Guerrilla,Insights,Into,Direct marketing Guerrilla Insights Into Direct Response

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Direct response marketing is a lot different from indirectresponse marketing, although guerrillas like it best when thetwo are teamed up. The first is geared to obtain orders righthere and right now. The second is geared to obtain orderseventually. Although a fair amount of standard, indirectmarketing often is necessary to set the stage, to make prospectsready to buy, and to separate your company from strangers, it'swhen you initiate direct marketing that you first taste blood. As you well know, we are living in the Age of Information, mostof it very easy to obtain. But information is hardly enough fora guerrilla. And information is not insight. It's thecombination of information and thought that leads to insight andit's insight that's going to make you a stand-out in the directresponse arena. The first insight for you to absorb is that direct responsemarketing either works immediately or not at all. Unlikestandard marketing which changes attitudes slowly and ultimatelyleads to a sale if you go about things right, guerrilla directresponse marketing changes minds and attitudes instantly andleads to a sale instantly if you go about things right. When it works, you know it. You don't have to sit around andwonder. You don't have to wait months and months for yourmessage to penetrate the mind of your prospect. Your time-dateddirect marketing offer either results in a sale right now -- orit doesn't. To succeed with direct marketing in any medium, remember always: 1. Your offer is omnipotent. The best presentation in theworld has a major uphill battle if you make a weak or ordinaryoffer. 2. The market to whom you direct your message can make or breakyour campaign. Saying the right thing to the wrong peopleresults in no sale. 3. What you say and how you say it is easily as important as towhom you say it. Talk in terms of your prospects and how youroffer benefits them. 4. Carefully planning every cent of your campaign for maximumprofits requires as much creativity as your message. Guerrillasexcel at this. 5. The more that people have been exposed to your othermarketing, the more readily they'll accept what you offer withyour direct marketing. Some principles of indirect marketing apply to directmarketing. You must still talk of the prospect, not yourself,and you must make a clear and cogent offer. But from thatpoint on, direct marketing is a whole new ballgame. And its onethat you can win with the insights of the guerrilla. Stupid mistakes in horrid abundance have been made by otherwisebright companies when testing the direct response waters. Fortunately, guerrillas can learn from these blunders, makingthose waters a bit safer. Listing them would take an endlessseries of books, but it's worth your time if I make a start byproviding insight into ten of the most notable: * Failure to attract attention at the outset dooms manybrilliant campaigns before they have a chance to shine. Envelopes, opening lines, mail subject lines and firstimpressions are the gates to your offer. Open them wide. * Not facing the reality of a direct marketing explosionrelegates your attempt to the ordinary, which means the ignored. Guerrillas say things to rise above the din, to be noticed anddesired in a sea of marketers. * Focusing your message on yourself instead of your prospectwill usually send your effort to oblivion. Prospects care farmore about themselves than they care about you. So talk to themabout themselves. * Not knowing precisely who your market is will send you intothe wrong direction. Research into pinpointing that market willbe some of the most valuable time you devote to your directmarketing campaign. * Mailing or telephoning to other than honest prospects wastesyour time and money. If you make your offer to people who don'treally have a need for your offering, they'll be an incrediblytough sale. * Initiating direct response marketing without specificobjectives gives you too hazy a target for bullseyes. Begin bycreating the response method for your prospects so you'll knowwhat your message should say. * Featuring your price before you stress your benefit will betelling people what they don't want to know yet. First, yourjob is to make them want what you are offering, then you cantell them the price. * Concentrating on your price before your offer is wasting apowerful selling point. Even if your price is the lowest,people care more about how they'll gain from purchasing. Giveyour low price at the right time. * Failing to test all that can be tested is a goof-off of thehighest order. Test your price points, opening lines, subjectlines, envelope teaser lines, benefits to stress, contact timesand mailing lists to know the real winners. * Setting the wrong price means you've failed in your testingand your research. Guerrillas are sensitive to their market andtheir competition, testing prices and constantly subjecting themto the litmus test of profits. As direct response vehicles become more sophisticated andprolific, guerrillas have the insight to zero in on the exactpeople to contact, so as not to waste time or money onstrangers. Successful mailings to strangers net as high as twopercent response rates. Successful mailings to customers andqualified prospects net up to ten percent. Precision leads toprofits. Article Tags: Direct Response, Direct Marketing