The 12 Most Common Direct Mail Mistakes ... And How To Avoid Them

1. Ignoring The Most Important Factor In Direct Mail Success,
2. Not Testing,
3. Not using a letter in your mailing package,
4. Features vs. Benefits,
5. Not having an offer,
6. Superficial copy,
7. Saving the best for last,
8. Poor follow-up,
9. The magic words,
10. Starting with the product -- not the prospect,
11. Failing to appeal to all five senses,
12. Creating and reviewing direct mail by committee,

Mistake No. 5: Not having an offer

An offer is what the reader gets when he responds to your mailing.

To be successful, a direct-mail package should sell the offer, not the product itself. For example, if I mail a letter describing a new mainframe computer, my letter is not going to do the whole job of convincing people to buy my computer. But the letter is capable of swaying some people to at least show interest by requesting a free brochure about the computer.

Make sure you have a well-thought-out offer in every mailing. If you think the offer and the way you describe it are unimportant, you are wrong.

A free-lance copywriter friend of mine ran an ad in the Wall Street Journal that offered a free portfolio of article reprints about direct mail. He received dozens of replies. Then he ran an identical ad, but charged $3 for the portfolio instead of giving it away. Number of responses that time? Only three.

Here are some effective offers for industrial direct mail: free brochure, free technical information, free analysis, free consultation, free demonstration, free trial use, free product sample, free catalog.

Your copy should state the offer in such a way as to increase the reader's desire to send for whatever it is you offer. For example, a catalog becomes a product guide. A collection of brochures becomes a free information kit. A checklist becomes a convention planner's guide. An article reprinted in pamphlet form becomes "our new, informative booklet--'How to Prevent Computer Failures.'"

From now on, design your fulfillment literature with titles and information that will make them work well as offers in direct mail. When one of my clients decided to publish a catalog listing US software programs available for export overseas, I persuaded her to call the book "The International Directory of U.S. Software," because I thought people would think such a directory was more valuable than a mere product catalog.

Mistake No. 6: Superficial copy >>

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