How often do You feel trapped by
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If you find yourself in the same position I was in a few years ago – then the Direct Mail Survival Guide will be an invaluable asset in your arsenal of marketing manuals and guides. From the moment the first postcard mailing was mentioned at the marketing department meeting, I was afraid that I was in way over my head. Through some very late nights of research, and a lot of hard work with little guidance I proved that we could at least break even on the experiment. After the postcard was designed, printed, and mailed I spent several sleepless nights worrying that vacation rental owners would be angry over the discount on their rental unit, worrying that past guests would even glance at the offer, and worrying that my job was hanging in the balance due to the success or failure of the first direct mail campaign I ever ran. In the end the postcard mailing was a huge success for the vacation rental company – and one of my greatest personal achievements! But I can tell you honestly that I would have saved myself so much time, frustration, and fear if the Direct Mail Survival Guide had been in my possession before I even proposed the postcard mailing at that life changing marketing meeting. Do yourself a favor and invest in the Direct Mail Survival Guide. Buy a copy for yourself, or for a co-worker. Get a copy for the company and share it with the entire office. |
Before you trust a man, you must see where
he’s been – and learn what he knows…
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Moving to Jackson Hole Wyoming
On a cold, dark, winter night, near the end of January 2001, my plane
landed in the frozen high alpine town of Jackson Hole Wyoming. I had
just
$500 in my pocket – and all I owned was stuffed into a hiker’s
backpack. It was Thursday - Monday morning I was required to report for
work at my new job. The vacation rental agency I worked for had a
miniscule 2% marketing budget! And we were expected to produce miracle
response rates and
incredible return on investment.
Recommending the First Postcard Mailing
I gathered enough courage at a
marketing meeting to recommend a postcard mailing. The estimated costs
of the postcard design creation, list clean up and standardization,
postcard printing, and mailing expenses would stretch the entire
marketing budget close to going broke! There
was a lot riding on the success – or failure – of the postcard
campaign. Not the least of which – was my job. (or Death By Committee)
Mailing the Postcard Was the Easy Part!
Just a week after the last postcard was mailed – the first call came
in. I heard the reservation specialist speaking clearly into her
headset, “Oh! You received one of our postcards?” Springing to my feet,
I ran through a maze desks crammed in the small office. Behind the
reservation specialist, I listened – and – held my breath. Arms crossed over my chest,
one hand raised to my mouth as I bit my fingers with fear! Would the
guest book a reservation?
But was it a Huge Success?
As she thanked the caller for their time, and
hung up the phone – the entire office it seemed on pins and
needles! We had all gathered around her
desk, anticipating the outcome of the call. The tension in the room was
thick as the young woman spun her chair around to meet my anxious
stare… “Well? What did they say? That caller got one of the postcards,
right? What did they say?!”
“The caller booked a five night stay in one of our homes for a huge ski vacation with his entire family! He said the deal on the postcard was something that he and his wife just could not pass up. They love Jackson Hole so much, and dreamed of returning. Your postcard was the tipping point they needed to make their vacation plans!”
And the Phone Rang Again…
– and reservation specialists darted back to their desks
to answer the incoming calls. Phone call after phone call, reservations
continued to pour in over the next several weeks! The new postcard was
a huge success which paid for itself with
just two reservations. Everything after that was pure profit! What an
incredible experience to have as a way to break into the direct mail
marketing industry.
Now Was The Time To Move On...
... to success from there. After Jackson Hole Wyoming I took a position
with an International List Broker & Data Cleansing company located
in Seattle, Washington. Following that I was asked to join a small
company in my hometown which produced Variable Data Direct Mail! In
time, I started Poor Irishman Internet Marketing as a way to join Internet Marketing and Direct Mail Marketing. They are perfect partners many businesses use successfully with multi-channel
marketing campaigns. The future looks very exciting as Poor Irishman
Internet Marketing, and our Direct Mail Division serves clients around
the world. |
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Do You feel trapped by
super-small marketing budgets?
As a small business owner, independent professional, novice marketing
assistant, or inexperienced first-time direct mail marketer you are
probably trapped by the same super-small marketing budget that
frustrates and kills creativity and success! Everyone believes that the
more money you throw at a problem, the faster the problem will go away.
But that thinking is totally wrong, and causes many people to have a
terrible first time experience with direct mail marketing. Before
throwing hundreds of dollars away on a super expensive campaign that
will likely fail – invest first in the Direct Mail Survival Guide and
build your understanding of the foundational principles that will carry
your first direct mail marketing campaign to great success!
Are you drowning – in over your head
from a total lack of experience?
Everyone starts at the bottom and works their way to the top.
Unfortunately, some people never invest in their knowledge &
understanding of the principles that dictate the success & failure
of their industry! In the end, those people struggle for years and
years – often drowning in their lack of experience. Over time they pull
down whole marketing departments by wasting years of effort, and
thousands of dollars in unnecessary costs on failed direct mail
marketing campaigns. Stop treading water in an ocean of experienced
sharks that are waiting to rip your direct mail campaign to shreds!
Accept this offer to invest in the Direct Mail Survival Guide like a
Coast Guard rescue team pulling you to safety.
Do you feel crushing pressure from
everyone expecting you to perform way beyond reasonable expectations?
Listening to the endless criticism at the water cooler every morning…
Feeling tense nervousness during boardroom meetings in the afternoon…
Wiping away beads of sweat rolling down your face as you work late into
the night trying to make the campaign work… This is No Way for you to
live as a marketing professional! You are wasting time and effort on a
direct mail campaign you have no business creating without first
understanding the rules of the game. Save yourself the embarrassment,
anxiousness, and heartache of a failed direct mail campaign by picking
up a copy of the Direct Mail Survival Guide!
Are you fearful that everything
(even your job!) is riding on your success or failure with the next marketing campaign?
Finally, it has come to this! Rising from your small desk, in the
corner of a cramped office (* note the lack of any window or real
view), you walk with your head down toward your bosses office. The
direct mail campaign you sunk thousands of dollars into – not to
mention weeks of sleeplessness and anguish – was dropped in the mail
six weeks ago. The only problem with your direct mail campaign – were
the pitiful, horrible, non-existent responses! Not a single call, not a
single reply, not even a “Return To Sender” mail piece was returned.
What a miserable, terrible, awful failure… and now it will cost your
job. But before you get canned, head to your assistant’s desk and
recommend he buy a copy of the Direct Mail Survival Guide so that maybe
one of you can walk around with some dignity and success.
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YOU REALLY HAVE
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Buy the Direct Mail Survival Guide now, and
your first direct mail marketing campaign will succeed!
P.S. – Here’s a photo of the FIRST Postcard
that launched my career in multi-channel marketing!
