Direct Marketing produced $2.05 trillion in sales in 2012. That’s about 8.7% of US GDP in 2013. This implies several key points.
First of all, the competition in direct marketing is tough. With all those advertising dollars being spent on direct marketing, you need to make sure your message gets across and is heard. Second, with stiff competition, you need to craft compelling messages, not once, but repeatedly. You must do this effectively and efficiently, if you want to do more than just stay afloat.
Therefore, it is important to develop a marketing strategy that optimizes your spending budget by employing direct marketing more effectively. Here are 5 essential components of successful direct marketing.
1) Deliver a compelling sales message
Several elements go into creating a compelling sales message. Successful sales letters and other marketing content must be relevant, useful, and persuasive. Marketing content that works grabs your prospect’s attention, shows uniqueness, and builds trust with your prospect. Employ these three elements in all your direct marketing content.
WIIFM – Tell your prospect exactly what’s in it for him or her.
Unique Selling Proposition (USP): Clearly describe why your solution is superior.
ยท Testimonials – Let your satisfied customers “sell” for you.
2) Follow up on leads promptly to engage and grab your prospect’s attention
You may have a sales letter that generates leads, but if you don’t follow up, valuable leads will slip away. Follow up a live event with a phone call, email, or letter that invites the prospect to take the next step.
Offer a free demo of your product or service. Make an appointment with a subject matter expert who can go into more detail about how your company’s solution works and why it’s better than the competition. Then, before the scheduled demo, submit a white paper that explains your product in detail.
Follow up, engage, and engage your prospect in your solution.
3) Promote your brand
Brand benefits give companies an edge over non-brand competitors. The brand helps to favorably position your product or service. It also gives you pricing and distribution power. The lesson is: never miss a brand opportunity.
Direct marketing offers you many online and offline means to build brand awareness. Online media: (1) Banner advertising; (2) blogs; (3) email; and (4) Website. Offline media: (1) Print advertising: sales letters, postcards, brochures; (2) press releases; and (3) Public Relations.
4) Foster the relationship with the new client
Lead nurturing is just as important as lead acquisition. Most companies want to develop long-term relationships with customers. That’s because they become regular customers. And, over time, repeat customers generate more sales and profit for your bottom line.
Outbound marketing provides many ways to create and maintain a lead nurturing program. You can use email, direct mail, social media, mobile, podcasts, webinars, phone calls, and video.
5) Integrate and sync online and offline direct marketing
To optimize your direct marketing message and budget, success lies in finding the right mix of online and offline methods. One method is not necessarily better than another. Instead, the secret ingredient to successful direct marketing depends on how you weave together these various methods.
You can integrate and sync these methods throughout the sales cycle starting with message delivery. Start with a sales letter, follow up with a phone call or email. Refer your prospect to your website for more in-depth marketing content, and don’t forget to bookmark throughout this process.
Getting the marketing mix right produces a “multiplier effect” that helps you close sales faster and easier. Employing different mediums consistently and coherently working towards the same goal optimizes your marketing efforts.
Don’t overlook the value of direct marketing
With so much attention focused on inbound marketing lately, it’s easy to overlook the benefits of direct marketing. However, as you can see, it still dominates the lion’s share of sales. Therefore, it is prudent to examine the focus of your marketing strategy and align your budget accordingly.
Before embarking on a direct marketing campaign, use these five essential components to effectively and efficiently compete for that $2.05 trillion market.
