Ideal Marketing Company Blog

Some areas of direct mail that are worth testing:

The list of names it is sent to

The headline

The time of year / month / week
The offer

The copy inside the letter

The supporting material

References quoted

The envelope

The follow up method

Timing of the offer

This material comes from one one of the Marketing Mentor Marketing Seminars.

Why direct mail works

Direct mail or e-mail communications work best when you are able to identify a specific, real and current problem – and then suggest a solution to it. By communicating with somebody directly – from you to them – you are able to write to them as an individual and make a compelling case for an answer to a problem they face. If your argument grabs their attention and then talks to them in their language about their problem, you have a much higher chance of getting a response from the prospect. 

When it doesn’t work is when it becomes junk mail: a bland letter sent to anybody who will read it and that talks only about what you do, paying no heed to the problems of the person you are contacting.

This material comes from one one of the Marketing Mentor Marketing Seminars.

Just got back from delivering a marketing seminar on marketing during the difficult times that lie ahead in 2009.  It was held at the WorkHotel an interesting concept in serviced offices in Hemel Hempstead.  Please to say that there was a good turnout and I had a chance to talk to people at the end of the event about specific ideas and concernes they had.

I’m pleased to say that i have been asked back (!) and will be delivering a seminar at the venue in December and January.  I think the December date is set at December 4th where I will be covering the ’9 steps to marketing success’.  See www.workhotel.com  for details of the location and to book a place at this breakfast event.

Thanks to all the business owners who came along this morning.

I haven’t mentioned for a while that I am a member of a networking group in Leicester called Working Breakfast.  It’s based on the London Road at the Regency and meets every Thursday – see www.workingbreakfast.com for more details of what the group is about.  At the moment we are particulaly looking for a well respected leicester recruitment agencies to join.  If you know of a good recruitment agency in leicester or if in fact you are one, then you’d be very welcome to come along one week to see what you make of the group.  However only one can join so don’t put your vist off for too long…

Thanks to all the people who were able to attend the lunchtime seminar I spoke at today at The Angel Hotel in Market Harborough.  It was organised to promote a local networking group and about 10 people from the group were present including Mark Spikings from www.stillmagic.co.uk who took some great pictures of the event.

I covered the 9 level for marketing Success and the topic seemed to go down well and provoked some interesting debates.  It’s pretty clear to me that whilst the ecconomy is not looking too rosy (!) small business owners are fairly confident that they have a lot of control over how well their businesses will do over the coming months.

I have decided that my next seminar is going to be on the subject of marketing during difficult times and will follow the theme of my new tips booklet ’12 proven marketing idea to help your business weather the ecconomic storm’ See www.themarketingmentor.co.uk to claim a free tips booklet on this subject.

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Thought you might like to see my new Marketing Mentor Website which is now live as in (almost) as I’d like it.  It offers more marketing ideas and advice and explains the low cost marketing mentor programme that I offer to small business owners. 

Visit www.themarketingmentor.co.uk so see it for yourself

Please feel free to add comments and make your thoughts known on what you think of the site.

When to use direct mail

Direct mail is great for launching something new to targeted groups of people. If you are launching a new finance product aimed at small companies which you have identified as having cash flow problems, then direct mail is perfect. It allows you to write to the appropriate person within an organisation, at the right time and be very specific with the information that you tell them.

For e-mail, it is best used as an opt in service. That means you give people who visit your site the opportunity to ‘opt in’ to receive updates and information about what you have to offer. Cold e-mail campaigns are far less effective that these warmer ‘opted in’ prospects.

I am preparing a new marketing seminar for later in the year.  I want to know which aspects of marketing you find the most difficult!  Tell me, and I’ll do my best to include them in the seminar.  I may even be able to answer your problems here and now.  If I can, I’ll e-mail you an answer or a link to a book I’d reccomend.  But for the moment, just tell be about the 3 things that currently FRUSTRATE you most about you marketing activity.

You won’t see many large companies letting their branding decline during tougher ecconomic times.  But smaller companies often cut their marketing spend at just the time that they should be expanding.

Pleased to say that the IOD Institute of Directors Magazine has recently published and article I wrote on how to market your business even during period of ecconomic decline.  Hope you find it of interest

http://www.director.co.uk/ONLINE/marketing_11_06.html

You can’t help but fall for the charms of this cheeky new Wonderbra advert.  It is a clasic example of an advert that everybody will talk about and remember – don’t you think?

Just click on this link to see it for yourself… CLICK HERE