Direct mail? That dog don’t
hunt
dog that
“don’t hunt” is simply a dog that
doesn’t do his job. He fails to flush a bird, chase a
rabbit or point to something with his tail. When it comes to
hunting, he’s rather worthless. In the world of
marketing, a dog that “don’t hunt” is a
program that produces little or no measurable results.
A red flag went up the moment our caller
mentioned that he had tried two other direct mail companies and
had a miserable response from both. “Now it’s your
chance,” he said. “I’m giving you all four of
my stores. Bring me some business. Those other guys
didn’t know what they were doing. I want to see if you
guys are any better.”
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The top 10 reasons why direct mail
marketing probably won’t work for you:
Reason #10. You’re not using true
direct mail.
In order to save money and reach thousands
of homeowners for as little as 4¢ a piece, you’ve
probably chosen what’s often called marriage mail.
It’s a co-op mail program in which you share an envelope
with 20 or more other businesses. There’s nothing wrong
except that in today’s overstuffed and highly competitive
mailbox, fewer and fewer people even open the envelope, so how
will they ever see your offer. You’ll get a much better
response when you pop for the postage on your very own
oversized full color postcard. Something that really stands out
in the mailbox and yells, “Here I am! Look at
me!”
Reason #9. You mail very infrequently
with no established schedule.
In order to get name recognition within
your community, you should mail as often as possible and on a
regular basis. For example, a Realtor in my neighborhood has
been sending me a card six times a year since we moved to the
area ten years ago. I know this guy now and when it’s
time for me to move, he’ll get my call. The fact is, he
makes money every time he mails, whether he gets a response
right away or not. You see, eventually a guy like me will call
and he’ll be in the money. After all, a $10,000
commission far outweighs the cost of 60 postcards.
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How easy is it to do business with you?
Not long ago we were about to do a mailing for a cleaner when
we found out what his business hours were. Get this. He’s
open from 9 to 5. By nine o’clock, most cleaning for the
day has already been dropped off. If we had done his mailing,
we would have been blamed for a lousy response.
Reason #7. Your expectations are too
high.
I’ve talked to cleaners who feel the
campaign’s a total bust if they don’t get a 50
percent response rate from their direct mail. That’s
pretty unrealistic, but they still blame the marketing company
for not delivering. Actually, you ought to be happy with a 2 to
3 percent return and you should be bouncing off the ceiling if
you’re lucky enough to get 7 percent or higher.
Reason #6. You’re just like every
other cleaner.
There’s nothing special about you.
Nothing that distinguishes you from the cleaner down the
street. You need to differentiate yourself. It’s called
an “SOB” — a statement of benefit. A
30-second elevator speech about your company. Do you have the
lowest prices? The highest prices? Convenient drive-thru
service? Sunday hours? A 24-hour drop box? It can be any number
of things. Think. Write it down. Then tell everyone.
Reason #5. You’re inconveniently
located.
A friend of mine in Connecticut is
inconveniently located. He has to be twice as good and four
times as vocal as other cleaners in order to get the business.
He uses direct mail better than any cleaner I know and he
dominates his area. If fact, in the midst of a down economy,
he’s having his best year ever!
Reason #4. You try to get business from too far away.
Several months ago I got a card from a
drycleaner whose plant is 12 miles from my house. Why?
What’s the point? He’s soliciting business from
people who don’t know who he is and furthermore,
don’t even care. But, I suppose at 4¢ per household
he can justify a 75 percent waste factor in his advertising.
Reason #3. You’ve made a weak offer
or no offer at all.
More than ever, I hear cleaners say,
“I don’t want to make an offer. I’ll look
like a discount cleaner.” Or “I don’t want to
coupon, it tends to cheapen my service and quality.”
Okay, answer this. Why does a fisherman put bait on his
hook… and why does he have a tackle box with all sorts of
lures? First, he’ll have a better chance of catching a
fish if he baits the hook as opposed to dragging a bare hook
through the water. And second, if they’re not biting on
one lure, chances are he can snag them with a different one.
Reason #2. You’re up against a very
strong competitor.
If you’re up against a strong
competitor, don’t blame the direct mail company for a
poor response. I’d hate to go up against my friend in
Connecticut. He’s formed solid relationships with his
customers and it would take a heavy crowbar to move these
people away from his plant.
And the #1 reason why direct mail
probably won’t work for you is: You’ve given poor
service or quality in the past and people don’t want it
anymore.
This fact is often overlooked or never
even suspected by a lot of cleaners. They assume they give good
service when they really don’t and, believe me, you could
offer 50 percent off to people who have had a bad experience
and they’ll never come back.
That’s it. If any of the above
applies to you, it could be enough to kill any direct mail
program no matter how carefully planned and how accurately
executed. Put two or more of these reasons together and
it’s the kiss of death. You’ll have every reason to
chime in with your own version of, “Yeah, I’ve
tried direct mail too and I agree… that dog don’t
hunt!”
Bill Bishop has been a consultant with the
Golomb Group for the past 12 years, designing marketing and
promotional programs for drycleaners. He can be reached at the
Golomb Group at (800) 679-5856 or by e-mail at billbishop@golombgroup.com.
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