Chapter 16. Direct Mail

Simple Principles for Gaining Sales from Good Old-Fashioned Mail

Direct mail is still a great way to get your company, service, or product in front of a completely new audience.

We're living in the age of electronics. One look at the way you operate in your daily life makes this obvious. These days, it's commonplace to communicate virtually everything via e-mail. You send evites to those you want at your teleconferences, webinars, and even social gatherings. There's e-commerce and e-businesses that deal in e-money; and you keep in touch via instant messaging, online social networks, and videoconferencing. Even your schedules are updated and managed electronically. Soon filing cabinets, rolodexes, and datebooks will join the ever-growing list of "Things You Used to Use."

As these old ways of doing things start to gather dust, the same thought should be applied for "snail mail," right? After all, who actually bothers to stuff paper into envelopes, stamp them, and send them off anymore? Savvy businesspeople, that's who! In fact, more money is spent on direct mail advertising than on any other form of advertising. Why? Because, when it's done correctly, it works.

Though its more modern counterparts—like e-mail marketing, e-newsletters, social networks, search engine marketing, and so on—are growing in popularity, you shouldn't overlook direct mail as something that can get the job done. In fact, it's well worth your time and money to take advantage of this highly ...

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