marketing matters A mailer that I developed many
years ago is still being used by florists with great success today. It targets specifically Hairdressers. The mailer has a great headline calling out to the target audience and appealing to the emotional aspect of what motivates hairdressers - the fact they would have a great looking salon if they had a weekly delivery of flowers. The key to the success of this mailer is using a targeted approach because you are not trying to appeal to a wide audience; you focus on a message that appeals to hairdressers. The mailer should include
a photograph of a fantastic floral display in a Salon, and offer a free trial for one week. You can also make it easy for the prospective customers to respond by text, email or telephone. The other thing that is an important element is to include a no quibble guarantee. I have seen response rates in
recent times of 16% from this mailer. This is extremely good from a mailer to a cold prospect list. This, potentially, could bring you thousands of pounds worth of extra business in the next year, if just a handful of hairdressers who responded to your mailer, took a weekly display. What’s more, think of the potential of all of the hairdressers’ clients who see the weekly display too. This promotion may cost £300 or £400, including the free display, but when you look at the lifetime value of the customers you will gain if you follow the rules of profitable direct mail, this is a small investment.
And what’s more this can
be duplicated across lots of other niches, think of all the businesses in your area. When I targeted the commercial sector I chose Dentists, Solicitors, Technology companies and Office Rental businesses. Of course using direct mail effectively does not have to be confined to the commercial market, domestic customers can be broken down into target segments too and sent a relevant and timely direct mail piece that can generate plenty of profitable business. The cost of mailing has fallen
over the past couple of years… you may not think this to be the case with the increase in postage costs. Well take a look at companies such as
www.docmail.
co.uk. They will print and mail a postcard, greetings card or A4 letter for less than the price of a second class stamp. You simply upload the document you want them to print to their website, pay for it by credit card and they do the rest. I have had some good
responses using this method but I have also received feedback from florists who have found that the traditional hand addressed white envelope with a first class stamp on brings in a better return. This all goes to show that the tried and tested methods for direct mail of making your envelope stand out and look personal still works well. The key with direct mail is
to get someone to open the envelope and read your mailer. If an envelope looks too corporate it can often be cast aside and
The key with direct mail is to get someone to open the envelope and read your mailer
certainly won’t be the first one to be opened if there are more interesting envelopes in the pile. I have used bright pink and
even gold envelopes for mailers. The other trick to get your mailer opened is using bulky mail. Insert a low cost item such as a pen. I have even seen a tea bag inserted with the headline ‘Make yourself a nice cup of tea before you read my letter’. You can really let your creative side come out here.
Building your list When you are prospecting businesses you can create a database by simply searching for details online, if you are targeting individual consumers this is much harder and can be more costly. There are of course lists of
consumers’ addresses that you can buy, but this may not be so finely targeted for your needs. I have found a good way for local businesses to target consumers is to use door drop flyers in areas where they know their existing customers live as this can be a good indicator that others who live in that area could also be prospective customers. Again you can have flyers
printed at an amazingly low cost these days and in small quantities, so if you don’t mind a
F&wb Autumn/Winter 2013 69
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80 |
Page 81 |
Page 82 |
Page 83 |
Page 84