Advertising 102

In this discussion we will cover how to make your direct mail marketing campaign give you the greatest possible return. Think of this as a ladder with four legs. In order for your ladder to work properly and take you to a higher level all four legs must be firmly planted on solid ground.

First Leg: Who?

Who are your typical customers? Or even more importantly, who are you trying to make a customer.
If you own a Nail Salon then your typical customers are women between the ages of 16 and 50. If it is a tackle shop then your typical customer is male between the ages of 18 and 65. That is not to say there aren't a few exceptions, but we need to aim at the biggest target to insure a direct hit. So, identify your typical customer, and know how they think and what makes them tick. What would make them respond?

Second Leg: Where?

Where is your typical customer located? If you own a dry cleaner, then your typical customer lives within one mile of your location. If you own a Pest Control Service, then your  customer could live as far as 20 miles away. Identifying where helps to know which way to aim.  Also, identify other factors such as: age, income, marital status, gender, credit score, number of children per household, percentage of owner to renters. All of these fall into the category of where to mail.

Third Leg: What?

What is your message? Sale!, 50% off!, New Location!, New Ownership!, Off Season Discounts!
Sending the right message is crucial. Many mail campaigns have failed due to a week message.
Example:
Bob's Dry Cleaning
Corner of Main and Elm
Open 6 days a week 7am to 7pm

Snore city! No call to action, no reason to switch from your dry cleaner to theirs--

Here is a better ad:

Bob's Dry cleaning In Business for 25 years
Voted the best dry cleaner in town for two year in a row
Corner of Main and Elm
Open 6 days a week 7am to 7pm
For the month of May only, Get 1 Item dry cleaned FREE with every five items!

This is a much stronger ad!

Fourth Leg: When

This is often the forgotten ingredient. But understanding the when of a Mail Campaign is critical.
If you owned a Christmas tree lot and advertised a great sale to the right areas, targeting the perfect customers the day after Christmas.... Your mail campaign will fail. Now I know that this is a ridiculous example, but it illustrates that approaching customers when they are ready to buy is good but approaching customers when they are about to think about buying is even better. Statistically if you can get a customers attention before he has started the process of shopping for a good or service, thenyou have a 60% chance of selling him without him even shopping other companies. As opposed to a 40% chance of selling him once he has started the shopping process. An example of that would be if you are a travel agency, and you put out an ad that listed several cruise specials and you send them out in April. You have a 20% greater chance of selling a customer as a result of timing. Once they starts shopping for vacations  in May, you are not the first company they have called, you are one of many. 

 

At Printing Etc. we understand your industry and we know your customer, who they are, where they live, what makes them tick, and most importantly, how to reach out and touch them with your message!

We are not selling paper and ink. We are selling a proven mail campaign that works!

Printing Etc. ....Ideas that work from concept to completion.