It isn’t what is inside your envelope that is relevant if your envelope never gets opened.  Just picture what you do when you get your mail.

I sit near a trash bin and sort the mail according to pile A and Pile B.  Pile A goes right into the trash bin, most of the time without me opening the envelope.  I can guarantee that this always happens with me when I know there is a credit card solicitation inside the envelope.

When putting together a Direct Mail Campaign, it is very important to give careful thought and consideration to the envelope design that most likely will be opened by the most number of prospects receiving it. 

The first choice is to design what I call a “sneak-up envelope.” 

A “sneak-up” envelope is designed to contact new prospects and its purpose is to look like personal mail.  You would only have your name and street address (my suggestion is to only have an address) in the return corner.   It would have a live stamp (not bulk-stamped) and be individually hand-addressed  or printed in a font where it looks like it was written by someone.

Another choice is called “teaser copy” It has something on the outside of the envelope selling the recipient on opening it and reading what is inside.  You might be asking yourself the question, “Why would you want to do that?”

One of my rules is that if you are going to reveal your envelope as being business related, then you might as well use teaser copy to create the interest in opening the envelope.  Should it be a sentence or more?  It should have on the envelope whatever message it takes to get the recipient to open it.

Here are some ideas of types of envelopes and what they might look like.

1.  An imitation of Federal Express/or priority mail envelopes.

2. Very official looking envelopes.

3. A window envelope with checks showing through the windows.

Those are just a few thoughts.  If the envelope looks official, it will be opened and that is the objective you set out to achieve.

There isn’t one approach that is always better than another.  Each will serve a purpose in totally different situations.  It depends on how it is to be applied.

Let me know your thoughts and suggestions that you come up with.

Technorati Tags: acquiring customers, direct mail envelopes, grow sales, reaching prospects

There is a lot of power in Coupons.  Notice how Groupon has become a huge phenomenon within the last year. Currently, it is planning an IPO at a valuation of $15 to $25 billion. This is a coupon issuer folks; not a high tech innovator.

It has merely taken a thing of value (coupons) and combined it with the Internet to better reach potential customers and bring them to offline (though not exclusively) retailers and businesses.

The power of coupons cannot be ignored.

Retailers and service business owners should understand the power of coupons.  Consumers clip ‘em and use ‘em.  Coupon usage in America is huge, so you might as well participate and create such a system if it fits your enterprise.

Incidentally, when you offer a coupon, it is usually best to put a big, thick coupon border around the coupon, or for that matter around the entire ad, so that there is no confusion.

I have found that a thick border beats out a thin one and the dotted coupon border beats out other borders.  I’ve had my consulting clients test this over and over and it works all the time. 

For one of my clients, I created a promotion, to expand their customers’ usage—to get regular, retail customers who were buying and using only a few items, to try additional ones and to redeem “store-brand” coupons for like products. It always created lots of sales and lasting usage expansion.

Here’s the concept and idea.  If you are a retailer or operate a service business, accept your competitors’ coupons.  This puts all their advertising to work for you. 

If it is possible and you can afford it, DOUBLE, the value of the competitors’ coupons that you redeem. They will be redeeming your competitors’ coupons that they paid a lot of money to advertise, with your company. 

You have to create that system and educate your customers/clients that it is available.

Let me know what you think about this. And if you are having difficulty, let me know and I will try to guide you in this process.

Technorati Tags: businesses and coupons, buying coupons, coupons, groupon, retailers and coupons, service providers and coupons, using coupons

You are probably wondering, “What is Ken talking about now.” 

This one thing that I’m going to go over now will get your mail opened by more people, than if you just sent an envelope.

A “Grabber” is something attached to a sales letter and its real purpose is to “get the person’s attention.”

It could be a dollar bill, a “million dollar bill”, and any type of foreign currency, a penny, a bag of sand, a small packet of aspirin, or a sports trading card.  I could go on and on listing more items that you can use as a grabber but I think you get the idea. 

I am a huge believer in using these things and I am constantly searching for new sources of “inexpensive” grabbers. 

In my consulting I try to find a unique “grabber” that would fit the situation and mailer that is designed to create a customer. 

I’ve used a pair of shoes where I started the letter off like this:

“I’ve sent you a pair of shoes for two reasons:

1.  I need a way to get my foot in the door, and,

2. Because what I have to tell you is of great importance that I needed a way to get your attention.”

I used that approach whenever I wanted to get an appointment with a decision maker or a high value client.  When I called, they knew who I was and on average, 83% of the time gave me the time to talk to them.  

Here’s another example, where I’ve used a packet of aspirin:

“I’ve sent you the packet of Aspirin because of two reasons.

1.  I wanted to get your attention and,

2. What I have to tell you will take your greatest headache away.”

The bulkier the package, the higher the chance of you getting it opened.

Have you used grabbers?  How did they work for you?

If you haven’t, how can you use them to get your prospect to open mail from your particular business?

Technorati Tags: acquire customers, grabbers, grow revenues, grow sales

Back on 9/2/2010, I published a blog article entitled “The no. 1 strategy for getting new customers”.  I want to continue that thought here for this reason: many business owners are passing up a large revenue source by not including offline marketing in their marketing arsenal.

How would you like to reach 50,000 to 100,000 prospects, already pre-selected as being likely to buy from you, at no cost whatsoever?  These prospects may be waiting for you offline through “Host Relationships.”

Here’s how it works.  You research and find a non-competing company whose customers are the same type of people as your customers.  You convince the company to pay for a mailing to their customers promoting your product.  You split the profits 50/50 with the host company.

Does it sound too good to be true?

In my years in business, I did it dozens of times. The profits it generated were huge.  The Host Relationship, and it has some variations to it, is one of the most leveraged marketing techniques I can teach you about. 

It’s the most leveraged because the host company may have spent many years and millions of dollars identifying prospects and winning the trust of their customers.  By accessing that customer base, you get the benefit of all that effort and expense without having to spend a penny yourself.

One thing though.  I want to stress that you should be very generous with the host company when you set up the deal with them.  If you can’t get the host company to pay for the mailing, offer to pay for it yourself.  Or you can offer them 100% until they double their investment, and then a lower percentage thereafter.

The key thing is to make it happen. Offer them whatever it takes to get them to do the joint venture with you.  You will have invested so little up front and you will have so much to gain yourself.

Here’s an example:

Let’s say you own a home or an office cleaning business, you should contact every carpet dealer within a geographic area you think you can handle.  Offer to pay the cost of a mailing to their customers. 

For the mailing to the customers, you should write a letter that will look like it came from the dealer. In it, you recommend your cleaning service to his customers.  The carpet dealer receives a percentage of the sales. 

This is a win-win for both of you—the carpet dealer wins because he generates more revenue and you win because you are accessing only qualified prospects.

The cost of acquiring a customer via a host relationship is a fraction of what it would be if you ran an ad or did a mailing of your own.  This results in a higher profit on every sale for you.

You must offer a good product or service so that the host companies have nothing to lose by recommending you.  It will mean thousands of dollars of profits for them with almost no effort on their part.

Hope this gave you an idea you can implement soon.  Let me know your thoughts on this strategy and the results you’ve gotten when you implement it.

If you want to re-read the previous article I wrote on this subject, you can see the article here: http://www.kenvarga.com/news/the-no-1-strategy-for-getting-new-customers/

Technorati Tags: acquire customers, grow revenues, grow sales, host beneficiary relationships, host relationships, joint ventures

For many retail and service businesses, Val-Pak and Money Mailers are what they use consistently and what I will call “basic” advertising media.  And they should be.  Their success is because they are “low cost and have a high readership since they go to so many people.

 I’ve read that over 80% of the recipients open and browse through the mailings, probably because everybody knows there will be coupons inside that they will use.  Because it gets opened is the reason it is so successful.

This media can work for odd businesses also and should be tested by a wider variety of businesses that don’t currently think about using it. 

There is also a nationwide card deck that goes “business-to-business.  I have found this works best when you have a multi-step process of follow up, which could include follow-up phone calls to the businesses.

Here comes the interesting part.  I believe that all businesses should do their own shared-cost, co-op mailings.

A dentist, chiropractor, dermatologist, optometrist, podiatrist, etc., are logical co-op candidates.  All of the stores in a shopping center, carpet cleaners, gardeners and plumbers, just to name a few more, are candidates for co-op mailings.

I’ve always believed and suggested to everyone that all merchants can have a much greater impact by working together rather than individually. 

And guess what?  When the big “Giant” comes into town, the small merchants often either prosper together or hang separately.  By banding together, they can survive the onslaught of the large companies. 

If any of you have used Val-Pak or Money Mailers, let us know your results.  Remember, most of the time the inserted piece was put together by the salesperson and isn’t responsive. When I receive them and open them, I’m in awe as to how much money is wasted. 

Can you imagine if your piece was direct-responsive, with more than 80% of them being opened, the results you would get and how many new customers/clients you would have coming through your door?

All you have to do is create a short report.  You can say, call (your number) for a free report that reveals (whatever) before you buy from anyone.

Just one example…

 If you are in the carpet cleaning business you can say the following: “Call (your number) for a free report that reveals the 3 questions you should ask before you hire a carpet cleaner.”

I’m sure you get the general idea. 

Again, If you use Val-Pak or Money Mailers, let us know your results.

Technorati Tags: b-to-b advertising, b2b advertising, business-to-business, card deck, co-op mailings, low-cost advertising, low-cost mailing, money mailers, val-pak

I have used all types of media from postcards to Money Mailer Coupons to get my message out to the masses. But, out of all of the media that I’m familiar with, I believe that the simple Sales Letter is the most reliable and powerful method of selling any product or service—whether offline or online. 

By the way, I have yet to see what the “thing” is that can’t be sold with a sales letter.  I believe everything can.

With this in mind, my advice is to always try to include sales letters in your marketing portfolio.

When doing direct-mail marketing, self-mailers and post cards can also be effective.  But nothing beats a true letter that is written like a letter.  It should look like a letter and be delivered like a letter in the mail.

Remember a flyer is not a sales letter.

Here are some smart ways to use Sales Letters.

1. To introduce new products to existing customers
2. To get prospects to call you
3. To ask for referrals
4. To directly sell services and products
5. To generate publicity
6. To sell seasonal promotions
7. To sell out last year’s product, get it off the shelves and out of the warehouse.
8. To create direct response advertising
9. To sell subscriptions or memberships
10. To introduce new services to existing customers/clients
11. To create a multi step promotion program

What are your thoughts about using sales letters?

Technorati Tags: direct mail, direct mail marketing, direct response advertising, Referrals, seasonal promotion, sell memberships, sell new product, sell new service, sell products, sell services, sell subscriptions

It always surprises me that most companies never put themselves in their customers’ or prospects’ position.   I say this because I see so many companies that make doing business with them so hard.

For example, if someone calls your company and a telephone operator is their first contact, can that operator make a compelling response to the prospect or customer’s request?

When people come into your place of business, how well versed are your sales clerks?  How much time have you spent in preparing dialogues, questions, and advice for your people to use in interacting with your customers?

How easy is it to find things in your place of business?

How much do you take your customers and prospects for granted? 

By merely stepping outside your office and pretending like you are a prospect or customer, you should see a lot of the flaws in your operation.  Like the TV program, “Undercover Boss.”

Remember that once they are taken care of and remedied, you can dramatically improve your current and repeat business potential.

You should make sure that your place of business is inviting, informative, non-threatening, easy, educational and fun to do business with.  When this happens you will leave your competition in the dust.

Here’s a list of to do’s:

1. Educate your customers. You cannot educate too much.

2. Inform them.  Let them know what you are up to.

3. Make calling or coming in to your business desirable.

4. Make ordering easy.

5. Over deliver in your service.

I’ve always said, “Inspect what you expect.”   I always called my own offices to make sure the phones were answered the way I wanted them to be answered.  Have you done the same?

Have you called your own restaurant to make reservations and listened to the way your staff answered the phone and responded to you?  Try it sometimes. 

When you make the corrections you will see a remarkable difference in the growth of your business.

Let me know what you think.

Technorati Tags: customer experience, customer loyalty, Customer Retention, customer satisfaction, customer service, loyal customers, retaining customers, Undercover Boss

It never fails to astound me that when I’m looking through a magazine or newspaper and reading the ads, that not only do they all look alike and are boring, but almost none of them ask for a response.

Go grab a magazine right now and look through the display ads.  You’ll see ads saying things like: “Open an account”; “Apply now”; “Get started”.  But there is no direct-response mechanism.

Most of the ads are just institutional ones that just tout the company and end with the telephone number, the website address, or the name of the company.  They are not direct-response ads that encourage the reader to contact the company to get something the reader wants and by which the company can create a lead or customer.

The ads merely talk about how great the company is. The ad designer then hopes that the ad copy and images are so great that people hop on the phone, or whatever, and contact the company.

If your prospect sets your ad or sales letter aside to “deal with it later”, you have probably lost them as a customer.  What I suggest is that you should do everything you can think of to induce and create an immediate response from them.

First, make sure that you offer a free report, a free sample, a free service or whatever with each ad you create.

Then along with that, include deadlines of some sort to make the reader think twice about not acting NOW.  Here are some examples:

1. Penalty pricing.  Let them know that the prices will go up on a certain date.

2. Have your offer expire by a certain date.

3. Have a “Mystery Bonus” if they respond within the next 24 hours.

4. Let them know there is a limited supply and that you may run out.  Even if you do not have a limited supply, you can create an illusion that there is.  You can say, “We will return your check uncashed if we run out of the item.”  This suggests that there is a limited supply without you even saying there is.

I’m sure you get the idea.  The first thing I’d like you to do is to get out your ads and promotions. Review them with the thought of what you can add that will motivate the prospect to immediately respond. 

Let me know what you come up with. 

Technorati Tags: acquiring leads, attracting leads, attracting prospects, customer acquisition, lead generation, prospect conversion

Whenever I consult with a company, one of the first things I create is a method to capture the names of anyone who inquires about the company or their products.

Note.  I didn’t say create a mailing list of their customers.  I said: “capture the names of anyone who inquires about the company or their products”.

Very few of the companies have a mechanism in which to do this.  I’m going to go over one method that I hope you will implement in your marketing.

Let’s say you own a restaurant.  You probably have ads in the Yellow Pages, coupon mailers and other way’s you use to get customers. 

You probably have 50 or more people each week contacting you to ask a question.  The questions could be “what are your hours of operation?” or “Do you take reservations?”  It could be any question.

The key here is how do you capture those inquiries?  These are what I call “hot prospects.” 

Do the math.  If only 50 people inquire each week, that’s 2600 per year.  If you captured their information, you could now send them a “thank-you-for-calling” letter and also make them an offer.  And you can also send them periodic information. 

For instance, say someone calls to see what hours you are open today.  You do the following:

• Thank the person for calling.
• Let them know what hours you are open.
• Say something like: “Will this be your first time visiting us?” If they say, “Yes”, you can then say: “Let us know when you come in and we’ll have a welcome gift for you.”
• When they come in and identify themselves, thank them and let them know that dessert will be on the house.
• At the end of the dinner, have them complete a short survey that includes their contact information.
• Enter their contact information in your mailing or email list.

Every business should come up with strategies to deal with different inquiry situations. 

When we run an ad, most of the time we think along the lines of: “How many customers do we get from the ad?”  When we add the inquiry strategy, we can also ask: “How many inquirers do I get from the ad?”

This strategy adds another dimension to creating customers.  How can you use it in your business to grow your list of customers?

Technorati Tags: converting inquiries into customers, creating curtomers, customer acquisition, marketing strategy, turning inquiries into customers

Each of us has a customer that had such a wonderful experience in doing business with us that they rave to others about that experience. 

This should be capitalized on and used to promote your business.

Remember Victor Kiam?  He was enormously successful for quite awhile with his commercials for Remington.  This was his statement.  “I was so impressed with this shaver that I bought the company.”

These kinds of ads take great advantage of the fact that what your customers say about you is much more powerful than what you say about yourself.

The first thing you should do is to locate the customer that can be your spokesperson and create a project around them.   Then show it on TV and all of the local media. 

Subway sandwiches did this very successfully when they started running the Jared Fogle (The Subway Guy) commercials.  Those commercials ran for more than 5 years.   

Obviously, Subway felt that Jared’s story was influencing their upswing in sales; otherwise, they would not have run the commercials for that length of time.

The truth is that you and I are not likely to hit a home run like Subway did with Jared.  But if we purposefully pursue having our clients/customers experience extraordinary results like Jared did, we’d be way ahead in our game.

Think of all the benefits that will flow to you and your clients as you pursue a goal like this…the enormous positive side results.

And who knows, maybe you too will hit a homerun.

How can you use this as a strategy for building your business? 

Technorati Tags: building a business, customer, customer experience, grow business, growing a business, market strategy, marketing strategy, promote your business