BJM Free Press |

WHAT IT COSTS TO START A MAIL ORDER BUSINESS

You can read stories all day long about how easy it is to start your mail order business for as little as $10. But I’m sorry my dear friend. It costs much more than that.

Of course you can pay for expenses as you go along if you have another type of income you can use to pay your personal living expenses with some left over to invest in your mail order business. You don’t have to have all the money up-front — but regardless of what anyone tells you — it costs money to own and operate a mail order business.

How much money? Well, it all depends on what type of business you go into and how quickly you begin to generate orders that reimburse you for the money you pay out of your pocket in the beginning. However, it’s safe to say you need at least $500 to get going in the right direction.

Why do much? Because the first thing you need are office supplies. At bare minimum you need envelopes (the #10 business size), paper, a typewriter or computer, 3×5 cards to keep track of names and addresses of people, tape, scissors, ink pens and a pack of mailing labels (handwriting an address on an envelope is very unprofessional and shows you are an inexperienced beginner.)

Next, you will need to have enough money to pay a typesetter to design you some ads. Don’t buy a kit and make them up yourself. At this stage of the game, you are very inexperienced and don’t know how to write or present ads that will bring you a response. Invest $5 or $6 in a few one-inch ads that a mail order typesetter will design professionally for you. They will pay for their weight in gold!

You’ll also need some money to pay a mail order printer to get some copies made so you can mail them to prospective buyers. Don’t try to make copies at the quick-shop down the street. Most of them want 15c or more per copy and mail order printer prices range around $30 per 1,000 or 3c each. This is a big savings.

You’ll also need money for research and an investment in your education. This means purchasing “Big Mails” from other people to read and consider. You’ll also want to buy a couple good books on mail order marketing and even buy a few tabloids, adsheets, etc. This is the only way you can find other people’s names and addresses so you can contact them. It is also the only way you will be introduced to publishers and where to advertise so you can start getting some orders.

You’ll also need money for postage to mail out your letters and correspondence. This is a mail order dealer’s biggest expense.

From the day you place your first advertisement (display or classified), it will take anywhere from 1 month to 6 months to get your first order. Why so long? Because, no one knows you. Unless you are selling the Brooklyn Bridge for $24.95, you won’t generate a lot of excitement at first and most people who see your name will probably mail you their offers. (They know you are new because they haven’t noticed your name before.)

But a quicker way to generate some name recognition is to find several established mail order dealers who advertise or publish in mail order publications and correspond with them. When you find someone who is interested in you and takes you under their wing — you’ll begin to go places.

If you are selling reports, don’t be afraid to contact someone else who is selling reports. The mail order business is very different from operating a local business. If a pizza shop opens up across the street from your pizza shop — there will be a definite competition. But if another pizza shop opens up 60 miles away from you, it doesn’t matter. In mail order — the WORLD is your marketplace. Two people who sell the same product can work together and still have enough business to keep both of them happy. The world is a big place!

When you contact other people who share in your own interests and what you are selling, you can form lasting friendships and learn from the more experienced people. Invest some of your money into phone calls and contact these people directly. Ask them questions you don’t understand. Listen to their answers with an open mind. Although a mail order dealer has been in the business for 30 years though, if he or she isn’t making any money their advice may or may not be right for you. You can’t ask them how much money they make — but after talking to them awhile, you can determine if they know what they’re doing. Good luck!