Money From Mailshots 1

Most entrepreneurs have at some point considered mail order.
And indeed, it can be very lucrative. But - there is a way
of making it even more lucrative, by restricting your
operations to one of the most lucrative parts ever!
Mailing out mailshots can be big business. A big business
that can be yours if you decide to sell through the post in
this fascinating way!




A mailing business couldn’t be simpler. All you do is select
a suitable product - you can start with just one. Then,
produce an effective, high impact mailing to sell it. Post
off the mailings and just wait for the orders to flood in!
All the best of mail order, without the frustration and
difficulty of preparing press ads, that general mail order
dealers have.

The sheer success of mailing is based on a simple unwritten
law. Basically, you can find a minimum response rate for
your product. In other words, a guarantee that so many
mailings will produce so many orders. This way you can be
virtually sure that if you mail so many circulars you will
make a set and firm amount of sheer profit! Mail order at its
best.

PROFIT POTENTIAL

The attraction of this branch of mail order is that you can
often set your income. Make so many mailings - get so much
money back!

Mail order traders usually rate their response on a per
thousand basis for comparison. Some good products sold by
mailing have been known to sell 200 out of 1,000 i.e. out of
1,000 circulars sent out 200 orders resulted. A huge profit!
By comparison a poor mailing might only make 10 sales per
1,000 - probably a loss. So, you are probably safe to bet on
50 orders per 1,000 mailings. It may well be higher, but
work on a mere 5% return, and you’re sure to profit.
Knowing what sort of response to expect can enable you to
plan for profit. The amount you must sell must cover all
your costs - and profit. So set price levels accordingly.
Usually higher priced products are best.

Just imagine you prepared a 1,000 mailings at an inclusive
cost of about oe200. From that you obtained 50 orders for a
product at oe30. That’s a ‘take’ of oe1,500 - ample to cover
your costs and with plenty of profit left over!

Next, assume you could repeat your example over hundreds of
thousands of mailings. The sheer profit potential, is easy to access.

CHOOSING A PRODUCT

For success with mailings it is vital to choose the right
product. It is usual in the trade to ‘test’ several before
homing in on the most successful.

Products should be those that are frequently sold by mail
order. Don’t try to be too different. They should be
attractive and exciting and just ‘beg’ to be bought. You
should also be able to obtain stocks, handle them - and pack
and post easily.

The most important criteria in product selection is the
eventual selling price. This should be high, though this
does not mean sales will be low. If you are only making 3,
4, 5% sales, it should probably sell at no less than oe20 per
item. Larger amounts, perhaps up to oe100 would be ideal.
Also make sure your product offers a good profit margin.
Anything less than 60% would be unsuitable, up to 99% is not
unknown! If you can’t meet these standards with a single
item, try ‘lumping’ several together in one mailing.
Do remember there are no right or wrong things to sell.
There are thousands of possibles - and people do buy by mail
order, running into hundreds of pounds. Just do be sure to
inexpensively test products until you find one that really
works.

PREPARING A MAILSHOT

Your mailshot is of course vital. And, you may want to
experiment with different approaches. A mailing expert or
writer could be used for this, but you can prepare it
yourself.

All the best mailshots centre round a brochure. This should
be on coloured paper and ideally illustrated and worded
attractively. Support this with a sales letter (always white
paper). This should introduce and explain your product as
well as convincing the reader to buy it. Use high impact
wording to make them want - and make them order -
immediately.

Each mailing should include a return order form to make
buying really easy. And, a return envelope which is prepaid
through the Post Office Business Reply Service. The cost is
usually repaid many times over.

Copyright Avril Harper, UK