The traditional formula for success in the mail-order business combines both PROSPECTING and BACK-END.
Prospecting is often called the initial solicitation. This is when a company sends a mailing to people who are not currently customers, subscribers, members or donors. The object is to get the recipient to purchase, subscribe, join or donate. Continue reading “Back End Mailings”
A major topic in almost every discussion about mailing lists is financial ability. Mailers want to select credit card buyers … mailers want to suppress low income areas … mailers want a minimum income. These criteria might lead you to believe that people with poor credit don’t respond to mail-order offers; or that they would love to respond, but don’t have the financial capacity to make the purchase. Continue reading “Bad Credit, Good Names”
There is a lot of misinformation that people have about the demographics of America. There are professionals that state that their customers move at an annual rate of less than 5%, because that’s the percentage of their names that qualify for the US Postal Service’s National Change of Address. The following is a compilation of the core demographic numbers. Continue reading “A Broad View of U.S. Movers”
Over 12 million Americans need assistance in order to carry out their everyday activities. Within the past year, one out of every four households has been involved in caregiving (caring for a family member or friend) for a person aged 50 or over. That translates to more than 54 million people who have provided caregiving within the last year, for someone who is ill or disabled. Continue reading “Caregivers – An Unexplored Direct Marketing Opportunity”
Over the past quarter century I’ve heard dozens of different statistics about the percentage of people that move every year. These guesstimates have varied from a low of 10 percent to a high of 25 percent. When people move, your database takes a hit.
So let’s look at who moves and why. Continue reading “How Many People Move Each Year”
I never cease to be amazed at the amount of misinformation that people have about the demographics of America. There are professionals that state that their customers move at an annual rate of less than 5%, because that’s the percentage of their names that qualify for NCOA change of address.
The following is a compilation of the core demographic numbers. First is the basic makeup of Continue reading “Let’s Look at America’s Numbers”
It would be wonderful if every time you advertised, you generated enough new business to pay for the advertising cost. But in the real world that hardly ever happens.
What happens instead is that you hope to generate new customers who will create substantial profits to your business over the years.
A great example of this is a credit card solicitation. When you receive a solicitation and sign up Continue reading “Lifetime Value of a Customer”
Because of the economic problems the nation is facing, the number of new movers is ping significantly.
Young adults are not leaving home and getting their own apartments. Too many are unemployed or uncertain of their futures. Older people are not moving to their dream Continue reading “Mobility Falls to a Record Low as Americans Stay Put”
There is no doubt that the “new move” mailing list is the most frequently used mailing list in the United States. This is not surprising since 43 million Americans move every year.
It’s during the “just moved” phase that you should take advantage of the opportunity to introduce yourself and your services to the people in the midst of making all of these changes Continue reading “New Move Mailing Lists to Promote Your Business or Organization”
It wasn’t many years ago when the Dick and Jane household was typical: Mom and dad and two children, with four grandparents living nearby. Just a quarter century ago 45% of all households consisted of a married couple with children. That percentage has fallen to 26%.
Many people still maintain this image when they think about households. Continue reading “Redefining Households in the U.S.”