Annuity Marketing: Direct Mail Creation
Direct mail is a great way to get your message in front of targeted annuity prospects. It gives you the chance to be creative with your message, is relatively inexpensive to implement and will help you separate the wheat from the chaff when it comes to identifying potential annuity clients. In fact, many annuity agents say direct mail is their best source for qualified annuity leads. But you need to spend your time talking to prospects, networking and closing the sale – you don’t have time to create and run a direct mail campaign! Instead of trying to do everything at once, consider outsourcing the production of your direct mail pieces.
The following are some tips for outsourcing your annuity marketing direct mail campaign.
• Determine your approach.
You can find companies that handle the campaign from beginning to end. This includes the creation of the pieces, strategy and the mailing. However, some of these companies can be expensive and may be out of your budget. If you feel the expense is worth it, ask your fellow agents for referrals to companies they’ve worked with. Check the company’s other references, not just by what they say but by calling each contact and talking to them yourself.
• You can outsource each step of the direct mail campaign.
If a full-scale media production house is out of your budget, you can outsource the separate steps in the process to save money. Typically, you need to find a professional who can do great graphics, and one who can write good copy. Some professionals will offer to do both, but it’s often better to find one person for each element of the piece. Be sure to outsource the copy first so that you can forward the finished text to your graphic designer.
But where do you find these professionals? You can check you local yellow pages for advertising agencies, or you can look online using services like www.guru.com or www.elance.com. These websites feature freelance professionals who will bid on your job, often charging less than the professionals you can find offline. And with the power of the Internet, you may be in Texas and work with someone in California!
• Once your direct mail piece is completed, you can either mail it yourself or outsource this step as well.
If you already have a list of annuity leads, you can save yourself money by mailing the direct mail piece yourself. First, you’ll need to have it printed, and there are a number of different discount printers online who can do this for a few hundred dollars or less. Once you’ve received your printed pieces, you can sit down and spend an afternoon labeling, stamping and mailing out your direct mail campaign.
If you don’t yet have an annuity lead list, you can contract with a company that will not only mail the piece for you, but will send it to a list of qualified leads. You can get a list and the piece mailed for one price! This is a great way to get leads and send out your direct mail piece quickly and efficiently.
In addition, there are two things you should remember when outsourcing any component of your annuity marketing direct mail campaign.
1. Make sure you have everything in writing. Most freelancers sign contracts that state they are independent contractors. These contracts protect you and them, by laying out every detail of the project timeline and deliverables so that there’s no misunderstanding during the process. You can find one online, but if you can’t, ask your attorney to draft one for you.
2. Give the company/freelancers clear instructions. Nothing is as frustrating as requesting a job and not having it done right. Be responsive to their questions and communicate as clearly as possible. If you aren’t as clear as possible with your instructions, it’s likely that the job won’t be done right!
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Tags: direct mail
June 8th, 2009 at 6:18 pm
The response rate for mailings is tiny. That is why junk email become so prominent. Careful targeting increases results significantly.
July 15th, 2009 at 10:40 pm
I agree with you that direct mail is a great way to get your message in front of targeted prospects of most kinds. It also gives you the chance to be relevant as well as creative with your message. Depending on the type of marketing it is also relatively inexpensive. I also confirm the statement from Kathy that careful targeting is the way to get the maximum results. Using a form as a way to advertise local coupons is also a great eye grabber and gives you a way to get back to those prospects. Direct mail marketing is just but one of the ways and should definitely be considered in a marketing plan.
Regards
Henal
July 30th, 2009 at 6:10 am
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August 6th, 2009 at 3:40 am
If the database is large, there is a growing chance that you will be able to address spam, gmail mail type, to quickly catches and can block the sender and does not receive a large part of the consignment. It is better to actually focus on a narrow, well-selected group of recipients.
August 16th, 2009 at 7:45 am
Your final tips in this post are very important. Getting freelancers to handle the steps of your direct email campaign can be a hit-and-miss proposition.
If you use Elance or a similar site, it’s also important to review the provider’s past work, and interview him or here before committing to a project. It’s much better to get the questions and clarifications out of the way before you begin. If a freelancer isn’t willing to take these preliminary steps, keep looking.
August 17th, 2009 at 2:24 am
I agree with you that direct mail is a great way to get your message in front of targeted prospects of most kinds.
August 27th, 2009 at 3:34 pm
In this economy it is essential that we, as consumers and as marketers take the time to determine what “best” means for each individual and each specific situation and i agree with you that direct mail is a great way to get your message in front of targeted prospects.
August 31st, 2009 at 1:46 pm
Fantastic tips, I haven’t given direct mail a thought in years, but with the right market, it looks like it can be quite effective
August 31st, 2009 at 8:26 pm
Nice post! According to the type of marketing, it is less expensive when considered with others. To get the maximum results, it should be carefully targetted. It is just one of the ways but definitely it should be considered. Your final two tips in this article are very useful….
September 13th, 2009 at 1:02 pm
I agree with Kathy. If you can reach the exact people who want your product or service, it pays much higher dividends than blanket marketing.
September 17th, 2009 at 9:52 am
Before i do any full blown mailing i always test out a few campaigns first. I may start with 100, depending on my budget i can do more. I then measure the conversion before deciding how many mailings i should do. If i am looking for 20 sales conversion, base on the results i get from the test mailing, lets say i got 5% conversion from my test. I would then mail 400 to get the desired target of 20 sales.
September 21st, 2009 at 11:46 am
One of the major mistakes small business owners do make is failing to outsource difficult task. They either feel no one can do it better or they think it’s saving money. This in my opinion is the primary reason why so many business stay small and fail to expand.
December 17th, 2009 at 6:57 am
Direct mail has always worked for me.
December 25th, 2009 at 8:32 am
Excellent post. I agree , if direct mail is a great way to get your message in front of targeted annuity prospects.
December 29th, 2009 at 2:12 am
tips for outsourcing annuity marketing through direct mail campaign is really good and useful and understandable
January 4th, 2010 at 1:22 am
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January 12th, 2010 at 12:08 pm
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January 15th, 2010 at 11:55 pm
Marketing for annuity leads can be very tricky. Better not to copy others, do it yourself. I don’t mean anyone. It’s for all.
January 16th, 2010 at 9:52 am
Selling annuities is the easiest sale in the insurance industry. It helps more in insurance industry.
January 18th, 2010 at 6:09 am
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February 3rd, 2010 at 12:58 am
What does the term structured settlements mean? I got really stuck with this term
February 5th, 2010 at 2:28 pm
I do agree with this piece on direct mail, but I have to pose a question; is this the only approach there is… I believe in search engine optimization of your website to get new customers… A prospect is looking for an annuity to purchase and they start a search for a local annuity financial advisor…. If you invest a little in getting your website found, the customer is looking for you at the exact moment they are ready to buy!! What could be better.
Now, don’t get me wrong, the direct mail approach has been working for years and I still use direct mailings. I just believe in a well rounded marketing approach to hit all of the avenues.
February 15th, 2010 at 5:26 pm
I always assumed direct mail campaigns were very expensive. Perhaps with the competition of online lead generation, direct mail is now more reasonable. If you can get good annuity leads via direct mail, I’m sure you could use it in other areas as will.
February 18th, 2010 at 9:00 pm
Selling insurance is not easy as we all know there are more competition in the market between pvt companies……but selling annuities is simple compared to other insurance..