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Snail mail can provide great returns to sender
Blogger: Geoff Baldwin, director, RE/MAX WA
With the dominance of emails, social media messaging, sms, and other popular communication options it is rare for people to receive anything in their mail box these days other than bills and a small band of savvy agents are cashing in on this to gain a point of difference and to significantly boost theirs listings and sales.
Some of Australia’s most successful and emerging agents are integrating conventional mailing campaigns into their overall marketing and canvassing strategies with huge success.
Targeting sellers, investors and landlords with simple but well thought out mailings are proving to result in a return per 100 sent, of around 8 times that of any other communication method.
Of course, using conventional mail is comparatively expensive and time consuming so it is very important to ensure these mailings are designed for maximum effect. With this in mind there are some critical components that must be included to optimise success of a campaign.
Although an investment of extra time, effort, and cost is required some agents are receiving as high as 10 to 12 percent response rate which, as those who are experienced in marketing will know, is pretty impressive.
So what do you need to consider if you are looking at using conventional mail to seek out new business? – Here are some guidelines:
- Resist mailing any more than 200 to 300 letters at one time.
- Be prepared to hit the same addresses with the same or a similar letter three times for maximum affect.
- Try to keep your letter to no more than two pages (one if possible), however one or two extra inclusions are fine.
- Don’t go overboard with branding. In fact, the more subtle the branding the better.
- Do not use branded or window face envelopes.
- Ensure you letters contain an offer that is hard to refuse such as a chance to enter a prize draw.
- Include a prominent web address where recipients can order valuable information for which they may otherwise have had to pay.
- Ensure your letters are professional and not tacky.
- Always sign with a medium point blue pen….not black!
- Always use conventional postage stamps rather than a franking machine.
- If you are including anything that needs to be returned, ensure you provide a freepost return address.
- Personalise and localise as much as possible.
- Provide a prominent web address where they can obtain something for free by leaving their details for permission based marketing.
- For best affect, the website should be a stand-alone that is lightly or even totally unbranded. Check out www.hottipsforsellers.com.
If you do choose to initiate a surface mail campaign you may need to experiment a little until you get it right but you can be reasonably assured that most agents won’t bother allowing you to set yourself apart and to reap the rewards of going “back to the future”.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
geoff-baldwin
Since kicking off his real estate career in 1987, Geoff Baldwin has achieved success at the highest level in sales, management, multi-office ownership and as a group CEO. He is a licensed agent, auctioneer, respected trainer and a widely published and quoted industry spokesperson. Geoff is the regional owner and managing director of RE/MAX in Western Australia, which he purchased in 2009 and currently ranks as WA’s fastest growing group.
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