How to Get Your Messages Read

The first challenge in the 3 R’s – get your prospects to rip it open is one of the toughest. It’s no wonder. From the moment we wake up in the morning to the time we lay down to sleep, we’re bombarded with advertising messages.

The real question is, “How do you get past that so your message stands out from the rest?”

Get ready to see your sales explode with this unique dynamite tube. Just include your sales message inside and it's guaranteed to be included in the A-Pile of mail.

One strategy that we find to be very effective, and again we’re going on the assumption that you have a semi-qualified list, is lumpy mail. Lumpy mail is a term I use to describe mail that is unusual shape or size and makes you want to open it just to find out what it is. It will actually overcome the first of those main problems, which is just getting the stuff opened.

6 "Lumpy Mail" ideas to get your offer opened

There are so many fun and wonderful strategies that you can get it opened. One thing that you can do is, as we say, “Add a lump and get a bump in response.” You can actually make the carrier unusual. Here are six of my favorites:

1. Send your marketing in a mailing tube.

There are several different things you can do with a tube. You can make it like a dynamite stick and have a little wick sticking out with a message that says: Get ready to see your sales explode! We actually got a call from this right after 9/11. It was very funny. I was giving a seminar and it was a week and a-half after 9/11. This guy stood up and said, “I just used your stuff,” and 250 people turned to the back of the room. “I sent out a dynamite stick last week after 9/11.” Jon, I have to tell you, it’s the best response I’ve received in my life.”

2. Be creative. Mail a watermelon?

One of the lumpiest of all mailers that we sent, which got us quite a bit of attention, generated more than a 90% response rate. We sent a watermelon. We placed a clear envelope on the outside of the watermelon with a bunch of stamps and sent it. It’s expensive to mail, but I want to illustrate how you can be creative in direct marketing.

Think your message will get noticed if you sent it with a watermelon? You bet it will! If you would like to know more about this or any other creative Lumpy Mail idea give us a call toll-FREE at 800-805-1220.

3. Tie it to a balloon and watch your response rate soar.

We once did a mailing that got a 31% response for IBM. It was a pre-show mailer to sell exhibit spaces. One of the things that we sent was a box that was about 18 inches wide. When you open the box, a helium balloon rises up tied to a string and a package of Red Hots candy. (If you’re interested in doing this, check with us first. When balloons are shipped over the Rocky Mountains, all the helium deflates so we have two distribution centers on both sides of the Rockies to handle the shipments.)

4. Put your message in a bottle and send it out.

This mailing has generated 60% response rates. Just include your message in the bottle and you'll get noticed right away!

Another popular promotion is what we call, “Message in a Bottle.” The package looks like a wine bottle. The message is rolled up inside and attached to the cap so it can be pulled out easily by the prospect. The message begins by saying, “Don’t get left stranded…” or “Enclosed is your treasure map…” I’ve seen this get 60% response rates for seminar mailings.

5. A briefcase makes a terrific high-end package.

One client, Info Now that has products with an average sale of $100,000, actually sent a metal Halliburton briefcase to CIOs, CEOs and CFOs at Fortune 500 Companies. When you opened the briefcase, a laptop inside automatically started running a video presentation. Next to the laptop was a Nokia cell phone. At the end of the presentation, it said, “Press send.” The promotion generated a 55% response rate and of those, 50% converted to a sale.

6. Handwritten address with a live stamp ... simple, but effective!

Simply address the envelope with what looks like a handwritten address and add a commemorative stamp – not a bulk mail stamp. The problem with handwritten addresses is that they can be slow and expensive, but after nearly two years of searching we finally found software that looks just like the real thing! This is important because 83% of your prospects will open a hand-addressed envelope. Tip: don’t include a return address when you use a handwritten address. It will be intriguing enough that people will have to open it.