Interview Part 6

Q  Tell me about your success formulas for targeting promotions to the right audience?

A  Targeting is a critical and highly specialized function within all the various direct response media available to us.  Successful targeting is such a huge, complex area, that just choosing between direct mail, space, inserts, telemarketing, television or the Internet is a decision that requires much analysis.  To help marketers with this analysis, I've written a complete guide in my Special Report called, Determining the Media Channel that's a Natural Winner for Your Product.

Q  I know that targeting is a vast subject, so perhaps you could focus on direct mail and share a few list selection strategies?

A  Step one is to hire a good list broker, or maybe two.  It's absolutely imperative that your list broker is dedicated to working hard for you!  Don't judge a potential broker by the company they are affiliated with.  It's my experience, that the individual themselves, their expertise, and the amount of time and effort they are willing to devote to you, is what's paramount. 

In my report I've listed, The 8 Essential Functions Your List Broker Should Perform.  I encourage you to put your broker to the test. 

I'd like to add, that I have a whole section of my special report that details the most practical, yet powerful, list strategies you can implement.  Like one section, Hotline Buyer Lists and How to Mail Them While They're Still Hot.  Buyer beware is always good advice when looking at list owner's data cards.  I'm amazed that some list owners get away with renting names as hotlines (recent buyers) that are over six months old!  Always remember that names begin aging from the moment that customers respond and buy, not when the seller or list owner first puts them on their list rental file.  This time lag can be weeks or months!

I have worked with mailers, especially in the opportunity seeker, fundraising and general merchandise areas, that must mail recent buyers in order to achieve a profitable response.  In these instances, I have been able to set up list processing and mailing production procedures, that put these recent buyers in the mail with a new offer in less than two weeks from the time they last purchased.  Now, that's how to hotline list rental names!

Utilizing regression analysis techniques to create selection or suppression models is an area I'm happy to see has received a lot of attention in recent years.  I've been using these powerful techniques for 17 years, and I rarely put out a mailing that doesn't use scoring models in some way. Unfortunately, there are still some mailers who have not seen the light.  Others are using models, but not in the right way.  For example, are you creating zip models that will bring in the repeat buyers, not just one-time responders?  If not, we really must talk!

Q  Great!  Let's move on to creating attractive offers and guarantees.  Is there really much leverage here?

A  You bet!  As I said before, never underestimate the impact of creating just the right offer.  In fact, when I approach the development of a new promotion, I first spend a great deal of time on the offer and guarantee.  I usually end up testing more than one offer, because the response to different offers can vary greatly.  And the leverage of offers doesn't just stop with the initial response.  Initial offers can greatly affect the ultimate lifetime value of the customers that respond to them.  Without the proper analysis systems to track customer purchase histories back to their original offer, marketers may not be aware of how much various acquisition offers affect future buying.

To give you an idea of the kind of impact you can have with offers, I have a very recent example.  A subscription marketer, that has achieved great success selling their publications through cash with order offers (hard offers), asked me to try to beat their control offer.  The catch was, I still had to use a hard offer and I could not lower the subscription price. 

The results of my new offer were even beyond what I expected; the response nearly tripled and the total cash from orders doubled!  This breakthrough offer allowed them to expand their subscription based dramatically. 

I'll give everyone the details of this offer, as well as many others, in my Special Report.  I've also included, Guarantees that are Guaranteed to Work, to make your new offers even more powerful!

Q  You talked earlier about building strong bonds of loyalty among customers.  As an expert in customer retention, what's the big secret to increasing loyalty?

A  Customer loyalty and retention is really where the rubber meets the road!  To successfully build loyalty takes a total commitment and hard work.  I believe, more often than not, customers don't become loyal to a company's products, they become loyal to the company and the level of service they experience.

You can never forget that with every customer contact, loyalty is being affected.  Each time a customer calls is a golden opportunity to create a life long relationship.  Building loyalty is hardly just a customer service issue, it's a process that begins the first time a prospect sees your mailing piece.  I have detailed My 5 Step Formula to Build Loyal Bonds with Customers in my report.

If you apply my formula, you will achieve the ultimate in customer loyalty ... and that's my fifth step ... advocacy, where your customers are actively recruiting new customers for you!  It's every marketer's dream to have unsolicited, in other words, FREE business come through the door, and I've seen it happen time and again with a commitment to the formula I've developed.

Q  Well you certainly have given me, and our readers, some great ideas.  Your Special Report sounds like must reading, how can someone get a copy?

A  It's simple...I've made Million Dollar Strategies for the Savvy Direct Marketer available on-line to anyone who’s interested.  I encourage every direct marketer who is serious about generating big profits, to check it out!  Or if someone would like to contact me directly with any comments or questions, please don't hesitate to email me.   

Click here to learn more about Jim's Million Dollar Strategies Report