ARE YOUR MAILINGS TURNING INTO CASH...OR TRASH?
No Matter What You Do, a Certain Percentage of Your Mailing Will End up in the Trash. Want to Maximize Your Response? Here's Why Your Marketing Materials May Not be Hitting Their Intended Mark.
By Keith Emond
The truth of the matter is, unfortunately, a lot of what people send out as their marketing material does end up in the trash. Why? Well...what I'm about to say next is not intended to hurt anyone's feelings or pride.
LET ME EXPLAIN...
It seems that the well-intentioned but misguided logic that many people seem to use when just starting out is this:
"I want to get started today and I don't want to risk a lot of money to start with. So, I'll just have some photocopies made of the flyer I received, then, when the money starts pouring in, I'll buy or have some quality sales materials printed."
Over the years, I've received thousands of program offers and mailings and far too many of them look as if they were made from a copy...of a copy...of a copy...of a copy and then crammed into any old envelope with a cheap-looking rubber stamped return address. Now, let me ask you this: When you receive something like that, how in the world can you even begin to believe that the person who sent you something like this, is in any way making money in their business, when they can't even afford to send you decent-looking literature?
So--guess what? Into the trash it probably goes. Am I right? If that's the case, sadly, the money will never "come pouring in" for the person who sent it.
A POSITIVE IMAGE LEADS TO SUCCESS
You absolutely, positively must portray an image of professionalism the very first time you make contact with a prospect. If you don't, you might as well not even bother getting started in a mail order type of business because you'll never even make enough money to keep your business going. You must make the initial investment in quality marketing materials if you even hope to succeed and prosper.
Let's look at it another way. Do you think any of the big auto makers would send you a cheap-looking photocopy of information about the new $20,00 or $30,000 car you're interested in? Certainly not! They send out a beautiful full-color glossy brochure or booklet and a sales letter printed on the finest stationery available. I'm not saying you have to create anything quite that extravagant, however..
Considering that the lifelong value of your potential prospect could easily exceed the $20,000 or $30,000 mark, don't you think it would be wise to send them the best marketing materials you can? By that I mean, take the time to order or have quality printing masters made for your program or opportunity and then have your marketing literature offset printed.
DO YOU REALLY SAVE MONEY BY MAKING COPIES OF YOUR SALES MATERIALS AS YOU NEED THEM?
Some people have suggested that at the very least, if you don't want to pay the price to have your sales literature offset printed, you should use a high-quality photocopy machine, such as those found at a local print shop or office supply store. Now, this is only my opinion, but even if I receive something in the mail that is clearly a high-quality photocopy, it still sends me the message that it was sent by someone who may be new to the business. And, personally, I'm always leery about newcomers because, many of them don't tend to stay around too long. So, why should I risk getting involved with someone who may not be in business for long?
Realistically then, if I feel this way, I'm sure there are many others out there who feel the same way. Consider this--can you really afford not to have your sales materials offset printed? Let's face it, when we first start our businesses, we obviously want it to be for the long haul. If you think you're going to save a few bucks by not presenting a professional image to start with, you're going to become very discouraged with the response you get from your mailings and then, most likely, you'll give up on the business.
Now, here's a big shocker. I've found that it's actually cheaper to have your sales materials offset printed. That's right--on a per piece basis, it's almost always less expensive to have your material professionally offset printed. I've found mail order printers that offer great prices and exceptional quality for less than what it costs for photocopying.
YOU ONLY HAVE ONE CHANCE TO GET IT RIGHT
I'd like to stress how very important it is that you spend the money to have your sales letters and especially your envelopes offset printed. You'll be surprised at the results you'll get just by making these changes alone.
Remember the old saying: "You don't get a second chance to make a first impression." And nothing could be more true in business.
Keith Emond has been researching and studying direct response marketing techniques for more than 20 years and has been actively involved with mail order and network marketing for more than five years. He has found that above all else, persistence is the key to success, no matter what it is you choose to pursue.
If you'd like to know more about how to improve the professional image of your business, just ask for a free copy of the "Home Business Success Guide Book" by writing to:
Infinite Horizons HBS Guide Book-GCA 100 610 Fremont St. Kiel, WI 53042-1321
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