Direct Mail Works
Should You Use Direct Mail?
Yes.
Yes because it works.
This morning in my mailbox I had direct mail (letters) from Amazon, Apple, Google and PayPal. I have had letters from other web companies. It’s also not uncommon to see these guys using TV more than ever to keep you in the loop.
Keep reading because this will help you.
I also want to share this with you; my most successful clients ALL use direct mail. Direct mail is in a surge right now.
Are you using direct mail?
Why you absolutely should be using direct mail every week.
Recently I had a client that wanted to contact someone. That someone would be their biggest client to date if the client could be contacted and a deal closed.
My client had emailed her target numerous times over a 6-month period with no reply. They had sent them Facebook messages with no reply. They had found people who knew them and asked them to contact them with absolutely no reply.
She asked me this one question.
Alan how do I get the mobile number of this client so I can at least speak to them.
My reply was this.
Use Direct mail.
How?
Clearly, I’m not going to reveal the exact process right now but what I can share is still hugely valuable.
Let me be clear here.
I am talking about using paper and envelopes or another packaging - NOT email as some now consider email as direct mail - IT ISN'T!
The direct mail is part of a carefully constructed system of direct mailers.
Every word in the mailer is carefully chosen, trigger loaded, buzzword based and is what I call conversation focused.
That means the start, the middle and the end are all superbly coherent fused and masterfully put together for one thing and one thing only – to get a response.
There is more.
The envelope, the stamp, the cover deign, the cover notes, the layout and design of the mailer, the delivery option and some other secrets.
Also, there is more.
The response mechanism at this side, the script, the conversation, and the call to action, the emotional reaction and tone of the response and is the response by phone, email, SMS or messenger?
There is even more.
Every direct mail needs to consider things like, call-outs, hand notes, jonsons boxes, hand -written notes, font choices, factoids and more.
And there is even more.
The delivery of the initial promise, the follow-up and any other physical reaction to being carried out during the system or campaign.
Back to my client's direct mail.
So I helped and consulted and advised on a campaign that initially had five direct mailers. The number five had been based on certain criteria after research had been carried out on the target.
The mailers had been designed and laid out according to what we felt (we don’t always know) would or could work.
Just one day after the direct mail went out my client had received an email.
The email had a thank you and a mobile number and a time my client was to call the person that responded!
A result!
Why is direct mail going through a resurrection and resurgence?
Think about it and you will see the answer is very simple. The noise from email, social media and other imagery and words is so great now its very hard to get heard. Yes even social media and the web can be highly targeted but when you realise estimates can go as high as 20,000 marketing messages pass through the eyes of the average person daily you really have to do something different.
I have a client that took just over £6,800 from a single direct mailer that cost him just £2 to run. I have other clients that have generated well into the millions using just direct mail. I even have another client at invests just over one million euros per month on direct mail.
Why you should use direct mail today.
When direct mail is done badly or wrong the results can be zero. If the results are zero this can be a loss for you
Direct mail works. It’s direct, it's focused, it massively profitable and will give you many more times conversion than any email will.
I myself started using direct mail around 1993/4 and used since. I have a huge track record with very successful, highly profitable direct mail writing and strategies.
Help with your direct mail campaign?
Fix your direct mail campaign?
Consult and advise on your direct mailers?
Create a powerful direct mail campaign
Put together a killer strategy for your direct mail campaign using almost 30-years of my direct mailing experience and working with some of the biggest direct mailers out there?
Would you simply like me to critique your campaign and mailers?
Would you like me to refine your headlines for your direct mailers?
Would you like me to create an irresistible offer for your campaigns?
Or if you are the type that believes they can do every area of expertise yourself and simply want free advice my advice is this.
Start direct mailing as soon as you can.
Research well and create a kiler strategy based on tested and proven formula.
My second bit of advice is this.
Never do it yourself – you are not an expert in all things. Be brilliant at what you are good at, hire experts.
You know where I am.
Alan Forrest Smith
Breakthrough Consultant
PS. Read more useful articles
How to Create Fliers That Sell
Creating a simple, targeted sales letter