The Power Of Direct Response Marketing
There are two cornerstones of being able to quickly build a lucrative business. Using these two tools (direct response marketing and SEO) is how I built my business and now as the fastest growing agency in Sugar Land have been able to help others achieve amazing results. Now when I mean quickly, I am not saying overnight you’re going to wake up a millionaire. I hate to the bearer of bad news but there is not a silver bullet or purple pill you can swallow that will overnight transform your business in spite of what these lunatics on social media and YouTube try to tell you. When I say quickly this can take anywhere from 5 to 10 years. While this may seem like some distant future when you consider the poverty rate even right here in America I’d say if you reach even high six figure earnings you should consider yourself fortunate. These two tools are search engine optimization and direct response marketing.
Chances are you have heard of SEO firms; they are lurking around every corner, but have you heard of direct response marketing? This is the oldest form of marketing that exist, and the reason digital marketing says its dead but who cares how old it is if it works?
Direct response marketing is not new its literally been around for centuries, far longer than digital marketing. It’s a particular type of marketing that uses a specific style of message that is meant to provoke a response from its readers. Remember in our last chapter how we discussed conversion, well the problem isn’t necessarily traffic to your website its getting people to read and respond to the message you deliver online or offline. Generally, the response is to contact the business by offering some kind of free or low-cost offer. Everybody at some time has encountered some type of direct response marketing but most people don’t realize what it is until you become familiar with it, then you can’t help but to see it’s everywhere. Have you ever gone out and made a purchase then everywhere you turn there it is, ah ha.
If you are old enough you may remember the record, tapes, and cd clubs that you could join for a penny, it was the Spotify of the 80’s and is a classic example of direct response marketing. Their advertisement came in the mail or in magazines and would give you the chance to own the latest music for just a penny. After you receive your music, they would then automatically bill you every month when you received new music. Their ad was so successful because it had a way for you to respond by mailing in a completed form or getting you to call.
Since then, vitamins, cosmetics, and other products have sold direct response marketing. Recently I saw a television commercial with a guy advertising of all things, a pillow that he had invented. In his commercial he talks about all the benefits of using his special designed pillow, which is another “unique selling proposition.” He is offering something that cannot be found anywhere but with you. This commercial is another example of direct marketing and creating a USP (unique selling proposition) because how common are pillow? You can buy them anywhere! There must be a dozen stores I can easily drive to right now to buy a pillow in addition to ordering one online. But I can’t get his pillow that has been scientifically tested and specifically designed to give me a better night’s sleep. You may be like me and think a pillow is a pillow and I’m not going to spend double the price no matter how good it seems. However, my husband and countless of others who identify with this man’s message and have experienced waking up with a sore neck from a bad night’s sleep are willing to try out anything to stop the pain and will buy this unique pillow for some relief. Evidently, enough people are willing to try it because why else would this man keep spending money on the commercial if he wasn’t selling pillows! At the end of the commercial you are encouraged to respond by calling an 800 number or order this one of a king pillow.
Direct response marketing is a lot different than traditional marketing, and because its different, the average business owner will shy away from it. On the surface it looks silly or too flashy or “unprofessional” But here’s the thing if you do it correctly. IT WORKS! This is the only thing that matters. Does the marketing you use have the power to generate leads? You can literally spend a lifetime studying direct response marketing and how many lives and businesses it has changed. Some people have mastered it to the point that they are paid multiple million dollars to create ONE successful direct response marketing campaign (Dan Kennedy) What I will share is just the tip of the iceberg. Hopefully it will be enough to get your wheels turning and starts seeing how you can put it to work for you.
Why Direct Response Marketing Works So Well?
The bottom line of why direct response marketing works so well is that it gives people a reason to call you rather than your competition. Most of the marketing messages you see is done for the purpose of branding, name recognition. The concept of branding is to be the first businesspeople think of when they think about the product or services you offer. But here is the problem with branding. People do not know what separates you from any other company they could choose to call. You may be more visible then all the other guys in town but visibility without a unique reason to choose you, falls on deaf ears. People are becoming more and more savvy with their purchasing habits in part because of digital marketing. Before every home in America contained instant access to the entire world by entering a few words into Google search bar, it was harder to find services. This meant they had to rely on a phone book, referral, or wait for a door-to-door salesman to come knocking at your door.
Today is a new day but this does not mean that what has been proven to work stopped working. The biggest benefit of direct response marketing if it’s well written and contain the essential components then it pays for itself IMMEDIENTLY as it convinces the consumer beyond a reasonable doubt why they should do business with you before they even call.
Breaking Down Direct Response Marketing
If you break down response marketing you will always find the same core elements rather its written for TV, radio, a newspaper, mailer, or online marketing. These elements regardless of what service or product is being offered or sold you will always find these key elements. Not all elements will be in all marketing pieces but the more pieces there are, generally the more effective the outcome. Direct marketing works for every product, in every industry and for every service offered on the planet. However, sometimes it’s a little harder to apply the concept to one type more than another. Fortunately, our team has studied and tried this is a variety of different vertices with great success. Some of these industries include:
Dentist and Doctors
Law firms
Plumbers & HVAC
Fence Companies
Life Coaching
Real Estate
Products
In our next blog we will reveal all of these elements and our lead letter program. Don’t want to wait? Then contact us today to speak with one of our team members to see if we can out the power of direct response marketing to work for your business. We serve clients across the greater Houston area including Sugar Land, Katy, and Pasadena.