BJM Free Press |

Your list of customers who have previously bought from you is your most important asset.  These are the customers who will provide you with return business, which is more profitable than the first sale.  But, are you getting the most from your customer list?  There are some secrets you should know, so you can squeeze the most benefits out of your mailing list.

Most business’s customer lists consist of this information:  Name, Address, City, State, Zip.  That’s it.  Unfortunately, this mailing list is almost worthless.  You need to have more information in your files than just that.  I have 32 information fields in my customer database!  You should be able to set these up in your computer’s database, or, if you don’t use a computer (you REALLY should), all this information should fit on a large sizse index card in a card file.  Here are the fields I have in my customer database:

The first 10 fields (reading across) should be self-explanatory.  Almost any address possible can be put into my database without having to leave out information or abbreviate.  The next three are for phone numbers.  You MUST have your customer’s phone numbers, when possible, to be able to follow up quickly and efficiently.  Making one phone call can be the difference between a big sale or NO sale.

The InqDate field is where I record the date the customer first inquired about my products and services, and the date I sent the information, since it’s always the same day (there’s no excuse not to follow up your inquiries on the same day you receive them).  This information, coupled with the ReferSource field, tells me when my ads are hitting, and how quickly people are responding to them.  If I see that inquiries are coming in slowly, or long after the ad is out, I know that I need more action incentives in my next ad.  The ReferSource field is where I enter the “key” from my ad.  I use a letter code after my street address to indicate which publication and issue the inquiry comes from.  I also code my mailings, for the same reason.

I enter a date into the two FollowUp fields to indicate when I want to send follow up literature to customers who don’t order on the first try.  I usually put a date two weeks from the InqDate in FollowUp1, and one two weeks later than that in FollowUp2.  Then, every day, I run a search on these two fields to pull up any records that have today’s date as a follow up date.  I can then print labels and put them on the envelopes and literature I have ready for follow ups.

I use the next three fields (SubDate, SubAmount, RenewDate) for the newsletter I publish.  These would have the date I receive their subscription, the amount they paid (I sometimes run special prices), and the date I want to send subscription renewal information (usually 10 1/2 months from the SubDate).  I can then print labels in the same manner as I do for the FollowUp fields.

Next comes the Purchase fields.  I have three sets of purchase fields, one for each purchase the customer makes.  In the Purch1 field, I enter a code for the product they have purchased.  The other two fields get the date and amount of the purchase.  The second and third sets of fields get the same information for the customer’s second and third purchases.  The best customers to mail offers to are the ones that have purchased within the last 90 days, so I don’t have to worry about many customers making more than three purchases during that time period (though I hope they will!).  If someone does make a fourth purchase, I move the second and third sets of data up to the first and second lines, and enter the new purchase information in the third data set.

These fields are extremely important.  I can instantly pull up a list of customers that have purchased within the past 90 days, or 60 days, or 30 days, or even 15 days.  When you rent out your house mailing list, like I do, this information is vital.  The rental amount you can charge increases as the amount of time since the customer’s purchase decreases.

The next field in my database is TotAmount, which contains a formula to calculate the total dollar amount that the customer has purchased from me to date.

The Comments field is used to store any miscellaneous information about the customer that I think is important to know.

I use the final field, Cust#, for a specially coded customer number that I assign each customer.  I use this code to identify the recipient of any commissions I may pay to customers who have brought business my way.

That’s a lot of information, and you may be wondering why I would need all of that.  Well, I’ve already told you how I use the purchase data fields for identifying the “age” of the customers.  I can also use the TotAmount field to compile a list of customers who have bought more than a certain amount from me.  Together, these field searches can be used to produce a customized mailing list of, for example, customers who have bought more than $50 in the past 30 days.  These would be the most responsive people to mail to, and would render the highest rental rate of my customer list.

I can also use certain mailing list fields to identify people who should be dropped from my list.  For example, I can search for customers with FollowUp2 dates that are four weeks past today’s date, and TotAmounts of zero.  These customers could be erased from my list.  Or, I could leave them on file, and put a word or two in the Comments field reminding me not to mail anything else to them, in case they inquire again.  This saves me the cost of mailing something to someone who probably won’t respond.  They might, but chances are they won’t.

Finally, if I get a customer who has returned too many orders, or has defrauded me in some way, I can put that information in the Comments field.  Then, if they order again, when their file comes up, I will see their history, and can use extra caution with them.

As you can see, if you use foresight when initially setting up your customer list, you will have a valuable tool that you can use to increase your order potential, increase your income through specialized list rental, and decrease our mailing costs by eliminating “deadwood” from your list.  This is one of the most important methods you can use to increase your chances of success.

Now you’ve read about the 10 best mail order businesses.  Have you noticed how some of them fit together?  Well, in all actuality, ALL 10 fit together.  You can have a profitable, part-time or full-time mail order business by running as many of these mini-businesses together as you can.

Take another look through the reports and see how producing and selling information, print brokering, circular mailing, producing ad sheets, co-publishing other ad sheets, big mails, mailing list rental, typesetting, rubber stamps and clip art all fit together with each other.  You can advertise your services in flyers that get mailed with other circulars and ad sheets in your big mails, which are ordered by customers whose names and addresses get added to your rental mailing list, which is ordered by other dealers who find out about your other services.  Customers who aren’t in the mail order business can still gain useful information from your products, use your print brokering services to get the best prices on their other printing needs, and can purchase return address rubber stamps from you.  It all goes together in a cycle that will make money for you.  All you need to do is be persistent (VERY persistent) and remember the following tips.

*  ADVERTISE!  People can’t and won’t order from you if they don’t know who you are and what you sell.  Get those ads out there!  You don’t have to spend thousands of dollars on full page ads.  Put those one-inch ads in the ad sheets you get in the mail.  They’re cheap, and they WORK.

*  REINVEST!  Don’t expect to build a full-time business by putting a few ads in ad sheets, then never advertising again.  If you want to succeed, you MUST put at least 50% of your profits back into advertising.  Expand the amount of advertising you do until you saturate the market.  That’s the way to be a success.  Start your business part-time, and keep your full-time job, so you don’t NEED to dip into your profits for spending money.  If you pour your profits into advertising at the beginning, it will take less time for your part-time business to become self-supporting and full-time.

*  STAY ALERT!  Read and save all the mail-order related mail you get.  Your files will prove to be a valuable source of information and ideas for future products, ads and services.

*  WORK WITH OTHER MAIL-ORDER DEALERS!  You will find that the competition in this business can also be your friend.  When co-publishing and mailing other dealers’ circulars, you will be helping them.  They will help you in return.  Be honest, trustworthy, and deliver on all your promises, and the other dealers you work with will do the same.

*  DON’T GIVE UP!  If you think you can get rich overnight in mail order, you need to rethink things.  Sure, some people have gotten lucky, but the majority of mail order businesses start slow and build slowly.  You can’t give up after the first month.  Be like the little engine that could, and keep pushing along.  It will take time, but the time you take will be worth it.

*  BE SKEPTICAL!  If you see an offer in the mail that is far too good to be true, it probably IS too good to be true.  Don’t fall for the get rich quick junk, and don’t try to sell the stuff, either.  Your customers won’t be very loyal after you burn them.

*  REMEMBER, THE CUSTOMER IS KING!  Customer service is of the utmost importance in mail order.  Give a good guarantee on your products.  If they are good and deliver on your advertised promises, you won’t have to worry about many customer returns.  If a customer has a complaint, make sure you answer them quickly and kindly.  Sometimes, the best return customers are the ones who have had problems that you’ve corrected.  They see that you have their interests in mind, and respect you for that.

*  STUFF THAT ENVELOPE FULL!  Return business is the key to making money in mail order.  That first order covers your costs; the return business is profit.  Always give your customers a lot of products and services to choose from.

If you follow these rules and use the information provided in this report set, you should find yourself on the way to an exciting part-time or full-time mail order business that you can operate out of your own home!

Mail order dealers are always looking for more people to send their offers to.  You’ll find this out in your own business.  Besides sending your offers out to people who answer your ad, you can expand your business by doing mass mailings to lists of people who have responded to offers similar to yours.  You can make extra profits by renting your customer list to other dealers.

Notice I said “renting.”  Too many people use the terms “buy” and “sell” when talking about mailing lists.  Mailing lists are rented, not bought and sold.  When you rent a mailing list, it is for one-time use.  Any customer who orders from you can of course, be added to your permanent customer list.  But you shouldn’t send out more than once to a rented list.  This is unethical, as it robs the owner of the mailing list of revenues.  How would you like it if someone paid you once for the mailing list YOU were renting out, then used it three or four times?  Each time he used it would be a rental fee you DON’T get.  So, mailing lists are not bought and sold.  They are rented.

How should you go about setting up your customer list so you can gain rental income?  If you don’t have a computer, the best way to go about it is by purchasing some photocopier labels.  These can be found at any office supply store.  Type your names and addresses once on labels.  This is your master set.  Then, when you get an order for your list, photocopy your master list onto new labels.

If you do have a computer, you should be keeping your customer list in a database.  By keeping your mailing list on your computer, you can print out labels whenever necessary.  Also, you can keep track of the age of your mailing list.  The best customers to send an offer to are the ones who have bought in the past thirty days.  A list of names and addresses that are less than thirty days old can be rented for a higher rate than older names.  I wouldn’t bother renting names that are more than ninety days old, unless you specifically say they are that old in your ads.  Most smart dealers won’t rent them, though, so it may be a waste of your time.  Also, a list of people who have just inquired about offers, but not ordered, will not rent for too much.

A good idea is to have a friend whose name and address you can add to your list.  Then, have your friend pass on to you anything he or she receives from those who rent your list.  That way, you can tell if someone is using your list more than once without paying.  This is called “seeding” the list.  Also, you will get offers you have never seen before, that you may want to respond to.

How much should you rent your list for?  A lot depends upon competition.  Read the ad sheets and tabloids you get in the mail and see what others are charging.  Use this as a guideline.  Despite what other writers may say, don’t count on making $100,000 per year renting lists.  Some people do, but they are the ones who do ONLY that, who have large, multiple computer setups, and spend thousands in advertising.  Let THEM do that.  While you may make a much smaller amount renting your list, it’s still money you didn’t have before.

In your ads, be sure to include how old your list is, how many names, and where they came from.  For example:  “125 Fresh, Active Mail Order Buyer’s Names from my Order list, all less than 30 days old.  $2.00 plus 2 first class stamps.  Order today!  (your name and address).”  This ad can be used as a classified ad or a typeset one-inch ad.  Labels usually come 33 to a page (3 columns of 11), so you can fill this order with four sheets.  Your cost should be less than 50 cents, so you make $1.50 per order, plus your postage expense is nothing.  Enclose your best offers with your list, up to the maximum weight for the amount of postage you requested, and you will make more money with the orders you receive.  You will get a lot of dealers who will pay for your names, if they are priced right.  Like I said, you won’t get rich, but it’s more money, and you’ll get some orders for your other offers, too.  Add the names of those who rent your list to the list of names you rent.  After all, they did buy from you.

Your mailing list is an important profit-making resource, one which many mail order dealers don’t take advantage of.  Do the smart thing and rent it out. More money plus more orders equals a good idea.

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One thing you will discover when you start a mail order business is that… mailing is EXPENSIVE!  There are many ways to cut the cost of your mailings, bulk mail, SASE’s, and many other ways.  One of the best ways to lower your mailing costs, though, is by using a PRINT & MAIL DEALER.

Print & mail dealers do exactly what their name describes.  They can take your ads, usually 8 1/2 x 11 flyers, print them and mail them to names drawn from a mailing list.  Their services are quite inexpensive, sometimes costing close to what your local printer would charge for printing alone.  How is this?

A print & mail business runs something like this.  When the dealer receives an order from a customer, for example, 1000 8 1/2 x 11 flyers, printed & mailed, he will print the flyers on one side of the paper, with HIS flyer on the back.

Thus, anyone who receives the customer’s flyer will also get the dealer’s flyer.  This cuts his advertising costs.  Then, he will assemble a group of different orders together into one mailing.  This could be as little as two pages, to as many as 50 pages.  These are bulk mailed to names drawn from a mailing list, usually of opportunity seekers or mail order enthusiasts.  They could also be mailed out to those who have responded to ads the print & mail dealer has placed.

How can you be sure a print & mail dealer will do a good job for you?  There are four things you should do when dealing with a print & mail dealer for the first time.  The first two should be done when shopping for a dealer the other two are done after your first order is placed.

First, send the dealer a request to be added to his mailing list.  You should then receive his next mailing.  If you don’t want to wait for a bulk mail, send a few first-class stamps, and you’ll probably receive it quicker.  Look through the mailing and observe the printing quality.  Is it smudgy, smeary and hard to read, or is it crisp and clear?  Is the printing straight, or crooked?  Keep in mind, the quality of the mailing you receive will probably be the quality of YOUR flyer if you use this dealer.  Do this for a number of dealers and you will quickly be able to determine which will give you the best print quality.

Second, find out what type of names the dealer is mailing to, and where they come from.  For best results, make sure the dealer’s names are fresh.  The best mailing lists in mail order are made up of people who have bought within the past 30 days.  Anything over 90 days old shouldn’t be used.  Reputable print & mail dealers shouldn’t have a problem with providing this information.

Third, when you place your printing order, request a checking copy.  This is a copy of the bulk mailing, sent to you.  You can then see exactly how your printing came out, the other offers surrounding yours, and your position in the mailing.

Finally, you should also request proof of mailing.  When you mail a bulk mailing at the post office, they will provide you with a receipt listing the date and the number mailed.  Request that a photocopy of this be mailed to you with your checking copy.  Not all dealers will do this, but the reputable ones should have no problem with it.

If everything looks good, and you sent a good offer to be distributed, you should get favorable results.  This report is not meant to say that a lot of print & mail dealers are disreputable.  Most use high quality lists and produce top notch printing.  Otherwise, they’d never get return customers.  Just be sure that you “look before you leap.”

FOUR THINGS YOU MUST DO BEFORE YOU USE A PRINT & MAIL DEALER. 

Now you’ve read about the 10 best mail order businesses.  Have you noticed how some of them fit together?  Well, in all actuality, ALL 10 fit together.  You can have a profitable, part-time or full-time mail order business by running as many of these mini-businesses together as you can.

Take another look through the reports and see how producing and selling information, print brokering, circular mailing, producing ad sheets, co-publishing other ad sheets, big mails, mailing list rental, typesetting, rubber stamps and clip art all fit together with each other.  You can advertise your services in flyers that get mailed with other circulars and ad sheets in your big mails, which are ordered by customers whose names and addresses get added to your rental mailing list, which is ordered by other dealers who find out about your other services.  Customers who aren’t in the mail order business can still gain useful information from your products, use your print brokering services to get the best prices on their other printing needs, and can purchase return address rubber stamps from you.  It all goes together in a cycle that will make money for you.  All you need to do is be persistent (VERY persistent) and remember the following tips.

*  ADVERTISE!  People can’t and won’t order from you if they don’t know who you are and what you sell.  Get those ads out there!  You don’t have to spend thousands of dollars on full page ads.  Put those one-inch ads in the ad sheets you get in the mail.  They’re cheap, and they WORK.

*  REINVEST!  Don’t expect to build a full-time business by putting a few ads in ad sheets, then never advertising again.  If you want to succeed, you MUST put at least 50% of your profits back into advertising.  Expand the amount of advertising you do until you saturate the market.  That’s the way to be a success.  Start your business part-time, and keep your full-time job, so you don’t NEED to dip into your profits for spending money.  If you pour your profits into advertising at the beginning, it will take less time for your part-time business to become self-supporting and full-time.

*  STAY ALERT!  Read and save all the mail-order related mail you get.  Your files will prove to be a valuable source of information and ideas for future products, ads and services.

*  WORK WITH OTHER MAIL-ORDER DEALERS!  You will find that the competition in this business can also be your friend.  When co-publishing and mailing other dealers’ circulars, you will be helping them.  They will help you in return.  Be honest, trustworthy, and deliver on all your promises, and the other dealers you work with will do the same.

*  DON’T GIVE UP!  If you think you can get rich overnight in mail order, you need to rethink things.  Sure, some people have gotten lucky, but the majority of mail order businesses start slow and build slowly.  You can’t give up after the first month.  Be like the little engine that could, and keep pushing along.  It will take time, but the time you take will be worth it.

*  BE SKEPTICAL!  If you see an offer in the mail that is far too good to be true, it probably IS too good to be true.  Don’t fall for the get rich quick junk, and don’t try to sell the stuff, either.  Your customers won’t be very loyal after you burn them.

*  REMEMBER, THE CUSTOMER IS KING!  Customer service is of the utmost importance in mail order.  Give a good guarantee on your products.  If they are good and deliver on your advertised promises, you won’t have to worry about many customer returns.  If a customer has a complaint, make sure you answer them quickly and kindly.  Sometimes, the best return customers are the ones who have had problems that you’ve corrected.  They see that you have their interests in mind, and respect you for that.

*  STUFF THAT ENVELOPE FULL!  Return business is the key to making money in mail order.  That first order covers your costs; the return business is profit.  Always give your customers a lot of products and services to choose from.

If you follow these rules and use the information provided in this report set, you should find yourself on the way to an exciting part-time or full-time mail order business that you can operate out of your own home!

11.  THE COMPLETE MAIL ORDER BUSINESS