For mortgage brokers looking to expand their business, direct mail is the most productive and reliable way to reach and sell to a specific, targeted audience.
The rise of direct mail in the 1980’s proved itself as a science. Direct mail studies showed by coming up with the proper offer, and packaging it properly, the last step that would remain would be targeting the right audience. By effectively executing these steps, statistics would show there would be a high probability that the piece would be seen, considered, and acted upon.
The science of direct mail went beyond just basic science. New metrics were developed and tested by direct mail companies. Instead of looking at figures such as “cost per thousand”, direct mail paved the way to new methods of thinking and measuring metrics such as “cost per response”. With direct mail being the one advertising method that is focused, identifiable factors such as response and cost per response now became identifiable and measurable factors.
Cost per response-targeted marketing is making an impact on the way businesses think about spending their advertising budgets.
Newspapers, magazines, television, and radio will all continue to claim the shotgun approach to marketing works, but direct mail marketing delivers a targeted message to your audience and delivers superior ROI for your marketing dollar.
Know Where Your Direct Mail Dollar Goes
When looking at the cost breakdown for a direct mail campaign, different factors play a role in determining the total cost for a campaign.
A large chunk of the cost goes towards postage. Another portion goes towards the printer for press time, paper, film, plates, stitching, trimming, etc.
The creative team, which includes planning, copying, design, finished artwork, typesetting, and photography, all these tasks have a portion of the overall budget allocated toward them.
The final tasks, which include the direct mail service for managing data, inserting, sorting, collating, tabbing, transporting, and other tasks.
Many companies look at all the different costs associated with direct mail and try to find ways to save money. Most companies are justified in this thinking. After all, why spend more than one has to? Sure costs can be trimmed here and there, but where will you find enough cost savings to make a difference?
Postal rates are always a given and non-negotiable. As a mortgage broker, you do not want to compromise the quality of your mailing piece by skimping on creative design or printing. Also, if you are spending money for marketing, you don’t want the piece to look anything less than perfect by cutting corners on presentation and delivery or by asking less of the direct mail service provider.
Any way one looks at it, there are many costs to cover. The wrong way to look at this is by focusing on what you have to spend. The proper way to approach direct mail is to look at how much you can earn on your investment. A properly planned and executed direct mail campaign can deliver a significant response from potential customers. The customer response will lead to increased sales and profits, from which you can further allocate to growing your business or increasing your marketing.
Direct Mail And The Need for Professional Support
Is creating a direct mail campaign an easy task? Absolutely not! With the recent postal reclassification, preparing a direct mail campaign properly has become even more difficult.
Mortgage brokers looking to prepare a direct mail campaign that will deliver a superior ROI need to look no further than a company that specializes in providing direct mail services. Brokers who try to handle preparing a direct mail campaign without the help of a direct mail service company runs the risk of losing time and money by trying to handle the job by themselves.
In today’s hyper-competitive business environment, companies require up-to-the-minute knowledge of the cost of mailing, correct formats, carrier routes…the list could go on.
Picture this scenario: if you can justify to your company that spending more on quality paper will make your mail piece look better, but when looking at quality of postal delivery you will not get it there better or faster just because you unintentionally pay more for postage. With the cost of postage comprising the majority of the direct mail budget for a company, why spend more than is necessary?
The science behind direct mail companies is what makes them experts in the field. They deliver a superior ROI for businesses that enlist their services. Direct mail companies help businesses by holding their hand through the direct mail campaign, and that is what makes them experts in their field.
Why not focus on your core competencies as a mortgage broker while enlisting the services of a direct mail company to do what they do best…deliver superior returns for your marketing dollar?