Direct Mail Winning Strategies Direct-Mail Marketing Your Essentials: A Good Scrubbed List - Companies that scrub lists - Management High-Impact Mail Piece Effective Negotiation Skills Page 95
Direct-Mail Marketing Two Purposes: Initial call generator... to target to prospects Follow-up... to working lead to leads Direct-Mail Marketing Why Direct-Mail? - Takes less time than outbound calls - #1 way to buy notes Target market? - Individuals that have created seller financing Budget needed - Min $1,500 over 2 months before any return A successful Direct-Mail program is not a oneshot experience...you must commit to spending time and dollars to see it through to success! Page 96
Why Direct Mail? Lead Generation People who call: only 6-12 of every 1,000 will call (eliminates noise) - Identifies themselves from prospect to a Lead Good Prospect - Know they seller financed - Have right $ amounts Prospect to lead - Know they responded (excellent % chance conversion) Once they ve responded initially it s worth spending additional $$$ to market to them. But after you learn their story... Mom & Pop vs Professional Seller, Direct-Mail Marketing Most important factors that affect response rate Quality of mailing list Type of mail-piece Quality of mail-piece (#1 factor is your message!) To generate a good response, your direct mail piece must stand out from the clutter and be heard above the noise of all other mail solicitations that they receive. Page 97
The List Mailing List List Vendor Courthouse data vs scrubbed list Ability to select by: County & Date Loan size Lien position LTV Collateral type The quality of your mailing list is huge. If half of the list has bad addresses or 2 nd liens, etc... You re wasting half your money. List Factors 1. Best List Top 1,000 Counties = 30,000 names Constitutes approx 20% of total names generated nationwide 2. Age of List - New to 1 ½ years old 3. Minimum size of note 50,000 to $500,000 - De-Duplicating (multiple Note Holders) - Understanding list rental vs. ownership 4. Seed Pieces - List vendor - Participant Page 98
De-Duplicating List Sample Mailing List Page 99
Mail Responses Monthly Response Rates For Streetwise Participants Page 100
Yearly Response Rates For Streetwise Participants - Annually Solicitation Pieces Initial Call Generation Exterior Package - 60% never opened Postage Return Address Addressee (Font or Handwritten Type of package (Size and color) Touchpoints (Follow-Up) Page 101
Solicitation Pieces Types of mailing pieces Letter (#10 Package) Post card Tri-fold Greeting Cards What makes you different than the competition? A key factor in your response rate is your message - BE CREATIVE! Solicitation Pieces Quality of Product Paper Printing Design Copy-writing The key is managing the economics in the cost of call getting the best look at an acceptable production cost. Anyone can spend more money! Page 102
Solicitation Copy It s ALL about them! Focus on the reader... not yourself - Design every sentence & paragraph to keep them reading - How to points - What keeps them reading Curiosity Fear Need/use for money Management (trouble) relief? Good solicitation copy is far more than just using good grammar. It s compelling! Got Milk? Headlines Headlines Rule 4 out of 5 people read ONLY the headlines It s ALWAYS about them Not you Sample Headlines: Right Are you curious? Wrong Colonial is the best Page 103
Your Contact Info 800 Number (toll free) Business name and email address Title (Pres. Sr. Note Buyer, Etc ) Signature Line Touchpoints Continual mailing to Leads - Reasons They change their mind Their circumstances change Builds rapport Lose your contact information Forget about you out of sight out of mind The Note Biz requires marketing that is in-their-face! Down the road...they typically won t call you without being reminded. Page 104
Economics of Direct Mail Cost 1,000 pieces x $1.10 each = $1,100 Response 1,000 x.8% = 8 Responses Cost of call $1,100 / 8 (calls) = $125 per call Conversion Rate One closing per 8-10 leads Marketing cost per closing Cost $1,000 - $1,250 Page 105
Direct Mail Vs. Profit $4,000 - $5,000 Range $2,000 - $19,000 = 20% - 25% of gross Plus $ $ $ $ Waiting on the BIG ONE! $25,000 - $50,000 (every 10,000-20,000 pieces) You must drop 2,000 to 5,000 pieces MINIMUM to hope to get any return. Does 1 worm = 1 fish? Gambling Casinos Know the Odds, (Blackjack, Slot Machines) De-Duplicating List Page 106