News
 The
Top 8 Direct Marketing Offers of All Time
By Dean Rieck
Offers are the heart of all direct response
advertising. An offer is not just a statement of
your price, it’s the deal you’re making. It’s the
total of what the customer gets plus what the
customer has to do or pay to get it. By making an
offer, you’re saying, “You do this for me, and I’ll
do this for you.”
Here are eight tried and true offers that have
proven themselves over the years:
1. Free Trial. This may be the best offer ever
devised. A customer can try out your product free
and without obligation for 10, 15, 30 days, or more.
The time frame should fit the product. This offer
removes risk for the prospect, overcomes inertia and
works with just about any product.
2. Money-Back Guarantee. This is perhaps the second
best offer. A customer pays upfront but, if
dissatisfied, can return the item for a full refund.
Like the free trial, this offer removes risk but
allows you to use customer inertia to your benefit
since few people will take the trouble to return
something.
3. Free Gift. When you offer a freebie your customer
wants, your offer will usually outpull a discount
offer of similar value. That’s because a gift is a
more tangible benefit. This also has the advantage
of not devaluing your product with a price
reduction.
4. Limited Time. An offer with a time limit gets
more response than an offer without one. You can
display an exact date or suggest a response time
frame, such as 14 days or 30 days. This forces a
decision. And the faster you can force a decision,
the more likely it will be in your favor.
5. Yes/No. You ask your prospect to respond
positively or negatively, usually by affixing a
“yes” stamp or a “no” stamp or by checking one of
two boxes. This offer is involving and usually pulls
more response than an offer that does not offer a
“no” option. It works because it clarifies the need
for a decision right away.
6. Negative Option. This pulls better than positive
option offers. You offer a free trial or a special
deal on a product then automatically ship future
merchandise unless the customer specifically takes
an action to refuse. Just make sure this arrangement
is clear. People become very unhappy when you start
shipping and billing for items they didn’t know they
were ordering.
7. Credit Card Payment. Nothing is easier than
paying with plastic. These days, there’s no reason
not to accept payment this way by phone, mail, fax,
or the Internet. In fact, this has moved beyond an
offer and has become an expectation.
8. Sweepstakes. This increases your order volume if
you’re selling easy-to-understand impulse items.
However, these customers aren’t loyal, and you may
find yourself forever trapped in an endless cycle of
contests.
---Source: Dean Rieck is a leading
direct mail
copywriter. For more copywriting and selling
tips, sign up for Dean’s FREE
direct response newsletter and get a free
report, 99 Easy Ways to Boost Your Direct Mail
Response.
|
|
|
Melissa Data
|
 |
| Enhance your
website, software or database with
easy-to-integrate data quality programming tools
and web services. |
|
|
|
|
 |
|
Save money on postage using leading
mail preparation software and other
direct marketing products. |
|
|
|
|
 |
Update & standardize addresses and
find out more about contacts in your
database.
|
|
|
|
|
 |
Find new customers perfect for your
business with our online and
specialty mailing lists.
|
|
|
|
|
 |
Locate the business information you
need such as ZIP Codes, address
verification, maps.
|
|
|
|
|
