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Only 1% of people can recall 12
ads associated with a company |
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70% of e-commerce companies say
they use mailing lists & direct mail to
promote their web sites |
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According to the DMA, nearly 33%
of people respond to direct mail by going online
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| Keys to Effective
Direct Marketing |
| by VERL ALLEN |
Most of us are familiar with direct
marketing and don't even know it. This is because we
commonly confuse direct marketing with advertising.
Advertising is typically used by businesses to build
image, awareness and loyalty. Direct marketing, on the
other hand, is used to generate an immediate customer
response. The type of response generated by direct
marketing can come in the following forms:
- Direct order or sale
- New sales lead
- Traffic to your business
Direct marketing
crosses most media types including mail, television,
radio, and Internet and it can be targeted to businesses
or consumers. Additionally, direct marketing campaigns
vary in scale, from a small direct mail piece to
existing customers to an integrated national new
customer acquisition campaign. However, each direct
marketing campaign has one important goal, to solicit a
specific response or action from a target consumer.
The success of a direct marketing campaign depends on
the work that happens before the campaign goes live. The
primary factors that will affect its success are:
- The list or audience you target
- The offer or promotion you make
- The creative execution you choose
There
are some important things to remember when designing a
direct marketing campaign. Research has shown that each
of the success factors is not equal. In fact, most
experts estimate that 80 percent of your success is
related to the audience you target and the offer you
make to this target audience. Knowing this affects how
you develop your direct marketing campaign.
The first question you need to answer is, "Who is the
customer?" This sounds simple, but most companies
struggle with this question. It is important to know if
you are targeting consumers or businesses because if you
are targeting a business you must understand who the
decision-makers are in the business. Also, it is
important to understand what other groups have an
interest in, or influence the purchase decision, and the
criteria used for evaluating your product or service. Read
on... |
| What Every
Business Person Needs to Know About Direct
Mail-Part 1 |
by ROB
MARSH
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Probably none
of them.
These advertising options aren't aimed
at your customers. They're aimed at huge general
audiences and don't take into account age, gender,
occupation, education, interests, and perhaps most
importantly the desire to buy your product.
Fortunately, there is a way to reach your
customers without wasting money advertising to thousands
of people who have no interest in you-direct mail. Used
correctly it may be the best way to reach the people who
are looking for your product.
But before you slap your name and address on a
postcard and drop it to all your friends and neighbors,
there are a few things you should know and do to make
sure you get your money's worth.
First,
identify your audience. To promote a series of
chartered golf vacations, a travel agency developed a
beautiful direct mail piece that included a color
brochure, a letter from a respected PGA player, quotes
from satisfied customers, and an offer of free golf
balls for anyone who spoke to an agent for more
information. Despite high expectations, it performed
terribly. Why? As agents placed follow-up calls to the
recipients, they heard the same thing, over and over-"I
don't golf."
Amazingly, thousands of businesses
make a similar mistake everyday. They mail their
carefully prepared direct mail to the wrong people. You
can have the best package, the most compelling writing,
beautiful photography, and a can't-miss offer and not
make a single sale if you mail it to people who just
aren't interested.
A butcher probably shouldn't waste his time mailing
to vegetarians. A mortgage refinance company might
decide to ignore renters. And a dog walker can probably
ignore cat owners. Start with your own customers. Find
out everything you can about your customers and offer
your products to people just like them. Read
on... |
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| Company Name: |
| Lawn
Rangers |
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| Location: |
| Pearland, Texas |
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| Owner: |
| Aaron W. O'Donley |
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| Tips
from Aaron: |
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Think of each customer as a cog in your
company and treat them accordingly. |
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Don't overextend yourself!!! If a
company needs to keep their operation of moderate size
in lieu of fulfilling monetary goals-do it, for
now....but never sacrifice customer sevice to get
there!! Ultimately it's the few customers you began with
that will get you where you want to be in the
future. |
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Be persistent and sell your company
and/or product with pride!! First impressions and
continued customer service are the keys to any
successful business. |
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And last but not least.... Never tarnish
your company name or goals by short-stepping or cutting
corners!! Go that extra step... it will pay off!!
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