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Tne question that we get asked a lot is: "Can I add email to a mailing list?" and the answer is: Yes, and No.

How's that for straightforward? Just kidding! Let me explain.

Here's the reason. There isn't an email vendor who has every single person's email address on a list. Over the years, our team of list brokers  have narrowed down the good email vendors from the… well, let's just say from the guys who sell email addresses out of  the trunk of their cars. And the really good ones tend to specialize in certain things. For example, some may have people  who have opted in for more information about cars, and other may be interested in home decorating. You get the idea.

The more specialized the list, the less likely it is that the vendor will give out the actual email addresses.

In reality, there are three things we can do: (more…)

Last night, James and I were talking about the pros and cons of social media versus direct marketing. It ended up being a bit of a heated discussion! I am so passionate about direct marketing that when he was extolling the benefits of social media, I felt as if he was insulting one of our children. (OK, not exactly, but you get the idea).

James’ opinion is that posting regularly on social media (Facebook, twitter, Linked In, Foursquare, etc) is a great vehicle to use to promote yourself and your business. I agree with that, but, as I said to him, if I had to make an analogy, I would say that direct marketing is to bread and social media is to jam. I see social marketing as an added component to what you are already doing, but it’s certainly not the be-all and end-all. You need a firm base to hold that jam! James agrees. He conceded that if you want fast results, do direct mail. Social marketing takes longer and is much more work (if you ask me).

Companies that are not already doing direct mail are totally missing out and leaving money on the table. Period. At the very least, you should be sending a direct mail piece to each and every one of your customers once every six weeks. Direct mail is a tried and true method of marketing. It’s the old standby. At our firm we are finding more and more companies are getting back to basics with direct marketing. You see, they all tried to save money on marketing when the economy started to turn in late 2008 to 2009 and they're now realizing what a mistake that was.

I believe that sending a direct mail piece to a very targeted list of potential customers, and then following up with a phone call, is the best way to grow your business starting right now. Because you can choose from over 1,000 different selects (such as hobbies, pets, children, which magazines they read, where they donate and how how, what school they went to, what kind of car they drive, and on and on), you know your mailing piece will be going to the exact right targets for your business.

By all means, continue to use social media, but don't forget about the basics, like direct marketing. It really works!

The number of businesses using direct mail marketing now compared to 10 to 15 years ago is staggeringly higher.

We are noticing that after the temporary dip we saw last year in 2009, now there are more and more business owners and marketing managers who understand and appreciate the effectiveness of direct mail marketing.

Our clients who are doing direct mail marketing right now include mortgage brokers, real estate investors, telecom companies, insurance agents, investment advisors, non profit organizations, and many others.

I'll be the first to admit that while it used to be exciting for a consumer to receive a direct marketing piece in the mail, and they were not only looked at but actually read, nowadays you have to work a little harder to really catch your prospects' attention.

By the way: I was surprised to learn that the term Junk Mail can be traced back to 1954. (Online Etymology Dictionary). I thought it was much more recently than that. But I always say, if you are doing your direct marketing properly, and using a list broker to help you narrow your target market down thoroughly, then you are NOT sending junk mail. There's a difference between sending out your direct mailing piece to anyone with a pulse, and sending it out to people who match your current customers who could truly benefit from your offer and willingly act on it.

So how can you make your direct mail marketing piece more effective and increase your sales revenue? (more…)