Tags |
|
|
Links |
|
|
Atricle Dump - Direct Mail Postcards: 10 Ways to Boost Your Response Rates
As a restaurant industry veteran, I’ve attended and/or exhibited at industry trade shows for many years. Nearly every time I go, I’m surprised at the peculiar lineup of seminars being offered.Food safety, new credit card options, employee benefits, uniform rentals…nearly every subject of interest to restaurant owners and operators is covered. Every one, that is, except marketing.Why is marketing acumen taken for granted in the restaurant business? Perhaps it’s the divide that exists between major operators and small independents. Chains and high-volume independents have the staff and the resources to develop sophisticated marketing programs that attract and retain customers as well as promote new products. Their need to acquire new skills is relatively small.Small independents, on the other hand—the largest segment of the restaurant industry, by the way—are in critical need of help. As I meet small ope
1. Start with the big idea.
A good offer will motivate people to respond. A solid promise of value will motivate people to respond. But a pretty postcard alone will no
Try This NowTake a good look around and make a list of all the objects you can see that are blue. Take your time, there is no hurry.Got your list? You've probably got between five and fifteen objects. Now shut your eyes and think of all the red things you saw when making the list. The weird thing is that you will be able to think of one or two objects but if look around now, you will see just as many red things as blue things.The human brain is an amazing filter and will ignore anything it doesn't consider important. This is why when looking for blue objects, you ignored the red. This is very useful for the brain as it can focus on the important thing but it is a nightmare for advertisers and sellers. Unless the customer is already looking for you, they are not going notice you. In order to beat human nature, weird things need to happen.I Blame Saber-Toothed Tigers Direct mail postcards have long been the workhorse of direct marketing. Direct marketers have used postcards for decades, simply because they work. Why else would they still be around after all these years?
But as with any other form of marketing, direct mail postcards should be optimized in every way possible. To get the highest return on your investment, you must seek constant improvement in all aspects of your postcard marketing program.
After working in the direct mail postcard industry for a few years, I've noticed some trends. I've seen which postcard strategies work the best, and which ones should be avoided. And I'd like to share a little of that with you right now. Just keep in mind that the only way to truly validate a direct mail strategy is to try it for yourself.
So here are 10 of the best ways to improve your direct mail postcard response rates:
1. Start with the big idea.
A good offer will motivate people to respond. A solid promise of value will motivate people to respond. But a pretty postcard alone will no
Being unemployed can lead to depression. I remember being concerned that when my husband became unemployed he would become depressed. Once you become unemployed several things could go through your mind: 1) you could think it was your fault you no longer have a job; 2) you are worthless; 3) you are causing your family to incur debt; 4) think no one will hire you; and 5) you have no motivation to go and look for a job.You sit at home and these thoughts bombard your mind over and over. The more you focus on these thoughts; it can lead you to become depressed. What can you do to pull yourself out of this depression? 1) look at your accomplishments prior to losing your job; 2) believe that you can do better than before you lost your job; 3) research your local paper, contact colleagues and find out if there are in leads on jobs in your field; 4) begin networking which might be new
After working in the direct mail postcard industry for a few years, I've noticed some trends. I've seen which postcard strategies work the best, and which ones should be avoided. And I'd like to share a little of that with you right now. Just keep in mind that the only way to truly validate a direct mail strategy is to try it for yourself.
So here are 10 of the best ways to improve your direct mail postcard response rates:
1. Start with the big idea.
A good offer will motivate people to respond. A solid promise of value will motivate people to respond. But a pretty postcard alone will no
People may be quick to tell you that you have a dream job. They see the nice house you live in and the new car in your driveway. You can pay your bills every month, and you have money left over to take trips for vacations or go out and buy your fabulous flat screen television (latest model, of course!).Yet, deep down, you know this isn't your dream job. It might have been so a few years ago, but now you may be feeling like that once-upon-a-time dream job has turned into a bit of a nightmare - and it's getting worse. Sure, it pays well, but, actually, you realize you hate your job. Time for something new and a change?Look at these top eight reasons for a job change and see any fit your situation:ChallengeYour days at the office could be long and boring, and you are lacking something to get excited about. Been there, done that. People need challenge to stay motivated and be productive; otherwise, they'l
After working in the direct mail postcard industry for a few years, I've noticed some trends. I've seen which postcard strategies work the best, and which ones should be avoided. And I'd like to share a little of that with you right now. Just keep in mind that the only way to truly validate a direct mail strategy is to try it for yourself.
So here are 10 of the best ways to improve your direct mail postcard response rates:
1. Start with the big idea.
A good offer will motivate people to respond. A solid promise of value will motivate people to respond. But a pretty postcard alone will no
I recently saw an ad taped to my mailbox, mind you, my mailbox is shared by many residents of my area. The postal real estate is typically reserved for flyers of lost dogs, cats, small children, etc. This time, however, the ad was soliciting a service which, I feel, requires a personal connection. The ad simply stated: “Affordable, Quality, Licensed, Day Care. Call XXX-XXXX”While I do not have children yet, I can only assume a responsible parent would look at this impersonal solicitation for their young children and laugh. Would you consider trusting this nameless, faceless, credit-less, organization with your children? Maybe some days this would be appealing, but realistically?I started thinking about credibility and what an important role it plays in today’s business economy. I looked in the yellow pages for a landscaping company – six pages vying for my dollar, yet all of them lacked personality. Not one said, “
So here are 10 of the best ways to improve your direct mail postcard response rates:
1. Start with the big idea.
A good offer will motivate people to respond. A solid promise of value will motivate people to respond. But a pretty postcard alone will no
Many folks know that our nation and business community is being turned over to the lawyers and therefore many parents want their kids to become a lawyer. But which kind of law should they practice?Should they become a class-action lawyer, which often destroy jobs in America and rape Corporations like John Edwards? Should they become a lawyer and then become a district attorney and parlay that into becoming a politician? One would suppose if misrepresentation runs in your family genes then that would make sense. Two-thirds of our politicians are lawyers and all the Judicial Branch.Franchise Law is a good place to work because you are dealing with a business model, which works best when there is a win/win situation. For instance when the franchisee makes money the franchisor is happy because they make money, extend brand name and are able to sell even more franchises.When a franchisee buys a franchise he or sh
1. Start with the big idea.
A good offer will motivate people to respond. A solid promise of value will motivate people to respond. But a pretty postcard alone will not. So before you worry about the wording or the design of your direct mail postcard, focus on the big idea. What's the whole point behind your direct mail postcards? What's the offer, incentive or idea that's going to make people say, "Wow, I definitely want to learn more about that!"
2. Invest in your mailing list.
Now that you have a big idea for your direct mail postcards, you'll need to match it to the right group of people. In reality, you should already have a profile in mind of your ideal customers -- that's Good Business 101. But you'll need a direct mail list that matches your ideal audience profile as closely as possible.
Don't skimp on this step. An in-house list of qualified prospects is usually the best way to go. If you don't have one, call in the experts. Use a professional data company like InfoUSA, or a high
HTTP = HTML link (for blogs, profiles,phorums):
<a href="http://www.articledump.net/article/30450/articledump-Direct-Mail-Postcards-10-Ways-to-Boost-Your-Response-Rates.html">Direct Mail Postcards: 10 Ways to Boost Your Response Rates</a>
BB link (for phorums):
[url=http://www.articledump.net/article/30450/articledump-Direct-Mail-Postcards-10-Ways-to-Boost-Your-Response-Rates.html]Direct Mail Postcards: 10 Ways to Boost Your Response Rates[/url]
Related Articles:
Oil Change Guys History; Part II
Supervisor Training: Training Your Supervisors To Train
Seven Common Marketing Problems Solved by Marketing Operations
Bookmark it:
|