need advice on direct mail campaign

[matt sheppard]

hey guys,

i am getting ready to do my first direct mail campaign and could use some advice as to what REALLY works the best. a friend of mine hooked me up with sales genie to get a list, here are the parameters

-400 homeowners within 5 miles of my house
- petowners
- annual income $100,000+
- house value $250,000+

i choose these criteria so that i would trim the list down to 400 mailers, a big enough list to get a return that i could handle ( 3-4% ? ) and track.
i live in a growing rural area 20 minutes outside of raleigh,nc. i figured the criteria would give me the kind of customer i am looking for ( families with kids and/or pets who have nice homes and are minimally affected by the present economy)

i plan on sending a jumbo-glossy -postcard with a before and after pic, maybe a head shot, locally owned and operated, and a 10% discount. the proof is not too busy where any info is lost.

what do you guys think ? what changes would you suggest. i am an O/O using a TM ( butler)

thanks for your help

matt

 

[Lora Olson]

Use a company to mail them for you! Most printers in your area will do direct mail. By the time you are done paying them for doing the mail you are still saving money with postage savings over doing labels.

Trust me, I was in the industry for 10 years!

Most places will let you use their indicia for free, which saves you too! Sometimes they can get deals from "list vendors" better than what you can.

Call them and consult with them FIRST, before you do any design work on your card. There are restrictions and requirements on the mail panel side that you need to know.

Just please don't think you will be saving money "doing it yourself" with labels and stamps, you just wont! I promise!!

Please feel free to call if you have any questions! 877-644-0077!

 

[joey895]

Well, I'm no help but if you get that 3-4% I'd like to talk to you about what you did. I bought a list almost exactly like yours of 430 names. Two weeks ago I sent out 120 of a 3 page ,supposedly proven, sales letter that was purchased from a reliable source. To date zero calls. I'm not giving up yet. I will get the rest of them out this week and next week but it's not looking good. Regardless of how many calls I get on the mailing I've committed to myself to mail at least 4 times to the same list and see what happens.

 

[Mark Imbesi]

Matt,

The key words in your post are "FIRST MAILING".

It's gonna take at least 3 mailings to the same addys to get some decent results and name recognition. Don't give up! I mail to the same demographics....Homeowners, Kids, Pets, $100,000 income, $250,000 home value. Joey's on the right track.

 

[matt sheppard]

marc

how often do you mail, once a month, every two months ??


joey

i tried that letter also ( " free room demo " ) ---- zero calls


thanks

matt

 

[Mark Imbesi]

I mail prospects about every 3-4 weeks with seasonal themes....father's day, etc...

I mail clients quarterly newsletters AND 6-12-18 and 24 month reminders.

I also advertise monthly (full page in a homemade community newsletter) in 2, 55+ communities of over 600 homes for $80/mo.

I've been prospecting 2 lists

1) 1000 homes within a booming area about 10 miles south of me

2) 800 homes of other 55+ communities not covered with the homemade newsletters

I'll hit these 2 lists at least until the end of the year and then re-evaluate.

 

[Trevor Truitt]

Two suggestions.

Have somebody else (Wayne Miller or others) design your card for you. And give a $$ of instead of %. Or free Scotchgard.

 

[Becker]

400 door to door fliers for me would bring about 8 jobs.

At least back when I was doing it.

In the mail I'm not sure.

 

[Trevor Truitt]

Hey Don,

Have you ever shared your flyer with us? Or at least the offer you used?

Thanks,

Trevor Truitt

 

[Mark Imbesi]

I've said this before in an earlier thread. At least where I live, there are many towns that outlaw door-to-door or charge the business a yearly fee to distribute flyers. Worth a phone call to the community you want to serve. Better yet, go to the municipality yourself, and inquirer about this, then leave a few business cards.