All
Members
Companies
Blog
Forums
Podcast
Webinars
    User Log in  /  Sign up
  • Forums
    Newest Posts Trending Discussions Followed Forums Real Estate News & Current Events General Landlording & Rental Properties Buying & Selling Real Estate Deal Analysis See All
  • Education

    Read

    BiggerPockets Blog BPInsights: Expert Analysis Coronavirus Content & Resources Guides Glossary Reviews Member Blogs

    Watch

    Webinars Video Library Financial Independence Blueprint Intro to Real Estate: Rentals

    Listen

    BiggerPockets Real Estate Podcast BiggerPockets Money Podcast BiggerPockets Business Podcast Real Estate Rookie Podcast Daily Podcast (Audio Blog)

    Topics

    Business Operations Finance Finding Deals Property Management Property Types Strategy
  • Network

    Recommended Vendors

    Real Estate Agents Mortgage Lenders Companies Hard Money Lenders Contractors Investment Companies

    Search

    Members Events Jobs
  • Tools

    Calculators

    Rental Property Fix and Flip BRRRR Rehab Estimator
    Wholesaling Mortgage Payment 70% Rule Airbnb

    Services

    BPInsights: Property Insights Tenant Screening Property Management Lease Agreement Packages

    New Feature

    BPInsights (beta)

    Quickly analyze a property address or ZIP Code to compare your rent in your neighborhood.

    Analyze a property
  • Find Deals
    Real Estate Listings Find Foreclosures External Link Ads, Jobs, and Other
  • Bookstore

    Real Estate Books

    Profit Like The Pros Bidding to Buy See all books

    Featured Book

    BiggerPockets Wealth Magazine book cover
    BiggerPockets Wealth Magazine

    Written by financial journalists and data scientists, get 60+ pages of newsworthy content, expert-driven advice, and data-backed research written in a clear way to help you navigate your tough investment decisions in an ever-changing financial climate! Subscribe today and get the Oct/Nov issue delivered to your door!

    Get the Magazine
  • Pricing
Log In Sign up
User
Quick search links
Podcast Hard Money Lenders Books Washington
BlogArrowReal Estate MarketingArrow10 Commandments for Your 2014 Direct Mail Campaigns
Real Estate Marketing

10 Commandments for Your 2014 Direct Mail Campaigns

Joygendusa
Expertise:
9 Articles Written
Direct Mail

A new year is the perfect opportunity to reassess your business growth goals and recommit yourself to marketing practices that will help you achieve them. With that in mind, I want to give you a really useful piece of content you can reference throughout the year to improve your direct mail campaigns.

Want more articles like this?

Create an account today to get BiggerPocket's best blog articles delivered to your inbox

Sign up for free

And Thus I Give You… The 10 Direct Mail Commandments!

 1.     Thou Shalt Have a Unique Selling Proposition

A USP is a simple phrase that clearly explains why your business is a better choice than any of your competitors. By identifying and designating your USP, you give yourself a crystal clear benefit that becomes the focal point of all of your marketing, including your direct mail campaigns.

2.     Thou Shalt Plan Thy Marketing Schedule

You want your mailing campaigns to go out consistently and on time, because consistency is critical to direct mail success. I highly recommend taking an hour and marking on your calendar every holiday/sale/event you want to promote in 2014. After you have done this, go back 6 weeks from promotion date and set a reminder to order the postcards. This pre-planning allows you to establish an effective schedule and remove the stress that comes with trying to throw a campaign together at the last minute.

 3.     Thou Shalt Target Thy Ideal Prospects

Do you know who your ideal prospect is? What does he/she do for a living? For that matter, are they a he or a she? Are they married? Do they have kids? What do they do for fun? Or if you are a B2B investor: What are the SIC codes for your ideal prospects? How much revenue do they generate annually? How many employees do they have? Where are they located?

You want to create a complete profile of your “ideal prospect” that includes even minute details about their work and personal lives. Of course, this is a hypothetical person or business, but the clarity you gain by working up this profile helps you intuitively understand what kind of marketing message your prospects need to hear. This is useful in SO many circumstances, not the least of which is choosing a mailing list and postcard design.

 4.     Thou Shalt Be Benefit-Focused

When it comes to marketing copywriting, you can focus on benefits or features. “Closes guaranteed in 7 days” is a feature. “Be stress-free and mortgage-free by next week” is a benefit. Focusing on features makes people think you’re trying to impress them. Focusing on benefits helps people understand how your product or service improves their lives. To sum up this commandment: Benefits sell; features do not.

 5.     Thou Shalt Not Make False Promises

Don’t exaggerate the benefits of your product or service. Don’t claim to have “the best customer experience in the universe.” Don’t say that you return calls within 24 hours if all you do is email them back with a time next week that they can call. When writing the copy for your postcard, be clear about what you’ll do for your prospects, how it benefits their lives, and what your commitments are once they choose to you. Hype and unmet-expectations simply do not reflect well on your business.

 6.     Thou Shalt Always Call Prospects to Action

The goal of a postcard is to have prospects read and then take action. To accomplish this, you MUST spell out exactly what they need to do next. You cannot assume they will figure out what the next step is. People are just too busy to take the initiative. If you don’t tell them exactly what to do, it is highly unlikely that they will end up doing it. A Call to Action (CTA) can be as simple as, “Call today for a FREE mortgage review and market assessment.” Short and to the point.

 7.     Thou Shalt Be Consistent with Thy Mailings

Repetition is key to direct mail marketing success. For most postcard campaigns, my company's research shows that 3-5 mailings is ideal. For example, if you order postcards to promote a Labor Day special, you want recipients to receive that card at least three times before the sale. This ensures that you produce an optimal Return on Investment (ROI). On top of that campaign consistency, you want to be consistent in terms of how often you mail postcards throughout the year. That is where pre-planning becomes critical.

 8.     Thou Shalt Follow Up with All Leads

Following up with prospects through channels like email and phone does not directly impact your direct mail response necessarily, but it absolutely affects your ROI. The more leads you close, the more revenue you make off of your campaign. The more revenue you rake in from direct mail, the easier it is to be consistent.

 9.     Thou Shalt Build Relationships with Thy Current Customers

If an individual has a relationship with you already, it’s likely that he/she is a prime target for further marketing. Don’t neglect all of that work you did to turn them into a client! Mailing postcards to your current customers can build a strong relationship that turns one-time customers into a great source of referrals or maybe even an investor!

 10.Thou Shalt Prepare for a GREAT Year

Lastly, get ready to have you best year ever! If you abide by the nine previous commandments, that is the end-goal. Obviously, success doesn’t come overnight. However, by steadily employing these bedrock direct mail principles, you will see consistent growth every month – and that really adds up!

Best of luck to you in 2014! (But if you abide by the commandments, you may not need LUCK!)

By Joygendusa


Read Less
19 Replies
    Curt
    Replied about 7 years ago
    Hi Joy, Cute use of the 10 commandments. Targeting the right recipients is the tough nut to get right. I recently read that the response rate to NOD, 30-60-90 lists has dropped in certain cities. Probably due to the banks willingness to do workouts and shortsales and rising equity allowing agent sales. DMC disussion into 2014 needs to discuss what list selection is actually working! Be unique, I heard one expert say target purchases in 2008-2011, not because someone who just bought a house is a good candidate to sell it’s that few investors are mailing to that group. I think he had the target market half right… Mailing to a group no one else is mailing to PLUS who are likely to have real estate they NEED to sell. There’s alot of want to sell some time folks. Who in 2014 are the NEED to sell groups? – probate, this will always work, but they call back over a long period of time as the family gets done bickering over sell vs let some member move in etc. Then taxes come due… – job move/divorce/etc and the house is vacant. Kent Clothier’s find motivated seller vacant list is reported to be working here. I own this service but haven’t mailed enough to have statistics. – high equity. I don’t see this group being an easy sell with inventory so low, they know they are better off selling with an agent. Few will consider a higher selling price via owner financing, but that’s my view. What’s folks success / statistics from your mailings?
    Joy Gendusa
    Replied about 7 years ago
    Thanks for the good feedback, Curt, and for providing some useful advice yourself! In addition to more feedback from other folks, I’d be interested to hear if any investors on here have started an affiliateship or business partnership with a law firm. As these lawyers deal with probate and divorce cases so often, they’re in close contact with the target, need-to-sell market. Have to be careful of the legalities, of course, but it could be a golden opportunity!

    Report Abuse

    Why are you reporting this?

    Additional Comments (optional)

    Cancel

    Report Abuse

    Why are you reporting this?

    Additional Comments (optional)

    Cancel
    Gerald Harris
    Replied about 7 years ago
    This is exactly what the doctor ordered. usually I shoot out 10 yellow letter a day, probably 8 to 10 times a month. Get 10 to 15 calls and leave it at that. This is no way to run a business. You have to have a set plan like you had mentioned above. I was talking to a friend of mine about this yesterday. We are where we are in our businesses because a lack of a plan and no consistent effort. They we wonder why we are frustrated and financially struggling. 2014 will be a year for me to focus on rental property. Which will allow me to sustain some consistency in my finances.
    Jeff Brown
    Replied about 7 years ago
    Hey Gerald — If you’re generating that many calls, you must be doin’ something right. 🙂 If you apply any of Joy’s advice, you’ll really be in the fast lane.
    Joy Gendusa
    Replied about 7 years ago
    Haha — what Jeff said!

    Report Abuse

    Why are you reporting this?

    Additional Comments (optional)

    Cancel

    Report Abuse

    Why are you reporting this?

    Additional Comments (optional)

    Cancel
    Joy Gendusa
    Replied about 7 years ago
    Gerald, I love your commitment to more consistency! With our own mailings (as much as 160,000 a week), we see a direct correlation between revenue and how consistently and how much we mail out. If you stick to it, you’ll definitely have better numbers in the coming year. Best of luck!

    Report Abuse

    Why are you reporting this?

    Additional Comments (optional)

    Cancel

    Report Abuse

    Why are you reporting this?

    Additional Comments (optional)

    Cancel
    Susan Cain
    Replied about 7 years ago
    Terrific article, Joy. This will be my New Year’s Resolution: follow your advice. I tend not to be consistent with mailings, so I think they don’t work. Self-fulfilling prophecy, perhaps? This year will be different.
    Joy Gendusa
    Replied about 7 years ago
    Susan, I hope you can stick to it! I want ALL small businesses to have the best possible outcomes from here on out. (We’re the backbone of the economy after all.) Best of luck and happy holidays!

    Report Abuse

    Why are you reporting this?

    Additional Comments (optional)

    Cancel

    Report Abuse

    Why are you reporting this?

    Additional Comments (optional)

    Cancel
    Sharon Vornholt
    Replied about 7 years ago
    Great article Joy as always. Direct mail has always been my #1 source of leads because I do it consistently. It works when all the pieces are there and you have laid that out nicely for folks. Happy Holidays! Sharon
    Joy Gendusa
    Replied about 7 years ago
    Thanks so much, Sharon, and happy holidays and a bright New Year back at ya!

    Report Abuse

    Why are you reporting this?

    Additional Comments (optional)

    Cancel

    Report Abuse

    Why are you reporting this?

    Additional Comments (optional)

    Cancel
    Tracy
    Replied about 7 years ago
    Hi Joy, great article. I was actually googling some ideas for postcards for real estate investors, which led me to another article of yours here on BP. (I’m a contributor here as well….duh, so I should have searched here first!) Perfect timing for your input, as I’m adjusting my marketing consistencies.
    Joy Gendusa
    Replied about 7 years ago
    Tracy, thank you for the positive feedback! Glad I can help, and be sure to track your results in 2014 so I can hear all about how much business you generated with more consistency!

    Report Abuse

    Why are you reporting this?

    Additional Comments (optional)

    Cancel

    Report Abuse

    Why are you reporting this?

    Additional Comments (optional)

    Cancel
    ashley
    Replied almost 7 years ago
    Loved this post! You’re points were on point and you’re explanations were straightforward. My favorite was #4- always mention a benefit so that your customers have a reason to use you.

    Report Abuse

    Why are you reporting this?

    Additional Comments (optional)

    Cancel
    ashley
    Replied almost 7 years ago
    Loved this post! You’re points were on point and you’re explanations were straightforward. My favorite was #4- always mention a benefit so that your customers have a reason to use you. Reply Report comment
    Joy Gendusa
    Replied almost 7 years ago
    Thanks so much for the good feedback, Ashley! I hope you’ll be able to put these guidelines to use and really have a great 2014 🙂

    Report Abuse

    Why are you reporting this?

    Additional Comments (optional)

    Cancel

    Report Abuse

    Why are you reporting this?

    Additional Comments (optional)

    Cancel
    Janine Fonseca
    Replied over 6 years ago
    Thank you so much for this article. I am about to embark on my first direct mail campaign, and you gave me a lot of great ideas for my copy. Thanks again!

    Report Abuse

    Why are you reporting this?

    Additional Comments (optional)

    Cancel
    Benjamin Cowles from Cape Coral, FL
    Replied over 5 years ago
    “the best customer experience in the universe.” lol. But I DO offer that!

    Report Abuse

    Why are you reporting this?

    Additional Comments (optional)

    Cancel
    John Hamilton Real Estate Transaction Engineer from Jacksonville, Florida
    Replied over 5 years ago
    Hi Joy, Great article! I’ve now taken the wholesaler approach to my investment strategies. Frankly, because it’s the only thing I can afford at this time. I actually took classes on wholesale back in 2010, but it never really clicked until a few days ago that I can do this. Now, I’m getting quotes on lists, mailers, and postage. I’m letting the professionals take me out for the first time around. They do most everything, I provide my little input, and mailers go out. I figured for the first time, it’s 1,000 folks, at 3 months using postcards. Maybe I’ll mix it up and do yellow letters and handwritten along with the postcards. I would need 3 phones 🙂 in order to track my split-mailers. Later on, I may end up hiring someone to scour the county records, record the information needed, and deal with the incoming calls, as I work full-time. I wonder which option will costs me more or have more benefit. Of course, I would be talking to and negotiating with the owners. Then, contacting interested buyers to flip to. I know it’s not easy and definitely not free, but the benefits sure work out better for successful wholesalers. Lots of phone calls, lots of rejection, lots of seemingly time wasted, but having that 2% of deals come through makes that month a little more special. So many skills to adapt and gain that edge. Better hit the bricks!

    Report Abuse

    Why are you reporting this?

    Additional Comments (optional)

    Cancel
    Jody Schnurrenberger Investor from Asheville, North Carolina
    Replied about 3 years ago
    Thanks for writing this and know that at least sometimes, it’s still being read. 😀 I have a question. When a prospect calls, then what? Do I need to be able to give them a number off the top of my head without seeing the property? Can you give me some tips and information on handling the calls? Thanks again for writing this! 😀

    Report Abuse

    Why are you reporting this?

    Additional Comments (optional)

    Cancel
Rotate Log in or sign up to comment

Related Blog Posts

Real Estate Marketing Jan 05, 2021

Crowdfunding Tips: How To Use Your Blog To Attract Investors

By Adam Gower

By expanding their digital footprint through content marketing, real estate sponsors can effectively communicate with prospective partners and build the networks they need.

Read more →

Real Estate Marketing Dec 22, 2020

How Self-Awareness Can Lead You To Syndication Success

By Adam Gower

While digital marketing in real estate syndication may not be as romantic as a Greek epic, the importance of self-awareness lives on.

Read more →

Real Estate Marketing Dec 08, 2020

The Most Effective Way to Build a Strong Online Presence (& Why It’s Key for Growing Your Business)

By Adam Gower

There are only 24 hours in a day. The pressure to become more efficient is present in essentially every component of life—including the world of real estate investing. Here’s how to accomplish more in the digital age.

Read more →

Real Estate Marketing Nov 17, 2020

Storyselling: How To Captivate Customers & Close More Sales (Without Being Pushy)

By Adam Gower

When looking for real estate investors, your prospects aren’t necessarily looking to buy a product—what you sell them on is a story.

Read more →
Log in Sign up

Log in

Forgot password?

If you signed up for BiggerPockets via Facebook, you can log in with just one click!

Log in with Facebook

Or
btn_google_dark_normal_ios Created with Sketch. Continue with Google

Let's get started

We just need a few details to get you set up and ready to go!

Use your real name

Use at least 8 characters. Using a phrase of random words (like: paper Dog team blue) is secure and easy to remember.

By signing up, you indicate that you agree to the BiggerPockets Terms & Conditions.

Or
btn_google_dark_normal_ios Created with Sketch. Continue with Google

Why create an account?

Receive a free digital download of The Ultimate Beginner's Guide to Real Estate Investing.

Connect with 1,000,000+ real estate investors!

Find local real estate meetups and events in your area.

Start analyzing real estate properties, we do the math for you.

It's free!

Explore

  • Membership
  • Community
  • Education
  • Marketplace
  • Tools
  • FilePlace
  • REI Resources
  • Perks
  • Glossary
  • Reviews
  • iOS App
  • Android App

Company

  • About Us
  • Press
  • Advertising
  • Careers
  • Stats
  • Contact Us

Important

  • Editorial Guidelines
  • Terms of Use
  • Rules
  • Privacy
  • FAQ

Social

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • YouTube
  • Instagram
© 2004-2021 BiggerPockets, LLC. All Rights Reserved.