What's in a Name?
| | Wednesday, June 28, 2006 @ 11:53 AM EDT
|  Printer Friendly Page
 Send this Story to a Friend |
Contributed by: Rachel Young
Rachel Young Properties
Read more archived articles about Marketing
Walking out to the mailbox has certainly become an arduous chore. You know what you’re going to see when you get there. There are the standard bills, the unexpected bills, and the bills that you’ve paid already but the bill company is sending you a late notice incase you’ve paid but they haven’t received it yet. Then there’s my favorite...
I’m sure you’ve seen it a million times before: Dear Homeowner, Dear Sir, Dear Madam, aka Dear We-Don’t-Know-Who-You-Are. Most of the times, you automatically classify it as junk mail and, if you’re like me, trash it before it even gets opened.
However, every once in a while, you receive a letter from someone and the envelope has your name on it. You open it and prepare to read it, glad to hear from whoever has written you. How many times has that letter turned out to be a solicitation just like the ones you trashed, but you opened it anyway because it was addressed specifically to you?
I fall for it every time. I’m a sucker for anything with my name on it. I’m not the only one! I’ve gotten a significantly higher response rate on my mailings to homeowners looking to sell their houses by:
• Addressing the envelope to them personally (Sally Smith).
• Inserting their name in the salutation (Dear Sally).
• Using the homeowner’s name in the body of the letter 3 times. (You know, Sally... Isn’t that right, Sally...? Sally, have you heard about...)
By keeping your direct mail letter as personal as possible, you stand a much higher chance of getting your mail read and responded to just by including the name of the recipient in the letter sent. And after all, isn’t that the purpose of a direct mail campaign...to get the recipient to respond?
Make the most of your marketing dollars by personalizing your direct mail. Keep your mail personalized and out of the garbage by using the homeowner’s name. It’s true what they say, “One man’s trash IS another man’s treasure”.
Note: Rachel Young is the owner of Big Cheese Marketing and specializes in real estate marketing for investors. She is a member of the Gwinnett Chamber of Commerce in Georgia, Toastmasters, the American Marketing Association, and the Better Business Bureau. Learn more about her at www.bigcheesemarketing.com.
Word Cloud:
read envelope what's response heard chore. madam, before: million homeowner, seen dollars yet. garbage keeping there’s gotten times arduous then opened. haven’t whoever dear classify sally... mail. inserting getting isn’t trashed, junk while, sally). body know, (you man’s purpose significantly (sally chance incase like letter it’s you? gets once fall addressing glad have smith). paid every name. late personally respond? personal mail prepare sell homeowner’s you’ve with automatically anyway about...) addressed higher sending sucker mailbox written recipient />
by unexpected name? standard bills, ones another bill just notice possible, bills you’re what personalized rate say, sir, />
however, certainly specifically open received we-don’t-know-who-you-are. anything only including mailings />
i’m marketing there even walking much they houses become sally, most treasure”. true after direct many receive all, them name keep times. one! before homeowners “one there. right, you. solicitation (dear salutation looking when sure going sent. />
make turned times, someone i’ve time. opened favorite... hear using personalizing know campaign...to sally...? company already trash and, responded stand because
|
|
| |
Average Score: 1.5
Votes: 6
|
|
