Direct Mail Marketing Basics Part 1 of 5: Benefits

Ironically, many marketers overlook direct mail when creating marketing campaigns. However, that’s not a good idea. Statistics support the notion that direct mail can be a very important way to spread your marketing message. For instance, did you know that direct mail is the preferred way for consumers to receive brand communications? Read on to learn more reasons direct mail can be a boon to your business.

Direct Mail Offers Personalization. Consumers prefer marketing messages that are tailored to them. With direct mail, you can address your potential clients by name and create appeals that are customized to their particular concerns.

Direct Mail Can Be Used for Segmentation. Want to reach every residence within a certain geographical area? Or are you looking to target prospective customers based on zip code, home ownership, and income level? If so, this is easy to do with direct mail. Mailing lists can be purchased that allow you to segment your prospects by geography, demographics, or both.

Direct Mail is Cost Effective. Direct mail doesn’t have to be an expensive undertaking. With desktop publishing,d you can create your own marketing pieces at home. Furthermore, the price of mailing lists is relatively inexpensive, typically costing less than 15 cents per household.

Direct Mail is Tangible. Unlike other marketing communications, direct mail provides a physical sales message that your customers can hold onto. This gives them the opportunity to return to your message at any time and engage with it in a way that is impossible with other mediums.

Direct Mail Provides Flexibility. There are a number of ways that you can reach consumers with direct mail. Whether you want to send them a business letter, a postcard, or your most recent newsletter, direct mail offers a variety of options.

Lastly, most US consumers say that they enjoy receiving direct mail. With these benefits in mind, direct mail makes a great option for those marketers looking to explore new channels for reaching their target audience. In our next post, we’ll discuss how to prepare for a direct mail campaign.

Titan List is a full service Advertising and Design agency specializing in Direct Mail, Mortgage Marketing, Search Engine Optimization and Website / Graphic Design. Titan List has been around since 1998, and has a team of highly qualified individuals with experience in the marketing trends that fit your business. Unlike other agencies that source their work out, Titan List & Mailing handles the entire campaign in-house. Looking for a special list of data for your business? We can customize any data list for your company.

Bulletin Board Marketing: A How-To

Looking for an easy, inexpensive way to sell your services? Consider bulletin board marketing. By bulletin board, we mean the cork boards that you often see at various businesses that allow individuals to post local events, services, and products. In some places throughout the country, bulletin board marketing is so popular that there are companies that will do the work for you of hanging your ads around town. That said, for little time and effort, you don’t require professional help—it’s easy to create and distribute them yourself as an avenue to market your business.

First, create your flyer. Rather than drawing up a full-size ad that won’t fit due to space limitations, create a half-page flyer or a postcard-size ad. Half-page flyers allow you the opportunity to have tear-offs at the bottom with your name and phone number; these are useful when you want people to remember your flier later on in the day when they have the time to place a phone call. Alternatively, you can use postcards which can be attractively designed and created at a low cost. To attract even more attention, consider offering an incentive—like a free credit report—for potential home buyers who respond to your advertisement.

Once you’ve created your ad, you want to distribute it throughout your community. Great places to put it include condos, townhouses, and apartment complexes; these often have bulletin boards. You might need to get permission from a manager but oftentimes, they are willing to permit mortgage-related postings if you just ask politely.

Next, consider other locations that you frequent like coffee shops, libraries, supermarkets, drug stores, Laundromats, bookstores, home improvement stores, hospitals, supply shops, and places of worship. These locations typically get a lot of foot traffic and make great venues for broadcasting your services to a larger audience.
Lastly, make sure that you do check on your postings from time to time. Replenish your postcards or put up new fliers with fresh tear-offs if you notice that there aren’t a lot left. When you do get new business from your bulletin board marketing efforts, ask clients where they saw your ad. These places are the ones that you’ll want to “refresh” your fliers at more frequently.

Titan List is a full service Advertising and Design agency specializing in Direct Mail, Mortgage Marketing, Search Engine Optimization and Website / Graphic Design. Titan List has been around since 1998, and has a team of highly qualified individuals with experience in the marketing trends that fit your business. Unlike other agencies that source their work out, Titan List & Mailing handles the entire campaign in-house. Looking for a special list of data for your business? We can customize any data list for your company.

7 Marketing Tips You Can Begin Using Immediately

As a busy professional, it can often be difficult to carve out time to work on your marketing initiatives. Fortunately, there are some simple tips that you can start using immediately in your quest to attract new clients. Check out our strategies below:

Follow Up. If you find an article that you think one of your contacts will enjoy, pass it along. Send out cards around the holidays. When it’s been a long time since you’ve spoken to a former client, give him a call. In short, make an effort to keep your name in the forefront of potential customers’ minds.

Ask Questions. When you do meet with potential clients, ask them why they were attracted to your services. Find out their main reason for contacting you, rather than contacting one of your competitors. Use this information to create marketing materials that show why working with you is to people’s benefit.

Visualize a VIP. Imagine that whoever you are interacting with—whether they are attending a meeting in your office or merely calling for more information—deserves red carpet treatment. Ask your office staff to do the same. If you treat every interaction with courtesy and friendliness, people will be more likely to want to work with you.

Spend 20 Minutes. Each day make it your goal to devote 20 minutes to professional improvement. Watch a marketing how-to webinar, catch up on industry news, or listen to a business-related audio book during your daily commute.

Get Involved in Your Community. Consider sponsoring a local event or donating your time for a cause. Not only will you have the opportunity to do good, but you will also build your network and your reputation.

Use Your Business Cards. Leave business cards in locations throughout your community. For example, when you visit your local coffee shop, drop off a few business cards. Similarly, leave them at realtors’ offices. Make sure that your business cards include your website address so people can get information about your services without having to make a phone call. The more you can get your name out there, the more likely you are to pick up new clients.

Make Your Website User-Friendly. By user-friendly, we mean that it should be easy to get in touch with you in multiple ways. Don’t just provide one method to contact you. Instead, make sure that your Contact page offers a phone number, fax number, business address, and a contact form. Some people prefer phone to email—or vice-versa—and this allows you to maximize the chances that someone will make contact.

Titan List is a full service Advertising and Design agency specializing in Direct Mail, Mortgage Marketing, Search Engine Optimization and Website / Graphic Design. Titan List has been around since 1998, and has a team of highly qualified individuals with experience in the marketing trends that fit your business. Unlike other agencies that source their work out, Titan List & Mailing handles the entire campaign in-house. Looking for a special list of data for your business? We can customize any data list for your company

 

5 Tools to Help You Manage Your Social Media

With so many social media platforms available, it can be difficult to manage them all. Fortunately, there are a number of tools designed to streamline the task of staying on top of social media. Here are some suggestions for tools that will simplify your life:

HootSuite – This is the leading social media dashboard. Users can log in to HootSuite and manage all of their social media accounts at once. For instance, you can schedule Tweets on Twitter, post Facebook updates, modify content on multiple WordPress sites at once, and connect with clients via LinkedIn. At no cost, you can manage up to 5 social profiles making this a no-brainer for the busy professional.

Visually’s Google Analytics Report – While Google Analytics is helpful, some find that it can be difficult to easily locate the information that they need. Fortunately, there’s Visual.ly’s HYPERLINK “http://visual.ly/” HYPERLINK “http://visual.ly/”Google Analytics Report. This offers complex data in a helpful infographic, summing up the key metrics that are tracked with Google Analytics. The free report is available online or you can arrange to have it mailed to you weekly.

SocialBro – Designed specifically for managing your Twitter account, Social Bro is a great tool for overseeing your Twitter relationships. Use it to find out the best time to tweet your followers, get statistics on your Twitter community, discover who your most influential followers are, and segment your market. Try it free for 15 days. After that, pricing starts at $13.95 a month.Edgerank Checker

Pro – Facebook uses an algorithm to determine which news appears in people’s news feeds.
Unfortunately, this means that your posts may not get the attention of your target audience. Enter EdgeRank HYPERLINK “http://edgerankchecker.com/” Checker Pro. It provides custom-tailored recommendations that will help you to increase engagement with your Facebook fans. Also, you can analyze a post with it to determine why it performed the way it did—for example, did you send your post at the wrong time or was the content not engaging to your fan base? Plans begin at $15/month with half off your first month.

Crowdbooster – This is designed for users whose primary engagement with their followers is via Facebook and Twitter. Crowdbooster offers social media metrics and helps you to improve your online strategy. For instance, you can use it to determine your most effective tweets or posts, improve the content of your messages with its suggestions, schedule your social media engagements, and get valuable insights about your audience. You can try it free for 30 days and after that, pricing begins at $9 a month.

Titan List is a full service Advertising and Design agency specializing in Direct Mail, Mortgage Marketing, Search Engine Optimization and Website / Graphic Design. Titan List has been around since 1998, and has a team of highly qualified individuals with experience in the marketing trends that fit your business. Unlike other agencies that source their work out, Titan List & Mailing handles the entire campaign in-house. Looking for a special list of data for your business? We can customize any data list for your company

5 Things Successful Entrepreneurs Do

Do you have what it takes to be a successful entrepreneur? There are certain characteristics that are typical of those who own and operate profitable businesses. Below we take a look at some features of successful entrepreneurs.

They Plan. The importance of planning cannot be overemphasized. Successful entrepreneurs know that developing a plan is critical to operating a well-run business. As such, they plan for events rather than passively managing their businesses. For example, they might consider the impact of the economy, the competition, and legislation before creating a budget or designing marketing strategies. And once they have a plan in place, they follow through.

They Stay Organized. If you’ve ever worked with someone who is scatterbrained—or are disorganized yourself—then you’re well-aware of how critical this skill is. In fact, statistics show that on average, workers lose 1 hour a day due to disorganization. Busy entrepreneurs know that being organized means accomplishing more, a critical factor when you’re trying to build a company.

They Manage Their Finances. If you can’t keep track of where your money is being spent, you’re far less likely to experience financial success. As such, managing an operating budget and tracking expenditures is a critical skill for entrepreneurs; they know the importance of using an accounting system to track incoming and outgoing cash flow, preparing for unexpected financial outlays, and minimizing costs when feasible.

They Take Business Seriously. The more effort you put into your business, the larger your return. For instance, Colonel Sanders of KFC fame visited over 1,000 restaurant owners before he found a restaurant partner to sell his chicken. That meeting marked the birth of Kentucky Fried Chicken, a chain that today has over 18,000 stores across 120 countries. Successful entrepreneurs know that diligence and hard work pay off over the long haul.

They Ask for the Sale. Knowing how to sell yourself and your services is important for anyone who wants to operate a well-run business. Successful entrepreneurs are prepared to discuss what differentiates them from competitors, why their product or service is superior, and how they can provide benefit to their customers. Then, they ask for the sale. They know that being able to close a deal is a crucial component of success.

Titan List is a full service Advertising and Design agency specializing in Direct Mail, Mortgage Marketing, Search Engine Optimization and Website / Graphic Design. Titan List has been around since 1998, and has a team of highly qualified individuals with experience in the marketing trends that fit your business. Unlike other agencies that source their work out, Titan List & Mailing handles the entire campaign in-house. Looking for a special list of data for your business? We can customize any data list for your company.

4 Tips for Attracting Realtor Agents

According to the National Association of Realtors, a whopping 69% of home buyers ask their real estate agent to recommend a loan officer. And of that number, 36% of home buyers use their agent’s recommendation. As such, it should be a crucial part of your marketing strategy to attract agents; they’re an important source of revenue for mortgage professionals. Our suggestions:

Locate Realtors. Uncertain of how to get started? If you’re trying to identify top Realtors in your neighborhood, a good resource is the Realtor MLS. It identifies the number of homes that an agent sells, as well as their contact information; although you’ll need a Realtor to help you access the database, you’ll be able to glean lots of valuable information. Or, take a look at local real estate magazines and real estate office websites to identify agents with a lot of listings.
Find Out What They Need. Learn more about the biggest hassles that real estate agents face. For instance, check out online forums that agents frequent and get a feel for where their frustrations lie. You want to provide value to agents and one way that you can do that is by helping them to address their problems. Essentially, by making your focus on how you can meet their needs.

Offer a Solution. Most agents have numerous demands on their time and would appreciate help in the areas of marketing and sales. One useful strategy is to show up at an open house and use your phone to record a video of the agent moving through the home, highlighting its features. Don’t forget to have the agent give the address of the home and his contact information. Agents appreciate this help and it really does help them to sell houses. Alternatively, perhaps you have useful marketing templates that you can share with Realtors. Be creative—any help that you can provide in this area will be to your benefit.

Keep the Connection Strong. Even if your agent doesn’t have a deal going, you want to stay in regular contact. On a weekly basis, check in and ask if they have any leads they would like you to follow up on. Keep the relationship warm and friendly—the stronger the connection, the more likely it is that you will get an agent’s referral. Also, strive to make the connection win-win for both of you—if you have leads for the agent, make sure to pass them along.

Titan List is a full service Advertising and Design agency specializing in Direct Mail,Mortgage Marketing, Search Engine Optimization and Website / Graphic Design. Titan List has been around since 1998, and has a team of highly qualified individuals with experience in the marketing trends that fit your business. Unlike other agencies that source their work out, Titan List & Mailing handles the entire campaign in-house. Looking for a special list of data for your business? We can customize any data list for your company.

Are You Ignoring Multi screen Marketing? Don’t.

A few decades ago, marketing was simpler. The vehicles for reaching your target audience were limited to television, radio, print, and direct mail. In the new digital era, the options for reaching potential clients have exploded. We now have corporate websites, social media sites, webinars, podcasts, Google ads, and landing pages. With so many choices, it can be tempting to ignore multiscreen marketing, or marketing that is designed to be viewed on a number of screens, whether they’re tablets, smartphones, or PCs. However, that would ill-advised.

For one thing, the growth of tablets and smartphones is on the rise. While roughly 44% of individuals use smartphones today, eMarketer estimates that in 2016, that number will climb to 60%. Tablet penetration is also increasing; today, 41% of individuals use tablets but by 2016, that number is expected to grow to 49%. With the rising popularity of tablets and smartphones, you can expect that more and more of your client base will be viewing your email campaigns and website on a multitude of screen sizes.

For example, just over half of users open emails on mobile devices rather than with PCs. Can you afford to alienate half of your contacts by sending emails that aren’t developed with screen size in mind? Furthermore, that number is expected to grow substantially. It’s predicted that by 2017, 78% of users will be accessing their emails via mobile devices.

With these statistics in mind, savvy marketers have concluded that multi screen marketing is increasingly valuable and will only become more so in the future. Accordingly, a recent survey of US marketers found that 48% of respondents agreed that multi screen campaigns are “very important.”
As Inc.com recently noted, “If you don’t have a multi screen approach to marketing and communications, then you’d better start to develop one quickly, because consumer behavior isn’t going to wait for you.”

Titan List is a full service Advertising and Design agency specializing in Direct Mail, Mortgage Marketing, Internet Marketing / Graphic Design. Titan List has been around since 1998, and has a team of highly qualified individuals with experience in the marketing trends that fit your business. Unlike other agencies that source their work out, Titan List & Mailing handles the entire campaign in-house. Looking for a special list of data for your business? We can customize any data list for your company.