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Who says lists are not important

Posted in Uncategorized by Tony on 20 Dec 2010

I have been banging on and on for years about the need for companies to gather their own list of potential customer emails, and mail them each week.

So it was interesting to see an interview with The Telegraph, with Sir Martin Sorrell saying that customer insight accounts for about £4.5bn to £5bn of WPP’s revenue.

“It’s about understanding the importance of data”, he says

WPP bought market research company Taylor Nelson Sofres in 2008 for £1.2bn to boost its data business. It also recently bought US data company I-Behavior.

Maybe I was right after all.

If you want to talk about building email lists of your potential clients, give me a call on 01536 399 013.

Tony Attwood

Hamilton House Mailings Ltd reg number 2444392 VAT 354907535GB.  Phone 01536 399 000.

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How well are you known

Posted in Uncategorized by Tony on 17 Dec 2010

Just how well are you known in your market place?  Is your company’s name recognised?  What image does your company have?

It is, for me, a very important area – not least because some 20 odd few years ago I discovered to my horror that my company was nowhere near as well known as I imagined it to be.   One of the marketing team did a survey at a trade show, and found that actually no one seemed to know much about us.

I have to say I was astounded by the findings, and didn’t believe them.  Since then I have come to realise that the same situation affects many firms.  It is as easy to imagine that people in your business know you as it is to believe that all your customers are loyal and won’t go somewhere else.

Anyway, back to my main point.  There are two ways out of this.  First, one can build recognition so that the potential customer says, “Oh yes, I’ve heard of them”.   But for me that doesn’t do much.

Much more interesting is the second option of getting to the stage where people say, “Oh yes, they’re the people who…”   If the end of that sentence is positive and interesting, then matters are looking up.

The solution Hamilton House found was one that led people to say, “They are the people who do those Toppled Bollard stories”.  Most people saw our introduction of silly one page stories (instead of sales letters) as positive and innovative.  It got us known.  And amazingly they remembered the name of the invented pub in which the stories supposedly took place.

Of course it didn’t solve everything, because a lot of people then also thought – “but we couldn’t possibly do that.”  So we picked up one group of customers, but then had to add a different side to the mix, so that people realised that the Toppled Bollard stories were just our solution to getting known.  There are many other ways.

It has worked for us, and I believe it works for most companies – you just have to find the image you want to project.   Unfortunately some firms still say that they want to be seen as “the one-stop shop” or “a very friendly helpful organisation”.   They might be – but so many firms have used that line that it doesn’t make an impact any more.   To make an impact you have to have a slightly different approach.

In essence your image becomes a reflection of your advertising.  Put out dull advertising and you get seen as a dull company.   Put out highly innovative advertising, and that is the type of company you are seen as.

If you would like to see some of the original Toppled Bollard stories written five or six years ago (and still mentioned by those who received them!) they are on www.blog.toppled.info If you would like to see our latest experiment in eccentric branding it is on www.badad.co.uk And if you just want to talk about branding and using advertising messages to put across an image, we can do that too.  Give me a call on 01536 399 013.

Tony Attwood

Hamilton House Mailings Ltd reg number 2444392 VAT 354907535GB.  Phone 01536 399 000.

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Where does all this communication get you?

Posted in Uncategorized by Tony on 16 Dec 2010

I am often known to talk about the need for companies to communicate with customers and potential customers on all sorts of issues in a relaxed and informal style.

It is something that I try to do, not only here but also on the daily DMS news service that runs via email.  (If you don’t receive these emails you can sign up free of charge by emailing direct-mail-secrets-subscribe@yahoogroups.com and then just clicking reply to the confirmation email.

But here’s a thought.  Why do I bother with those emails and this blog?

The email service is just finishing its tenth year - it started on January 2, 2000.  And as of today we have around 1000 members on the group.

Over the years the format has changed.  Initially I included regular information on all aspects of direct mail, but since then we have expanded to include email, blogs and web sites.   Creative issues have moved to another group – Creative Direct.  (Creativedirect-subscribe@yahoogroups.com if you want to join that one.  And a while back this blog was added as well.

Over the years there have been a few attempts to set up rival news services, some of which have claimed massive circulations, and which have then ceased publication.   One or two have even lifted the occasional article from here or from the How To section of www.hamilton-house.com but we seem to have ridden out most of these interruptions.

So, why do I spend my time writing a newsletter five days a week, with just a couple of weeks off in the summer and at Christmas?

Quite simply because about 40% of the calls from potential new customers we get involve the caller saying, “I have been reading your news service for a while and…”   In short it pays for itself in terms of getting HHM customers.

I believe that many companies in all sorts of fields could benefit by doing regular news items to potential customers.  If you are interested in exploring the idea, in confidence, for your company, give me a call.  01536 399 013.

Tony Attwood

Hamilton House Mailings

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Something that all firms should do

Posted in Uncategorized by Tony on 14 Dec 2010

Even if you don’t sell by email there is something you should do to enhance your sales.

Whether you sell direct or via retail outlets, whether you are selling to businesses or consumers, there is one thing that you can do which will significantly enhance your sales.

Better, it doesn’t cost much.  Better still, most of your competitors don’t do it, which means when you start doing it, you’ll be noticed at once.

It’s actually not a new idea.   Firms were doing it fifty years ago, although in those days it cost a lot more.   In fact some companies were doing this 100 years ago by travelling by train and bus to visit customers.

It is called “Staying in touch”.

The trouble is, because a lot of companies have become very interested in modern technology, staying in touch has often come to mean things like having a web site, or sending out email messages that describe the latest discount available.

But “staying in touch” in the old-fashioned sense, means reminding both customers and those who have expressed an interest, that you are here, that you are helpful, friendly, willing to give support even if it doesn’t mean an instant sale.

Staying in touch also can mean showing that you are different from the competition whose only interest is in sell-sell-sell.

But, you may ask, shouldn’t selling now always be our concern?  In one sense yes, but so should the longer term sales being a nice to know firm that is helpful is good too.

The way companies do this these days is through sending a regular informative email to their past customers.  An email that talks about issues of mutual interest as well as product or service.

The objection from those who don’t do it is, “no one reads all this junk email”.   Those who do it, and build up the conversation, don’t answer back – because they know that when the quality of text is right, they will get the sales.

The approach is called “Sponsored Conversation”.  It’s what we do – we can (if you wish) gather up the email addresses of your clients and send them regular pieces (which of course you approve).  Or, if you prefer, you can do it all yourself.   We write emails for a wide range of customers – or we can work with you so you can see which approaches really do work.

Sponsored Conversations have a major impact and are responsible for the growth of many companies that have defied the recession.

If you’d like to talk about it, give me a call on 01536 399 013.   If you’d like a quote for us doing all or part of it for you, please do call.   If you want to see what it would cost to have us do all the sending, that’s on http://www.emails.gs/ownlists.html But remember, that’s just the technology.    It’s the creative bit that is far more important.

Tony Attwood

Tony@hamilton-house.com

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Can anyone remember your sales letter from six years ago?

Posted in Uncategorized by Tony on 13 Dec 2010

I’ll repeat that subject: “Can anyone remember your sales letter from six years ago?”

That question is so odd, so bizarre, so downright silly, you might not even want to answer.  A sales letter is, well, you know… something that is here today and gone in 20 seconds.

Remember one?  Why would they ever remember one?

Because in remembering a sales letter the individual will do something far more interesting – he/she will remember you, your company, and everything good about you.   Remember that sales letter for six years and a person will think so much of you he/she will be ready to buy.

But is it possible to remember a sales letter for six years?  I repeat: “A sales letter”!?!?!?!?!

I have proof that it is possible, for a company has just got in touch with me, told me about the sales letter from six years ago, and asked for the rights to reprint it.

The whole story, plus the sales letter, are now on the internet.  http://www.blog.toppled.info/archives/116

If you would like to talk to me about how you can have sales letters for your company that people remember for six years, call me on 01536 399 013.   Or email Tony@hamilton-house.com

Tony Attwood

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Mail before Easter or it will cost much more

Posted in Uncategorized by Tony on 10 Dec 2010
Royal Mail has announced that it wishes to put up its prices quite considerably in April 2011 – which means that if you are thinking of doing some bulk mailing next year, it is worth getting in before the price goes up.

RM already has permission to raise prices by 7% across the board in April and now RM is asking for more.  Taking the two requests together Postcomm the regulator (which is being wound-up in the bonfire of the quangos) this could mean price increases of up to 12%.

Regardless of the outcome of Postcomm’s consultation there will be significant price rises.  If Postcomm allow the price increases in total first class post will go up by about 5p on the basic, and second class by 4p on the basic with these price rises reflected in all Mailsort sales.

But – none of this can happen until April or May, so if you do want to do direct mail, the answer must be to do it before Easter.

Tony Attwood

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The three most important aspects of direct marketing

Posted in Uncategorized by Tony on 9 Dec 2010

Trying to reduce every aspect of marketing through blogs, email, postal direct mail and web sites into just three points is actually quite hard.

Well it seemed quite hard to me as I tried to do it on the late evening train from London to Kettering last night.

I had given myself the 55 minutes that my journey home from London takes, in order to come up with the answer.  Indeed I had thought I might knock it off before we got to Bedford – but it proved to be what Holmes called a “three pipe problem”.  (Not quite relevant these days of course since you can’t smoke in trains, and I don’t smoke anyway, but you know what I mean.  Or maybe not.)

Anyway, the three key issues that I ended up with are…

1: Be different from the competition.  If your ads have the same look, feel and style as anyone else, that is bad news.   I’m not thinking of detail here, but rather of the whole approach.  If you want to be remembered – then you really have to be different.   (That is why I often push the notion of the conversational style and of humour – very few people use them, and so you are instantly different in your advertising style).

2: Look at each advert you have created, imagine you are a potential customer reading this for the first time, and ask, “Why should I buy this?”  If the answer does not leap into your head immediately, having read the advert, then you need to do some more work.  (Of course if you are intriguing the reader and keeping him/her with you, then that’s different, because the reader is still with you.  What I mean here is that by the time the reader stops interacting with your advert, blog, web site or whatever, he/she must know the answer to the question, “Why should I buy this?”

3: And following on from part two there is the follow up question to which the reader must also know the answer: “why should I buy this from you?”

So there we are

a) Be different

b) Answer the question, “why should I buy this?”

c) Answer the question, “why should I buy this from you?”

Of course there can be many other issues, but once you have got those three right, I believe you will always be on the right road.

If you would like to talk about this at any time, please do give me a call on 01536 399 013 or indeed send me over an advert and I’ll call you back and let you know what I think about it.  No charge, no obligation, no pipes.

Tony Attwood

Hamilton House Mailings Ltd reg number 2444392 VAT 354907535GB.  Phone 01536 399 000.

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How to sell on the internet – the proof.

Posted in Uncategorized by Tony on 7 Dec 2010
63% of respondents to a new survey say internet ads are the ads they are most likely to ignore. Among those who ignore Internet ads, 43% said they ignored banner ads.   20% ignore search engine ads.

These figures are much higher than those who claim to ignore other adverts such as TV, radio and newspapers (the latter for example getting an “ignore” rating of just 6%.

These results from an Adweek Media/Harris Poll probably won’t surprise most of us who have watched or sold banner advertising.

So is it all over?   Probably.  Disbelief is now so strong, and a fear of going to a botnet site is so great, that even give-aways don’t work too well.

But there is an alternative.  It is an experiment that we’ve been running for a year now, ever since I first read about it in an online research journal.   It costs nothing in advertising rates, but it costs about five minutes a day in time.  As the original research found, and we have now confirmed however, it costs far less in person time than you would ever pay in banner ad or Google ad rates.  And delivers about ten or twenty times as much response.

When I have mentioned this in the past, I have referred you back to the original research.  This time I’ll tell you how we’ve replicated that research.

For this experiment, I wrote a novel “Making the Arsenal”.  It is about a newspaper journalist covering the decline and fall of Arsenal FC in 1910.   I set up a Google Alert for “Woolwich Arsenal” (the name of the club at that time), and each day Google Alerts sends me half a dozen links to new sites with the phrase “Woolwich Arsenal” in them.

Of these many are irrelevant (a new laundry just opened in Woolwich Arsenal for example), but normally I end up with one or two links a day about the history of Arsenal FC.  Most of these are on sites that have interactivity, so I can go on and type in my commentary after the article, a commentary which runs roughly like this:

“Interesting article about Woolwich Arsenal.  One extra point that you missed is that in 1910…” and then I fill in any detail that seems relevant.   I give a link to the site from where the book can be purchased (www.woolwicharsenal.co.uk since you asked) and leave it at that.  No big sale – just a mention in a friendly spirit of co-operation.  An example is http://www.footballbettingclub.com/nicknames-of-british-football-clubs-part-1/ – look at the first comment.

I also wander around relevant sites on Wikipedia, and where I find information that is wrong or incomplete, I put up that info, and cite the book and that web site as the source.

As a result there are about 37,000 mentions of the phrase “Making the Arsenal” on the internet, and the large majority point to my book.  I didn’t do 37,000 of course – but many are picked up and rerun on other sites.  This has taken references to the book up the Google rankings, and given us decent sales.  Next week, the third edition of the book comes out.

The only other promotion has been through my own daily Arsenal blog, and through the fact that the book is available on Amazon.

It is a system that works – all you have to do is think it through and set it up.  It can be used to sell anything that has an identifiable audience.  The cost is zero.  The time taken is five minutes a day.  If you’d like to talk about it, give me a call on 01536 399 013.

Tony Attwood

Hamilton House Mailings Ltd reg number 2444392 VAT 354907535GB.  Phone 01536 399 000.

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Up to 25% EXTRA discount on your postage

Posted in Uncategorized by Tony on 3 Dec 2010

Royal Mail is offering firms that are new to direct mail or who have not used direct mail for two years or more discounts of up to 25% on their postage.

The actual details are: 25% credit on the first mailing, a 20% credit on the second mailing and a 15% credit on the third mailing.

The credits are then applied to your Royal Mail account (or if you don’t have a direct account, we’ll hold the credit for you so that you can claim it on subsequent mailings).  The credits are on top of the regular Mailsort and similar discounts.

As always with these things, there are terms and conditions, but from past experience with Royal Mail the best way to look at this is to put forward a plan to Royal Mail for their OK.

If you haven’t used direct mail at all, or haven’t done a mailing for a couple of years, this is worth a try.  But actually even if you have, I’d still say, direct mail looks a good option at the moment, since the volumes going out are now so much lower than they were three or four years ago.

To talk through a possible campaign please do call 01536 399 000.

Tony Attwood

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