Reprinted from Western Roofing magazine Nov/Dec 2007.

Direct Mail Works, Part II

The Importance of Getting Your Message to the Right Place

by Chris Margarites, president, Eternabond

Most business people would like more business, right? Ideally we would like it when we need it, and not when we already have too much. This desire is the perfect reason to start a direct mail program at your organization. Direct mail, or direct marketing as it is also called, gives you control of the services you want to offer, when you want to offer them, and to whom you want to offer them. Another thing a well-executed direct marketing program will do for your company is help create the work necessary to start a service (repair) department, and service is where the profits are. We will talk about starting a service department in a later article, but for now, let’s talk about direct mail: targets, strategy, frequency, dos, and don’ts.

The Mailing List

The cheapest and easiest place to find recipients for your direct mail advertisements is your customer list. This is also known as a database. If you don’t think you have one, just look inside your file cabinets. Build one by creating a simple Excel or Microsoft Access file, and be sure to update it regularly. Mailings are easily generated from these two common software programs, which are probably already loaded on your computer. Include names, addresses and phone numbers, and then details like the type of roof, age, etc. Last article talked about how to get the most out of this list. What if your list is too small or you are just getting started? Easy. With the advent of the internet, this is no longer a problem. There has never been an easier way to get mailing lists. Simply type “customer lists” or “mailing list” into your search engine, hit “enter,” and decide which ones best suit your company and your goals.

Now that you have a list, you need a strategy, which is basically the same thing as a plan. My company name is my brand, so my plan has always been to keep the name of my company in front of the customer’s face. To make managing the direct mail program easy, I needed it to be sequential, so I always started with the calendar. For example, in early March we would communicate by sending a postcard (the “direct mail” advertisement) to our existing customers with flat roofs only. The message was about the damage the freeze-thaw cycles of winter could do to their roof and the wisdom of a low-cost inspection by one of our professionally trained technicians. Our goal was to set up as many appointments as we could before the weather turned wet and we were too busy to do preventative maintenance work. We offered a special price for early responses to the mailer. We followed up with a phone call. We could do this because they are our customers and we have a relationship, and after the first year or two of mailers they learned to expect them. There is a principle here, Frequent communication creates relationships with your customers. We designed the mailer to simply convey our message, and if it was a message that we would repeat every year, like pre-season maintenance, we sent the exact same mailer on the same week(s) every year. It taught our customers to look for us. It wasn’t long before we needed to create a position specific to this marketing task. Notice how everything flowed together. We answered the question(s): When – the end of winter but before spring; Who – existing customers with flat roofs; What – pre- wet season roof inspections; developed a “hook” – a special price; developed the relationship – phone call; and increased our brand value – they were looking for our company and no one else’s. We even morphed it into a sales system that included telemarketing and a special position in the company. We duplicated this scenario every fall before things started to freeze up. Like we did, you will have created a strategy to contact your existing customers twice per year. Good job.

How to do the same thing using one of the purchased customer lists: Define the list you want by potential customer location using zip codes, and then by customer type, commercial flat roofs or commercial buildings, etc. If you decide to follow-up with a phone call, follow a simple rule: do not send out mailers to more customers than you can call back the following week. Then follow this simple technique: 1) Identify yourself and your company and politely ask if you can have three minutes of their time, no more, and promise to honor that by hanging up when the time has expired; 2) Ask if they received the mailer; 3) If they received it, ask them if they would like the inspection, repeat that it is only x amount of dollars, admit that it is a special price to get to know them and hopefully gain their business. If they have not received it, explain what the flyer was about and repeat the same things as if they had said yes; 4) Tell them a little about your company: serving the neighborhood for x number of years, average mechanic has been with the company for x number of years, owner’s kids go to local schools, anything that makes you a friend, but only if it is true and you are willing to live up to it; 5) Watch the clock. At three minutes say, “My time is up. Thank you for your time. Please think of my brand when you are ready to have any roof work done.” Don’t talk too fast or push too hard. Remember, you are a friend. Note their response on the mailing list spread sheet because you are going to call them again in the fall right after you have called your existing customers. Send them a ”thank you for your three minutes” card. Get personal by writing something like, “I hope I did not pester you. You treated me with respect and I appreciate that. Please think of my brand when you are ready to have your roof inspected, repaired, or replaced. We will treat you fairly and do a good job.” Do you see what is happening? A pattern is developing, and you are personalizing your mailing list.

The key going forward is frequency. We used to send a minimum of 750 pieces per month. Not everyone got them every time because we targeted the customer type and the services we offer. What other services can you think of offering? Think outside of the box. How about gutter cleaning and preventative maintenance on the seams and downspouts? The damage that plugged gutters can do to a building is a compelling story, and it will fit nicely on a post card. How about a special such as installing natural light tubular skylights? How about a roof hatch installation special? Blast that offer out to every commercial building owner in a ten-mile radius with whom you can follow-up. Break any paradigms you may have about return on investment. The reality is how many positive responses do you need to make it worth the effort? The answer is, “not many,” especially if your installer is a sales-oriented service technician. Your goal is to open doors for your company and expand market awareness of your brand through direct mail.

DO’s and Don’t’s of Direct Mail

DO be consistent and frequent. DO something every month. DON’T save all your ammo for one big blast once a year. DO time your residential mailers to arrive on a Friday or a Saturday, and your commercial mailers to arrive on a Monday. DO try to follow-up on the commercial mailers. DON’T get discouraged. Results won’t happen overnight. We had old and new customers who called us about an idea we tickled them with a year earlier. Do make it a promotion with a time limit, and DO be creative and entertaining, but professional, with your mailer. DO always include something when you send your invoices, and for local (non-roofing) suppliers, put one in with your “on time” payment for the products or services they provided to you. You don’t know who will read it or pass it along. DO start building a service division. A well-run service department can earn 60% – 70% gross profits and the benefits of having one are too numerous to list. Next month we will start that discussion. Why to start a service department, how to start a service department, how to run one, and what to expect. Until then, keep roofing. •••