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My Marketing Goals: So Close And Yet So Far...
Posted By: Kaptain Komori on 3/2/2007 10:51 AM (CST)	150 Points
I work for a mid-sized commercial printing company. After combining some of the ideas presented on this forum with some of my own, I implemented a marketing program that I was sure would succeed. First, I divided up our contact list into manageable focus groups of ten. I planned it so that each contact would receive five postcards and a phone call over six weeks. Staggering the mailings to each group so that they would be easier to follow up on, I mailed out a series of four professionally-designed postcards to each contact. The front of each card had a “Dear Abby” type message with a common problem that our clients often face, and on the back was a helpful response from our company president, presented in caricature form. I followed the series with a jumbo business card, each printed from a high-resolution scan of a handwritten message (“Dear ______, If there was one thing that you could change to make the printing process less stressful, what would it be?”). Each postcard was personalized with a handwritten first name, and signed by the company president. After these five impressions over the first five weeks, the killing blow was to schedule the company president to make a phone call to each contact with a short script that I wrote (“I sent you a series of four postcards. I’m curious. Did you receive all four? / I have never worked with you before, so I'd like to come out and learn about you and what your organization does. If I could get an idea of the type of printing you do, I might be able to suggest some ways to cut down on your costs, or at least speed up your production time. Would that be okay? / When would be a good time for you?”). The problem is that though I had discussed this with the president several times, he has not made these crucial calls, and it doesn’t look like he is going to. I know that nobody likes to make cold calls, but I can’t make these calls myself, since every mail piece has had his name on it. Also, I lack the operational knowledge and technical expertise to field any questions. As a result, my efforts have not yielded a single quote request. I am at a loss as to what I should do. Is there anything else I can do in this situation, or is it simply out of my hands?

Posted by: NuCoPro	Member Response
3/2/2007 10:57 AM (CST)
Just because promotional materials went out with your President's name on them doesn't mean he has to be the one to follow-up! You would actually be much better having a good salesperson do these follow-ups. They know how to do it. Also, I can guarantee you that your President does not and will not have the time to do this, nor is he the best person to do it. The salesperson can take the approach that your President has asked them to follow-up and to see when it would be convenient for "contact" to meet with your President.

Posted by: Kaptain Komori	Author Response
3/2/2007 11:04 AM (CST)
Vevolution - The bulk of our business still comes in through the president. Our sales team works on commission, and for this reason I have been instructed not to share my research with them. I don't necessarily agree with this strategy, but it is a condition I have to work with.

Posted by: Steve Hoffacker	Accepted Answer
3/2/2007 11:16 AM (CST)
You didn't mention whether your president was on-board with this plan from its inception. If he was, then he should want to see it through. If he can't or doesn't want to contact your leads, have an email sent out (or postcard in keeping with your campaign) from him that you can write that says you will be calling them and discussing how to proceed. Take the ball back and continue the campaign as it has been described. If your president was aware of your campaign but never agreed to participate, in designing your next campaign or sales effort learn how all the pieces will come together and practice for contingencies before launching it.

Posted by: BARQ	Member Response
3/2/2007 11:22 AM (CST)
Kaptain, I agree with Vevolution that the Prez should not be making these cold calls. If you are not able or inclined to do them, you should employ a telemarketing firm to make the calls. The firm we use has gotten us interviews with companies in your area (and we are in NC) just by being friendly, persistent, and offering valid solutions that they have learned from us. They can learn about your key benefits and talk to the print buyer about setting up the appt. for Phil. We buy from the printers who show over time that they care about our business, and will be around when we need them. Persistence. If you let this opportunity pass (post mailing) you will demonstrate that your firm gives up easily. This will reflect on you! Several years ago I received a series of six very creative and beneficial mailings from a local (chain quick) printer. I wanted to talk to them, but never got a call, and meanwhile half a dozen other printers were calling and getting interviews. We have never worked with that printer. BARRQ SELMARQ Brands' Best Friend

Posted by: BARQ	Accepted Answer
3/2/2007 11:23 AM (CST)
Kaptain, I agree with Vevolution that the Prez should not be making these cold calls. If you are not able or inclined to do them, you should employ a telemarketing firm to make the calls. The firm we use has gotten us interviews with companies in your area (and we are in NC) just by being friendly, persistent, and offering valid solutions that they have learned from us. They can learn about your key benefits and talk to the print buyer about setting up the appt. for Phil. We buy from the printers who show over time that they care about our business, and will be around when we need them. Persistence. If you let this opportunity pass (post mailing) you will demonstrate that your firm gives up easily. This will reflect on you! Several years ago I received a series of six very creative and beneficial mailings from a local (chain quick) printer. I wanted to talk to them, but never got a call, and meanwhile half a dozen other printers were calling and getting interviews. We have never worked with that printer. BARQ SELMARQ Brands' Best Friend

Posted by: Kaptain Komori	Author Response
3/2/2007 11:24 AM (CST)
steve - I spearheaded the initiative, but the president has been in the loop, every step of the way. He liked and approved the initial pitch. We have met several times throughout the process to discuss it. Every scheduling change ended up on his desk. But you're right, I may have to be the one to make those calls.

Posted by: CarolBlaha	Accepted Answer
3/2/2007 11:25 AM (CST)
Call Reluctance-- if people didn't experience it, I wouldnt have a business! These are not cold calls they are warm calls. You can make those calls yourself. You are calling on behalf of the president of your company. Its done all the time and its very effective. You are assuming people are going to recall who the letter was actually from-- and that they'll remember the prez is supposed to call-- and take issue that its not the big guy himself on the phone. They won't. Trust me. I'd look into modifying your script. If you say, "did you receive the 4 postcards" you are giving your contact a set up -- if they say 'no" what will you say? Prepare a short intro before going into the "we haven't worked with you before". The person at the end of the line knows you haven't worked together before-- there is no reason to repeat that. Hope that helps, Carol Sell Well and Prosper tm

Posted by: David Earl Spencer	Accepted Answer
3/2/2007 11:29 AM (CST)
1. Get with the president and make the calls with him. You dial the number, give him an overview, have copies of all postcards sent, and then call together. He will never have the time. 2. You make the calls, your goal is to give them a benchmark quote on a current or past project (they will give you a current project); OR your goal is to set up an appointment to access their needs to see where you can lower cost and improve quality and production.

Posted by: Tracey	Accepted Answer
3/2/2007 11:33 AM (CST)
I definitely agree with Carol and BARQ. I've experienced the same things - got some interesting mailers, but never a call back... and the mailers got put in my "to look at later" file. I'd recommend asking your prospects when their next mailing is. Perhaps they'd be willing to give you a try if you can show them a new technology (e.g., the ability to mass produce customized mailings, better quality, etc.), or if you can give them a good price break on the first try to encourage them to try you out.

Posted by: Steve Hoffacker	Member Response
3/2/2007 11:33 AM (CST)
Kaptain, make the calls and continue the program as if your president had specifically authorized you to do it and when you speak to your potential customers, tell them that your president has asked you to take a special interest in their needs and to contact them directly to learn how you can help them. From that point on, it's strictly your show.

Posted by: NuCoPro	Accepted Answer
3/2/2007 11:42 AM (CST)
Kaptain, You're going to have to run with this. I would, however, mention to the President that you are going to follow-up to arrange appointments for him. I agree with Carol about your script - it won't work. You might want to say something like, "Hi "contact!" I'm "name" from "company". Our President, "name" recently sent you a series of postcards talking about business issues we all face." Then ask them a question about their printing experiences - get them talking. What you put together sounds more like you're conducting a survey than trying to build rapport with the contact.

Posted by: Phoenix ONE	Accepted Answer
3/2/2007 7:47 PM (CST)
First and foremost it does not sound like your campaign was well thought out- A series of direct mail pieces sent in a time-cycle did not contain a call to prospect action! Each additional piece should have highlighted the fact we have not heard from you yet! Make the prospect assume he was loosing out. Each call to action should be a little more compelling- the object is to get THE PROSPECT TO CALL YOU, not you call them. Each touch (mailing) should have a capture rate on action. Reality if you hit your "capture" targets you and or your President would never had been left holding the bag with an unfulfilled campaign. Now we must call situation. Any mail campaign must have a call to action- progressive campaigns a "timing" mechanism into that call to action. Now I would recommend: send out one more card with a unique- "we have not heard from you, but have heard from others. We were either overlooked or you are very busy, therefore we plan on making it easy for you and give you a call. " This would prep your targets to expect a call. This way it is not a cold call but a warm call----direct mail campaigns should pave the way for a tele making it less frigid. Then someone make the call! I agree with others the last person making the call should be the President- how does he handle getting voice mail (40% reality) leave a message or continue the "dialing for dollars" campaign that was launched. It is not too late to salvage the campaign, but time is critical. Good Luck & Happy Marketing ~

Posted by: Kaptain Komori	Author Response
3/5/2007 9:17 AM (CST)
BARQ – This is exactly what I needed to hear. I will continue to follow up on these contacts. CarolBlaha – I’ve taken it upon myself to make these calls. Thank you for looking over my script. I made that revision and I agree, it’s much more solid. David Earl Spencer – I have suggested the first option to the president, but he wasn’t too enthusiastic about it. It looks like I will be making the calls. As you have suggested, I will be pushing for an appointment so that we can try to lower their costs. Tracey – I’ve tried this approach before, and the most common response is, “we don’t do much printing anymore, but we’ll let you know if we do,” and of course, we never hear from them again. Vevolution – Based on your guidelines, I rewrote the phone call script. It’s more conversational and will hopefully get them to talk more. Phoenix ONE – Each of the postcards let people know that we are “always here to help” and encouraged people to pick up the phone and give us a call with any questions, but we didn’t get any responses. I’ll buy your idea on letting them know we are going to call though. Great feedback, everyone! Thanks!

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