Small Biz Marketing News Sample

Vol 3, Issue 24 - How to get a good respone with your direct response

Hi,

It's me again. And as the White Rabbit said in Alice in Wonderland, "I'm late. I'm late. For a very important date. No time to say "Hello." Goodbye. I'm late, I'm late, I'm late!"

Technically, this newsletter is a little late 'cuz it's after the middle of the month. And I'm sorry about that… No excuses.

Now, on top of being late, I'm going to ask you for a small favor (some nerve eh?). My newsletter… doesn't have a name. I've been sending it to you as "Details SBS Newsletter". Yawn. Boring!

I think it's well past time for it to have a name, don't you? So here's the favor. All I'm asking you to do is suggest a name, and if your name is chosen, I'm going to give you something to thank you.

I'm going to let you send me your next direct sales letter, and I'm going to help you edit it free of charge so it has all the elements of a successful sales letter. But I'm not going to just edit it. I'm going to show you one-on-one where it can be improved.

Don't have a sales letter? You should. Every small business should because it's one of the most successful ways to promote your business. But, if you don't have one, let me help you get started. Or, send me your website home page, and I'll help you with that instead.

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Now, to the task at hand. Last time we talked about direct response packages. How you can plan a direct response campaign with multiple mailings for several contacts to the same prospect. I neglected to tell you when to use that type of mailing.

You can use a multiple mailing campaign whenever you want, but the best time to use it is when you have a well-defined target market that you strongly suspect is looking for your particular product or service. And that brings me to a point-know thy prospect, and knoweth her well. Ok, ok, "knoweth is probably taking it a little far, but you get the point, right?

Let me show you why you need to know your prospect well. A friend of mine and her boyfriend have taken a trip someplace warm for the last three years. Now, they haven't always used the same travel agent, but they did use the same one twice, in the first two years.

So, the pattern is a trip every year in January or February, smack dab in the middle of the coldest part of our winter. And trust me, it is cold here in winter. I shiver just at the thought...

Anyway, doesn't it make sense, knowing that these two have taken a trip every year for the last three, that these two might, just maybe take a trip in January or February of 2007?

And if you were a travel agent, particularly one of the two that have helped them with their travel plans, doesn't it make sense to send them a short note wishing them a Merry Christmas, and an "oh, by the way, there's a seat sale on such and such a date for Cancun. Would you like me to send you some info about it?"

Sorry for the long-winded sentence. But doesn't it make sense? Does to me. If I was a travel agent, you can bet your bottom dollar I'd be betting those two want to go someplace warm this winter. And you can bet your bottom dollar I'd find a way to remind them that I helped them get that great trip last year.

And while we're on the subject, doesn't it make sense to you to send them a short note before their holiday wishing them a good time? Or a short note after their holiday thanking them? Does to me.

Know thy prospect. And know her well.

But I've digressed terribly. And in order to make this newsletter short enough that you're actually going to read it to the end, we'll just touch on the second way to structure your direct response package.

Quite simply, it's this… Go for broke. Send them all the information in the first package. Rather than just sending a letter of introduction to be followed up by a brochure to be followed up by a post card to be followed up by… well, you get the idea, send it all at once.

But keep this simple rule in mind. Rule? I don't like rules. Let's call it a guideline instead. Make sure your package says everything you need to say in order to convince your prospect of your message. But, do it at the least possible cost.

In other words, if you can say it with just a letter, keep it to just a letter. Add a brochure if you need to. Add a specs sheet, but only if you need to. Add your resume if it's appropriate.

So put the package together, and then test it. Run it by a few friends or neighbors. And then send 'em out and track your results. You do track your results, don't you?

Then make some changes. A few small ones, or all out changes, but make some changes, send 'em out again, and track those changes. Which one did better? That one is your control.

If it did well enough, leave it alone next time. If you're not satisfied with the results, tweak it some more. The point is this: marketing is all about experimenting. Don't be afraid to send that first mailing. Develop, distribute, record, tweak, and then send again...

Happy mailing!

Until next time...

Eve

P.S. If you're having trouble getting your direct response off the ground, give me a shout at 306.373.1459 or email info@detailssbs.com. Direct response copywriting just happens to be a specialty of mine.

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