First post on this here.
The List is 80 percent warm. By that I mean these are prospects that fit the profile of my ideal customer. My communication with them is regular. They know who I am and that I’d like to do business with them. About 10 percent of the list is influencers (referral alliance partners). These are people who interact with my target market offering them complimentary services. This group is in a position to make referrals. The other 10 percent are new additions to the list.
The message was about how to attract new clients through a marketing strategy that targeted only profiles of ideal customers – those that value the products and services being offered, those most incline to do repeat business, and who would be disposed to making referrals. The tone of the message was fun and optimistic.
The vehicle was direct mail. Included was a cover letter of a “this is what I do” nature. The second page was a fun Top Ten Things to do with the logo’d item I’d included in the mailing. It was a “lumpy” mailing. The envelope was a bright orange.
After a week, I followed up with an email that included a link to an article that supported the messaging of my direct mail piece. The introductory sentence said “By now you’ve received the bright orange envelope I sent you…”
The call to action in both cases was to contact me. There was no offer. I know my audience very well and believe that the strength of that understanding kept them reading. I spoke of very specific issues that they face in their business. The second page was all fun.
I had an 18 percent response rate. No new business to date. I have received four referrals as a result of the piece (one referral came from a prospect; the other three came from referral partners). Of the responders, 39 percent called me, 61 percent emailed me. No one asked to be taken off the list.
(Not included in the numbers: I sent the mailing to my current clients with a note that I wanted them to see that I practiced what I preach.)
I didn’t expect to have any ROI at this point. Though I will be tracking costs and as I start to see conversion, I will report on that. But I bring it up because it takes some time for the campaigns to gain traction. And marketers have to realize that the moment your message is absorbed by the prospect may not be the moment they are ready to take action.
I followed my rules of being memorable and valuable. With the next wave I will be on my way to adhering to the third rule, that of being frequent and to the point above frequent enough that I will be top of mind the moment the prospect is ready to take action.
Also, these mailings are not done in a vacuum. I engage in supporting marketing activities in the form of social media, in person and online speaking presentations, article writing for the blog and outside sources, as well as public relations.
My hunch is that non-electronic marketing is a differentiator. I couldn’t possibly afford to test that theory on the entirety of my prospect universe. However, by finding a small subset of that universe that most closely fits my ideal customer, it is affordable – to the point that I can follow up with additional campaigns that are memorable, valuable and frequent.
If you’d like to be added to my mailing list, just email your address.
Have you experimented with adding some variety to your marketing mix?
[...] causes you to be more attentive to the list (which should be highly targeted). I’d rather get 18 percent response from a list of 100 than zero response on a list of [...]