Four Direct Marketing Tips To Remember

              Offers are the key to direct marketing success:  What’s an offer?  An offer is your hook that compels your customer to respond “Risk Free” to your offer.   For instance, our $9.95 21-day trial is an offer.  Allowing customers to post date their checks is an offer.  A double money-back guarantee is an offer. You can pay in three installments is an offer.  Offers will always increase sales.

             Your offer can increase response as much as 100%.  For instance, I tested one of my letters where I didn’t offer the $6.95 free trail and response dropped as much as 100%.  That’s significant.  Of course, when your offer free trials it will increase your number of returns, bad checks and declined credit cards, but despite such issues, you will still make more money.

            Did you know return envelopes can increase response by 33%.   I use return envelopes for all my mailings.  I don’t include them in the small mailings of 1,000 because I don’t know if they are as cost effective for such mailings.  However, if you’re going to mail 5,000 envelopes, I do recommend that you use them.  It will cost you an additional $200 — which would essentially be covered with four orders.  Let’s say you get 100 orders without return envelopes, you would receive 133 with them.  That would come to an additional $1,500 and $1,300 in additional money in your pocket.   

             The money is always in the backend:   In direct marketing it’s critical that you have a back end offer — a second offer on the back, and preferably something that can provide you recurring income. Or, a higher ticket product such as a course, high end training materials or seminar.  And/or, at least allows you to be leveraged with an ever growing numbers of mailers under you.  That’s also why we are going to be making the course available for commissions starting the New Year.

            Refunds, Bad Checks, & Returns, often the difference between profit and loss:   A lot of times you can have your mailing bring in enough orders to turn a profit, but it’s the returns, bad checks and declined credit cards that can sometimes take a profitable mailing and make it a loss.  It’s just a part of this business  you can’t avoid. It’s also important that we address and honor all returns as to keep our name clean and free of complaints.