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Dear Direct Marketing Friend,

Welcome to the newest issue of Direct Marketing Update—with more tips and strategies you can use to maximize your response and make more money.

I can’t believe the Super Bowl is just days away. This is the time I sit back with my chips and dip, enjoy my wife’s famous hero sandwiches and watch the multimillion-dollar commercials…and oh, also a football game.

I’ll have my analysis of commercials that worked and those that flopped in my next issue. But today, let’s look at some new ideas to help you get the most out of your marketing dollar.

In this issue…

• 6 surprising keys to profitable direct mail in 2011
• Web strategy: 6 shopping cart strategies that work
• Colorado’s Internet sales tax ruled unconstitutional
• Copy tip: The power of emotional triggers
• Testing corner: Can using the President’s name increase response?

6 surprising keys to profitable direct mail in 2011

It’s a new year, and that means you have a new set of marketing challenges ahead of you. All of your marketing efforts will be affected by the economy, the new Congress, inflation, technology, the green movement and a variety of other factors.

But part of your media mix should be direct mail. It still can give you the fastest growth, lowest cost per lead and lowest cost per sale.

Here are a few critical points to help you profitably tackle direct mail in the year ahead…

1. Traditional direct mail is back in the spotlight. A surprising boom in direct mail is coming for 2011–2012. The recent economic crisis has made direct mail more attractive than ever before, thanks to its ability to target your audience and message with pinpoint accuracy.
2. Consider 3-D marketing. Now’s the time to stand out from the crowd…and one of the best approaches is to use high-impact, high-reward 3-dimensional direct mail. These mailers cost more to produce, but if done right, they often generate double-digit response rates. It could be a mailing tube with a product sample, a message in a bottle…the creative possibilities are endless. Click here for more information and examples. To see how my agency made 3-D work for another client, click here.
3. Magalogs are also a great fit for this marketing environment. Right now, more marketers are trying magalogs for the first time—and with great results. A magalog looks like a magazine, but it’s an infomercial in print. It draws the reader in with conversational, direct response copy without announcing that it’s a sales piece. Click here to learn more about magalogs.
4. Envelope mailings are better than postcards. Postcards do not have the real estate to deliver a strong and powerful sales message. An envelope mailing has the space to say what a postcard can say—plus its contents add to the messaging. So even though a postcard might be cheaper to mail, it won’t have the response impact of an envelope package.
5. Revisit your product positioning for Baby Boomers and Generation Xers. The oldest of the Baby Boomers are preparing for retirement, while the Gen Xers are entering their 40s. The needs of both groups are evolving. Remember that Gen X will now be replacing Boomers with a steady focus on child-raising, mortgages, college funding and even long-term financial planning. Adjust your messages accordingly.
6. Reevaluate your lists for email and postal mail. If you’re not sure how updated they are or how often they’ve been scrubbed, contact Brad at InfoMat at 310-212-5944 to discuss how your lists could add tens of thousands of dollars to your bottom line this year through list rentals.

To learn more about how you can take advantage of the top marketing trends happening right now, read my just-published two-part series in Direct Response newsletter, “14 surprising marketing forecasts for 2011.” Click here to learn more and subscribe now.  

Web strategy: 6 shopping cart strategies that work

As a business owner, it is critical you integrate e-commerce into your business strategy. But having a shopping cart is not enough. It is important you use essential strategies for making your shopping cart work hard to squeeze every dollar you can.

Here are a few simple strategies you can use to make your shopping cart work harder for you:

1. Include your 800 number: Having your toll-free number (and the hours to call) can increase the size of your orders by making available a real live person to answer questions, or recommend upsells or cross-sells. This also gives you a chance to build a stronger relationship with the customer and a positive customer service experience—ensuring repeat business. And yes, a call center is better than no 800 number.
2. Include your address: Even if you don’t provide mail-in service (which most companies should), an address shows the customer that you are a real business. It adds credibility and confidence—and that helps response.
3. Avoid using the word “Buy”: The text you use in your shopping cart page is important. Studies show that buttons that say “Add to Cart” are far more effective than “Buy Now.”
4. Use testimonials: Have customer testimonials (if you legally can) appear near the “Add to Cart” and “Checkout” buttons. This builds assurances that the customer is making the right decision. With this in mind, make sure to collect testimonials from happy customers. Consider offering customers incentives to give testimonials.
5. The guarantee: The more assurances you provide, the more likely your prospect/customer will complete the purchase. Make sure your guarantee appears near the credit card and address information.
6. FREE shipping: If available, make sure you state prominently that free shipping is available. On the Internet, “FREE shipping” is a golden ticket to higher response.

Looking for help building your e-commerce website? Contact me today at craig@cdmginc.com.

Colorado’s Internet sales tax ruled unconstitutional

Finally, the courts get one right!

A federal court in Colorado has issued an injunction, which prevents the Colorado Department of Revenue from enforcing a 2010 law requiring out-of-state retailers to publish a notice to purchasers in Colorado telling them that they must pay a “use tax” for products bought outside but “imported” into Colorado.

This is great news for every Internet retailer.

The court’s decision cites constitutional grounds as the basis for its order, noting the Colorado law’s discriminatory impact on out-of-state retailers—those specifically targeted for compliance.

The court citied long-standing decisions by the U.S. Supreme Court supporting the principle that a state may not impose on out-of-state retailers burdens not imposed similarly on in-state retailers.

Let’s hope this puts the kibosh on similar legislation forming in other states.

Copy tip: The power of emotional triggers

We all like to consider ourselves logical and dispassionate when it comes to our decision-making. But the fact is, we are driven by emotions—and so are your prospects and customers.

Granted, we are not emotional zombies doing everything our urges tell us. But, people buy for primarily emotional reasons, using logic to justify the buying decision.

“It will save me money…”
“It will save me time…”
“I will be more productive…”

Still, the power behind any direct response copy is its ability to activate emotional triggers in the audience.

Before you start working your copy magic to instill emotional triggers that activate a buying response, first know who you are communicating with. Know your audience. If you don’t know who your customer is, you won’t know what they want and the emotional triggers that get them there.

These are my top 3 emotional triggers. But use them carefully. The emotional triggers you use depend on who you are marketing to and what you are marketing.

1. Fear: It is my experience that fear is the most powerful emotional response of all. In fact, research has shown that fear of loss is a more powerful motivator than the desire for gain.
2. Greed: It’s powerful. People want success, more income or profits. Use words that put the reader into that place where he is richer, more affluent than his friends and neighbors, or enjoying a better business advantage than his competition. Like other emotional triggers, appeal to the senses in your copy. Sights, smells, sounds and experiences put the reader in that lap of luxury.
3. Anger: Feelings of anger and frustration often arise from having been let down in the past. Know where your customer is coming from. Tap into past letdowns that have cost him/her time or money, grief or anguish. Consider many political fundraising messages that tap into a constituent’s need to see change—and it’s not happening. Get the reader to feel something…and then deliver the solution!

You can use many emotional triggers to activate a response in your target audience. The goal is to use the right ones to drive your customer to take action. That’s the key to success in direct response copy. To have the right emotional triggers work for you, contact me today at craig@cdmginc.com.

Testing corner: Can using the President’s name increase response?

Consider how important a small thing can be when it comes to response. Take for instance the use or non-use of a name.

One marketer was preparing a marketing email campaign promoting a healthcare-related product. With healthcare so much in the headlines, there was great discussion whether or not to refer to “Obama’s healthcare plan” in the copy.

Those against using the name said that the product had nothing to do with politics and the plan was not the sole property of the President. It would be a distraction. Others argued that healthcare was deeply rooted to the President’s name.

The marketer sent out two versions of the email. The emails were identical in every way except that one specifically referenced Obama and the other did not.

What was the result?

The one using Obama’s name had a staggering 250% lift in response!

Very small changes can work to radically change your results for the better or worse. Why do you think the name made a difference? Email me at craig@cdmginc.com. I’ll share some reader responses in the next issue (without disclosing your full name).

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About Craig Huey

Craig Huey is the #1 authority on accountable advertising.

He’s recognized as one of the top direct response marketing experts in the nation.

In addition to publishing Direct Marketing Update and the industry newsletter Direct Response, Mr. Huey is president of Creative Direct Marketing Group, Inc., a full-service direct response advertising agency, and InfoMat, Inc., a postal and email list brokerage and management company.

Email Craig at craig@cdmginc.com.

Profitable email tips

• In some test studies, the word “FREE” in the subject line did not reduce deliverability.
• Tests show highlighting the guarantee and a web security assurance in the email message lifts response.
• Including alt-tags for images is a must. Failing to write some sort of benefit copy to appear in lieu of blocked images is a lost opportunity.
• When it comes to subject lines, avoid being too clever. If the brain doesn’t make the connection in the 2 seconds it has to read it, your prospect won’t respond. Use clear “action-oriented, benefit-oriented, ‘you’-oriented” subject lines.

Click to subscribe

Direct Response is the nation’s leading direct marketing newsletter. And in each issue, you’ll catch up on the latest test results, breakthrough strategies and techniques to get you the most return for your dollar.

You’ll discover…

• New opening paragraph techniques that can increase your results by 20% to 30% or more
• 7 surprising website blunders that lower response
• 8 tips for easy ordering that will help you boost your response
• 4 little-known direct response recession-beating strategies
• Fatal errors in preparing industrial catalogs—how to avoid them while increasing your responses substantially

Direct Marketing Update subscribers can save $15 on a new subscription. Click here to subscribe now.

Missed the last few issues of Direct Marketing Update?

Click here for the archive.

Media buys are cheaper than ever. Now is the time to create a direct response TV or radio campaign…while testing different spots and formats is surprisingly affordable.

If you need help creating a breakthrough campaign, my team and I at Creative Direct Marketing Group, Inc., are ready to assist you. Just call us at 310-212-5727 or email me at craig@cdmginc.com.

We’ll show you how to improve your response rates.

The fastest way to get your prospects to buy what you’re selling is to market to a ready-made list with the names of perfectly targeted prospects.

You know your product, and at InfoMat, we know the niche that needs it.

Because we’re a customized list broker, we have access to little-known mailing lists that you’ve probably never heard of.

For more than 35 years, we’ve been advising large and small companies on how to find, test and use niche email and postal mailing lists to reach buying prospects.

If you love doubling or tripling your profits as much as we do, why not pick up the phone right now and call my team at InfoMat at 310-212-5944 Ext. 170, or click here to contact us.

We can help make the next quarter your best one ever.

Here are just a few of the clients Craig has helped.

B2B

800 DIRECT
Compusource
SurfControl, Inc.
The Weather Channel
See more B2B clients

Consumer

Baby Lulu
Chevron Oil
Hooked on Phonics
Weight Watchers
See more consumer clients

Health and Wellness

Blue Cross Catalog
Health Alert
Metagenics, Inc.
Sun Chlorella
See more health clients

Publishing

Charisma Magazine
Agora Publishing
The Hollywood Reporter
VNU Publishing
See more publishing clients

Investment

Barry Kaye Associates
The Motley Fool
Standard & Poor’s
VectorVest, Inc.
See more investment clients

Fund-raising/Political

Biola University
Athletes in Action
Jews for Jesus
Save Proposition 13
See more fund-raising/ political clients

Direct Mail

Intelligence Digest
The Dines Letter
TheStreet.com
See more direct mail clients

Paid Search

Constitution Mining
Retirement Watch
The CHEAP Investor
Vestopia

Websites/Microsites

Downey Savings
Mommie Helen’s Bakery
RealMoney.com
South Bay Back
Spectrum Holdings
See more website clients

TV/Infomercials/Viral Videos

Dr. Bruce West
DTN
Fawn’s Secret Stock
Variel Health Spas

Radio

Education Connection
Reagan for President
Saturday Night Singles
Sun Wellness

Reach Craig Huey now at 310-212-5727 or craig@cdmginc.com to discuss how he and his team of marketing professionals can create the same profit-exploding results for your next campaign.

Missed the last few issues of Direct Marketing Update?

Click here for the archive.

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