
Test Your B2B Direct Mail Offers To Boost Response Rates.
The secret to success in business-to-business direct mail lead
generation is testing. I have hunches. You have hunches. But
testing settles the debate. When you test your package against
my package and we measure the results, we know for certain...
The Facts of a Direct Mailing List
It is a well-known fact that businesses cannot exist without
advertising. In fact, it is considered as the lifeblood of every
business. It is so important that businesses everywhere are more
than willing to spend thousands of dollars just to get...
Top 10 Tips for Growing Your Business with Direct Mail Postcards
Introduction: Why Use Postcards? If you've priced out display advertising or Yellow Pages listings, you know that they can add up to big money in a hurry. Quite often, these valuable promotional tools are beyond the budgets of many small and...
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Improve Your B2B Direct Mail Response Rates With Premiums.
Premiums are an effective way to increase your direct mail
response rates. Whether you are selling a product or service
directly through the mail, or whether you are using a sales
letter to generate leads, premiums can help you boost response,
increase conversions and motivate buyers to pay now rather than
later.
A premium is simply an item that you offer to your buyer to take
action. As Dick Benson has said, "a premium is a bribe to say
yes now."
Premiums are effective because, dollar for dollar, they are
better incentives than cash discounts. Given the choice between
receiving a free Apple iPod or a $200 discount on their order,
most buyers will opt for the iPod.
Here are some tips on using premiums effectively.
Aim for desirability over relevance
The key to choosing the right premium for your audience is
desirability. If the premium is related in some way with what
you are selling, that is great, but whether your prospect
desires your premium is more important than if the premium is
associated with your offering.
For example, a firm that manufactures heavy-duty fasteners could
offer prospective customers an oversize bolt in the form of a
paperweight, or they could offer a $200 gift certificate to Best
Buy (the home electronics store). The paperweight is relevant
but undesirable. The gift certificate is desirable but not
relevant to the firm's business.
The best premium, of course, is closely related to your
offering, is desirable, and makes your prospect look like a wise
buyer.
Choose premiums with high perceived value
You want your premium to look as though it costs more than
it
does. A leather attaché case, for example, that has a high
perceived value but only costs you $30. Or a portable DVD player
that appears worth $150 but costs you only $40.
Test your premiums
What works for one business buyer will not work for another.
What works in one industry will not work in another. One
inexpensive way to test high-end, expensive premiums is to offer
them as "back-end premiums" that your prospects must request.
Segment your list into equal-sized groups, mail a different
premium offer to each segment, and then count your responses to
see which premium draws the best response.
Promote your offer, not your premium
Your premium is the bribe for saying yes now. It is not your
offer. And because you should only sell one thing in a direct
mail package, you should sell your offer and give your premium
away. You want your premium to be the incentive to act, not the
reason to act (after all, some people respond to direct mail
offers just to get the premium, then they cancel their order).
Check the law
Some industries (defence, for example), forbid their employees
from accepting gifts or premiums from vendors. So check before
mailing.
About the author:
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About the author
Alan Sharpe is a business-to-business direct mail copywriter and
lead generation specialist who helps business owners and
marketing managers generate leads, close sales and retain
customers using business-to-business direct mail marketing.
Learn more about his creative direct mail writing services and
sign up for free weekly tips like this at www.sharpecopy.com.
© 2005 Sharpe Copy Inc. You may reprint
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