To succeed with direct response marketing you should first develop a master financial plan. Put your numbers on paper before you create your first mailing.
Include these key elements in your plan:
- Go & No-Go decision dates and objectives:
Schedule in advance when you will make your decision whether or not to proceed with follow-up direct mail efforts.
Determine in advance what response targets you need to hit to be successful.
- Selection of products or services suitable to direct mail marketing: The key here is to calculate in advance which products will allow you the most back-end sales and profit. Just about any service or product can be sold with direct mail. But, some sales have greater potential to lead to future sales. These sales that lead to future sales are where you should focus your attention. A one-shot sale is unlikely to be worth the effort you will expend up front to develop your promotion... so beware.
- Find a market gap: Its hard to find an original angle but having one will make your direct mail sales efforts far more effective. If the market is full of low cost competitors then perhaps you should position yourself as the company that offers custom installation, etc. Be creative, nothing will make you more successful in direct mail marketing than finding a market gap -- and then filling it. View it as finding out where your competitors are weak and (if applicable) make yourself strong in that area.
- Make sure you are making your potential customers an offer: Too many companies believe that just telling about their wonderful product should be sufficient to convince a potential customer to buy. Think about what motivates the buyer... something free, low cost intro, special guarantee etc.
- Focus on your most powerful lists: Zero in on the most targeted list you can imagine regardless of how small it may be. Chances are if you cannot sell to your most likely prospects you'll have a hard time selling to anyone else either.
- Choose your mailing formats objectively: don't base your decisions on your own personal likes and dislikes. When launching a new program start off with formats that have been proven to work efficiently in the past. Establish a baseline which you can use to evaluate new test ideas.
- Write copy that sells: Start with basic concepts you have seen work successfully for others. Later, start adding layers of your own creative ideas and begin searching for a dynamic breakthrough concept.
- Plan to fulfill your product promptly: You can't afford to let a lead sit and grow cold. You have to deliver what you promise and do it quickly if you want to get repeat business. It is also a proven fact that fast fulfillment leads to more orders from the very same campaign!
- Establish a budget for future testing: know in advance that direct marketing consists of continuing testing of ideas and of the marketplace. You'll have to strive to beat your past success through refining your mailings, efficient cost cutting, and testing new offers. Look into the near future and set aside some cash to try your new ideas.
- Analyze your results carefully: Don't try to use your results to prove conclusions you want to be true. dig in and let the numbers tell you what's really going on and face the facts. Direct marketing by mail or online is a business endeavor, not a mission or labor of love. Interpret your numbers is a cold business like manner.
- Plan now for repeat sales: Have a structured program to get repeat business from existing customers. Advance planning for high profit repeat sales very often affects the manner in which you go after your first sale. Plan in advance.
These are some basic points to help you think through your mailings. The key concept is that you must analize each single goal against the multiple goals you have for your plan overall. |
