How To Use Direct Mail

HOW TO USE
DIRECT MAIL
BY BIPIN R. PANDIT

Direct Mail refers to brochures, letters, postcards, and catalogs that are sent thorough the mail and are expected to bring an immediate sale or inquiry.
Also, if you hand out brochures at fairs, trade shows, or other places where prospects simply pick up your sales literature and walk away with it, it is a good idea to use direct-mail principles in your writing and design. Direct-mail techniques are designed to “ask for the sale”.
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HOW TO USE DIRECT MAIL ?

WHO SHOULD USE DIRECT MAIL ?
Direct mail is for advertisers with a highly specific target market. It is a perfect vehicle for selling products and services that require more than 30 seconds (the length of a typical TV or radio spot) to explain.
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ADVANTAGES OF DIRECT MAIL :
Direct mail allows you to reach customers anywhere in the country or the world – or even in a single neighborhood.
Direct mail lets you choose exactly who will see your promotion.
You can precisely measure the effect of direct mail by the number of responses a campaign brings.
Buying by mail has become more popular since more women have taken jobs outside the home and have less time for shopping.
Although the cost to produce and send a direct-mail package can be high, the cost per sale can be very low compared to other media.
Direct Mail creates short-tem sales boosts with “urgent” messages.
Coupons sent via direct mail are highly redeemed (when compared to similar coupons in newspaper ads).
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DISADVANTAGES OF DIRECT MAIL :
The cost of production and mailing can strain a small business ad budget.
Because of the cost, it is difficult for small advertisers to produce test mailings, a key step in determining effectiveness.
“ Junk Mail” angers many recipients; growing concern over the environment may increase the number of people who disapprove of the amount of paper used for mailing.
If your target is not very specific, a high percentage of your mailings can be wasted.
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COSTS OF DIRECT MAIL
Costs vary greatly. You may spend as little as $200 to send a postcard mailing to customers or as much as $25,000 on a modest catalog mailing. A typical direct-mail package consisting of a two-color brochure, a one-page letter, a return envelope, and a response device (reply card), mailed first class to 5000 prospects will cost from $2,500 to $5,000.
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EFFECTIVE DIRECT MAIL BEGINS WITH YOUR MAILING LIST
In direct mail, the proper mailing list is everything. The mailing list determines what you will offer and how you will offer it. It also determines how likely the recipients are to respond to your offer.
Two types of lists available from mailing list companies are : compiled lists and responder lists.
1. Compiled Lists :
Compiled mailing lists are assembled from directories or membership lists. The names and addresses they contain may come from the Yellow Pages, trade association membership rolls, city directories , or other existing lists.
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EFFECTIVE DIRECT MAIL BEGINS WITH YOUR MAILING LIST
2. Responder Lists :
Responder Lists contain the names of people who subscribe to
magazines, hold certain credit cards, donate to charities, join
book clubs, or buy items from mail order companies.
3. Some things to know when renting a list :
It is easy to rent a compiled list; once your credit is established,
you can do it with a single phone call. Owners of responder lists, on
the other hand, are often very particular about renting their lists. After
all, the names on the lists are not just names, they are the customers
of the list owner. So when renting a responder list, expect to mail a
copy (at least a comp) of your intended mailing piece to the list owner;
and allow enough time to seek out an alternative list source if the
owner rejects your mailing. Owners frequently reject mailings as being
too competitive with their own business or not appropriate (or
sometimes even offensive) to their customers.
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PRINCIPLES OF DIRECT MAIL :
STRESS BENEFIT :
Your headline must state the primary benefit of your offer so vividly that the recipient begins to feel that he or she simply must have whatever you are selling.
REPEAT YOUR OFFER MORE THAN ONCE :
Repeat your offer to make sure that it can’t be missed. In a typical package, your offer should appear three times: on the brochure, on the response device, and in the letter.
OFFER AN INCENTIVE :
“ Buy within 30 days and receive the free book”. “Respond by September 15 and save 15% off the purchase price.”
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OFFER A GUARANTEE :
Since people are wary of buying unseen merchandise from an unknown supplier, offer them the best possible guarantee you can: “Double your money back” or “Guaranteed for life”.
PUT YOUR COPYWRITER IN CHARGE :
For direct mail, you should use a copywriter experienced in direct-mail techniques.
DON’T BE AFRAID OF LONG COPY :
Why ? Logic says, “keep it simple, stupid.“ Logic says that if you’re trying to sell something to a reader, you want to impose on him or her as little as possible. Logic says that hardly anybody will actually read all that stuff.
Logic is partly right. Hardly anybody will read long, elaborate copy, but the small percentage who do read everything are among those most likely to buy.
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Long copy serves two purposes :
a. It gives the casual reader more opportunities to see something that catches his or her interest.
b. It helps you close the sale by giving the truly interested reader more information about your product.
DO NOT WRITE COPY THAT IS OVER THE READER’S HEAD
Don’t make people work too hard at reading your copy; you’ll lose them.
GIVE THE CUSTOMER MORE THAN ONE OPTION FOR RESPONDING :
If possible, give your potential customer the option to either call or mail in an order. Giving two choices makes the potential buyer feel more in control; that leads to higher response rates.
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How To Use Direct Mail

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