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Casual Articles - 60 Ways to Increase Your Mail Order Catalog Sales
For the past few years or so now we've been creating and printing our own posters. And the best paper that I've found for this is satin paper. And not just any satin paper. The best that I've found is made by Hewlett Packard. And what works best is the 7 mil paper.Satin paper that's 7 mil thick dries quick. Even for dark prints. Cause there's enough paper to absorb the ink. Thinner paper takes a lot longer to dry cause not all of the ink isn't aborbed. So it has to just sit there and dry. Sometimes run and bleed through to the back of the paper.And the 7 mil paper isn't so thick that you can't roll it up and plastic sleeve it without any problems. Like wrinkling the print for making it too tight to get the plastic over it.So it dries quick, rolls good without sticking to itself, and is ready to ship the same day if not the next day from when it was printed. Very ideal for the high humidity climate that I reside in.I have tried other papers from other manufacturers and different thicknesses. Like glossy paper. Yeah it puts a high gloss on the print. But the ink sits on top and takes forever, like 3 days or so, to dry enough to roll and ship. 5 mil and thinner satin paper. The ink sits on top and soaks through the paper. You roll it up and gets ink onto the back side of the print. Not very professional.Plain paper is very good to use also. But it doesn't have that "Photo Finish" quality. So plain it is.I've even tried thicker satin paper from Kodak. It acted just like the thin satin paper. Or it is damaged during packaging.So for our poster prints the paper of choice is 7mil satin paper made by Hewlett Packard. It prints beautiful. Dries fast. And ships really good once rolled.
and excitement and extras pleasure to owning or using the types
of products offered in your catalog.. For example, feature
dramatic new items, unusual items, items that are especially
timely, etc... Include unusual facts of interest about specific
items.
9. Plan to add interest to your catalog-and give it a much longer
life--by including helpful information on how to use, operate and
maintain your products...unusual uses, etc.. This is information
that customers can use to advantage and will want to keep for
future reference, such information also increases customer
confidence in your company which correspondingly increases the
customer's inclination to buy from you.
10.. Determine whether items that were unprofitable or barely
profitable in the present catalog should be promoted more
vigorously in the new catalog or should be dropped and replaced
by new products, Never keep an unprofitable
According to Wikipedia, the free internet encyclopedia: "A promotional item is merchandise given away free of charge to the public in an effort to promote a business or increase interest in, or sales of, a product. These items are also referred to by the slang terms schwag and tchotchke. (The latter is derived from a Yiddish word meaning "trinket".) Promotional items are also used in politics to promote candidates and causes. Examples of promotional items include logo-branded t-shirts, caps, keychains, bumper stickers , pens, mints, etc. Collection of certain types of promotional items is a popular hobby."Promotional items have the power to be understood universally.According to the Promotional Products Association International, corporations spend close to $17.5 billion a year on this type of advertising - that's more than one-third of what's spent on TV.A survey conducted for Promotional Products Association International (PPAI) by LJ Market Research reveals the power of promotional products by measuring how end users respond to organizations that use promotional products as part of their marketing mix. The survey, Promotional Products - Impact, Exposure and Influence: A Survey of Business Travelers at Dallas/Fort Worth Airport , was conducted by interviewing business travelers at DFW Airport. More than 71 percent of travelers indicated they had received at least one promotional product in the last 12 months. The study also showed that respondents' ability to recall the name of an advertiser on a promotional product they had received (76 percent) was much better than their ability to recall the name of an advertiser from a print publication they had read in the past week (53.5 percent).Recipients of promotional products do remember the advertiser's name.Business to business gifts are a good way to maintain a positive presence within your client base. They can build brand awareness within the professional community as well as amongst the general public. The next time you launch a new product or service, try introducing it with an imprinted business item. When gifting to clients within your industry, it is particularly important
Perfection in a mail order catalog is like infinity...you can
continually approach it but never quite reach it. In the case of
many catalogs it is not necessary to achieve perfection
or even approach it very closely in order to make the catalog
vastly more profitable than it is at present. Relatively small
improvements can result in a more-than-proportionate enlargement
of that all-important figure on the bottom line of the financial
statement.
Making as many improvements as possible as quickly as possible is
probably the most profitable procedure. But even making each new
catalog a little better than the one that preceded it can
produce substantial increases in sales per catalog and in total
sales over a period of time.
Following are 60 suggestions that should help your catalog do a
better selling job for you if you are not already using these
ideas. Whether you use all of them in connection with your next
catalog or adopt a few at a time in the course of producing
several future catalogs, the ultimate result should be very
noticeable and very profitable.
BEFORE YOU CREATE YOUR CATALOG....
1. Look at your present catalog with extremely cold, critical and
unsympathetic eye. Pick out all the faults-large or small-that
you could find if you were no longer the owner of the catalog but
a nitpicking customer who has been disappointed in his or her
last purchase from you and is still sore about it. Such a review
could be very enlightening-even if it should prove slightly
embarrassing-and could make your new catalog much more
profitable.
2. Put your "letterman" on your team. Review all incoming
correspondence from customers and prospects during the last two
years for comments, suggestions or criticisms that may be helpful
in preparing your new catalog. Screen all future correspondence
of this nature as it arrives and place copies of the useful
letters in a special file to be reviewed before starting your
next catalog.
3. Think of your catalog as a means of helping your prospects
accomplish something they want to accomplish or create an effect
they want to create-and prepare your layouts, copy and
illustrations accordingly.
4. For each major type of product you sell, determine as many
reasons as possible why different groups of prospects or
customers do buy or should buy this product. Arrange your groups
of prospects or customers in their orders of importance. For each
group arrange the reasons for buying in order of there
importance. Then arrange the reasons in their order of importance
to your total group of prospects or customers. Use the most
important reason as the basis for the copy and illustrations you
use in this catalog.
If there are significant differences in the primary reasons for
purchasing different types of products, make the presentation for
each specific type of product fit the product of using the same
type of presentation for different types of products...
5. If the preceding reasons indicate that different appeals are
needed for different groups of prospects or customers, change the
wrap-around, letter or introductory page of your catalog to
appeal to different groups, and separate your mailings
accordingly.
6. Plan your catalog completely before you start preparing
layouts and copy.. Use all 60 suggestions in this list as your
guide for your planning..
7. Plan to ring your cash register more often by using approaches
in tune with the times.
8. Plan to attract new customers-reactivate dormant customers-and
get bigger and better orders from present customers by adding new
and excitement and extras pleasure to owning or using the types
of products offered in your catalog.. For example, feature
dramatic new items, unusual items, items that are especially
timely, etc... Include unusual facts of interest about specific
items.
9. Plan to add interest to your catalog-and give it a much longer
life--by including helpful information on how to use, operate and
maintain your products...unusual uses, etc.. This is information
that customers can use to advantage and will want to keep for
future reference, such information also increases customer
confidence in your company which correspondingly increases the
customer's inclination to buy from you.
10.. Determine whether items that were unprofitable or barely
profitable in the present catalog should be promoted more
vigorously in the new catalog or should be dropped and replaced
by new products, Never keep an unprofitable p
There is no doubt whatsoever that about the easiest business to start for someone with little or no upfront capital is a window washing service. But have you ever considered once you start this business how you are going to go out and get customers? How are you going to market this business and what types of advertising will do?What types of customers will pay the best and indeed which types of customers will pay you on time? How much should you charge and what about competition? All these are good questions indeed and so perhaps I should explain to you how to market a window cleaning firm.First you need to decide your market mix and I would say it is best to start out with 25% Business and 75% residential or personal customers. Next I would suggest if you are just starting out to talk to realtors first and Homeowners Associations. You business clientele should be small businesses where the owner is usually present to make sure at the end of the month you can hand them an invoice and they can cut you a check.For other corporate clients like bank branches and such, wait until you build up your reserves, as they may pay you 90-120 days in the rears meaning you will be cleaning for 304 months before you even get paid for the first month. Consider these marketing tips for your window cleaning service in 2006.
ideas. Whether you use all of them in connection with your next
catalog or adopt a few at a time in the course of producing
several future catalogs, the ultimate result should be very
noticeable and very profitable.
BEFORE YOU CREATE YOUR CATALOG....
1. Look at your present catalog with extremely cold, critical and
unsympathetic eye. Pick out all the faults-large or small-that
you could find if you were no longer the owner of the catalog but
a nitpicking customer who has been disappointed in his or her
last purchase from you and is still sore about it. Such a review
could be very enlightening-even if it should prove slightly
embarrassing-and could make your new catalog much more
profitable.
2. Put your "letterman" on your team. Review all incoming
correspondence from customers and prospects during the last two
years for comments, suggestions or criticisms that may be helpful
in preparing your new catalog. Screen all future correspondence
of this nature as it arrives and place copies of the useful
letters in a special file to be reviewed before starting your
next catalog.
3. Think of your catalog as a means of helping your prospects
accomplish something they want to accomplish or create an effect
they want to create-and prepare your layouts, copy and
illustrations accordingly.
4. For each major type of product you sell, determine as many
reasons as possible why different groups of prospects or
customers do buy or should buy this product. Arrange your groups
of prospects or customers in their orders of importance. For each
group arrange the reasons for buying in order of there
importance. Then arrange the reasons in their order of importance
to your total group of prospects or customers. Use the most
important reason as the basis for the copy and illustrations you
use in this catalog.
If there are significant differences in the primary reasons for
purchasing different types of products, make the presentation for
each specific type of product fit the product of using the same
type of presentation for different types of products...
5. If the preceding reasons indicate that different appeals are
needed for different groups of prospects or customers, change the
wrap-around, letter or introductory page of your catalog to
appeal to different groups, and separate your mailings
accordingly.
6. Plan your catalog completely before you start preparing
layouts and copy.. Use all 60 suggestions in this list as your
guide for your planning..
7. Plan to ring your cash register more often by using approaches
in tune with the times.
8. Plan to attract new customers-reactivate dormant customers-and
get bigger and better orders from present customers by adding new
and excitement and extras pleasure to owning or using the types
of products offered in your catalog.. For example, feature
dramatic new items, unusual items, items that are especially
timely, etc... Include unusual facts of interest about specific
items.
9. Plan to add interest to your catalog-and give it a much longer
life--by including helpful information on how to use, operate and
maintain your products...unusual uses, etc.. This is information
that customers can use to advantage and will want to keep for
future reference, such information also increases customer
confidence in your company which correspondingly increases the
customer's inclination to buy from you.
10.. Determine whether items that were unprofitable or barely
profitable in the present catalog should be promoted more
vigorously in the new catalog or should be dropped and replaced
by new products, Never keep an unprofitable
Having a realistic tradeshow budget is crucial for your exhibiting success. It’s imperative to include all of the costs associated with exhibiting in your financial plan, yet many exhibitors fail to take this crucial step.It’s almost impossible to realize positive ROI when you don’t know how much you’re spending -- and what you’re spending it on! If you ask most exhibitors what they think the largest expense associated with tradeshow participation is, chances are they’ll tell you the display space.It’s true that exhibiting space is expensive. That 10X10 booth can set you back a pretty penny -- and price tags go up for larger spaces and prime locations. However, exhibiting space itself is generally only 30% of the total cost associated with exhibiting.That 30% of your budget is fairly fixed. A fabulous negotiator might be able to get show management to shave a few hundred off the price of exhibit space, but that’s the exception rather than the rule.Instead, you’ll want to concentrate on that other 70% of your budget. The expenses that make up the bulk of your participation cost are, to some degree, variable. They’re under your control -- which means, with time, planning, and oversight, you can keep them down. The lower your costs are, after all, the easier it will be to generate a positive ROI on your show!The reality is, however, that most exhibitors don’t pay close attention -- or any attention at all! -- to some of the items that make up the remaining 70%. The cost of their show creeps steadily upward, bit by bit, as small charges mount up and up until they’re a sizable chunk of change. This is particularly common among new exhibitors -- although it also plagues seasoned pros who fall prey to the assumption trap. This is when an exhibitor assumes that things will be done this year the way they’ve always been done previously. Like all assumptions, this one can prove costly!Here are some of the items that make up that 70%, as well as some thoughts on how to keep these costs manageable. Display MaterialsYour display can make your show: attractively presenting your merchandise in an eye-catching
in preparing your new catalog. Screen all future correspondence
of this nature as it arrives and place copies of the useful
letters in a special file to be reviewed before starting your
next catalog.
3. Think of your catalog as a means of helping your prospects
accomplish something they want to accomplish or create an effect
they want to create-and prepare your layouts, copy and
illustrations accordingly.
4. For each major type of product you sell, determine as many
reasons as possible why different groups of prospects or
customers do buy or should buy this product. Arrange your groups
of prospects or customers in their orders of importance. For each
group arrange the reasons for buying in order of there
importance. Then arrange the reasons in their order of importance
to your total group of prospects or customers. Use the most
important reason as the basis for the copy and illustrations you
use in this catalog.
If there are significant differences in the primary reasons for
purchasing different types of products, make the presentation for
each specific type of product fit the product of using the same
type of presentation for different types of products...
5. If the preceding reasons indicate that different appeals are
needed for different groups of prospects or customers, change the
wrap-around, letter or introductory page of your catalog to
appeal to different groups, and separate your mailings
accordingly.
6. Plan your catalog completely before you start preparing
layouts and copy.. Use all 60 suggestions in this list as your
guide for your planning..
7. Plan to ring your cash register more often by using approaches
in tune with the times.
8. Plan to attract new customers-reactivate dormant customers-and
get bigger and better orders from present customers by adding new
and excitement and extras pleasure to owning or using the types
of products offered in your catalog.. For example, feature
dramatic new items, unusual items, items that are especially
timely, etc... Include unusual facts of interest about specific
items.
9. Plan to add interest to your catalog-and give it a much longer
life--by including helpful information on how to use, operate and
maintain your products...unusual uses, etc.. This is information
that customers can use to advantage and will want to keep for
future reference, such information also increases customer
confidence in your company which correspondingly increases the
customer's inclination to buy from you.
10.. Determine whether items that were unprofitable or barely
profitable in the present catalog should be promoted more
vigorously in the new catalog or should be dropped and replaced
by new products, Never keep an unprofitable
Mailing equipment generally refers to any machines that could be used to cut down on the time, effort, and cost of sending large amounts of commercial mail. This description includes all devices used to fold, weigh, label, or print on outgoing mail and envelopes.Buying equipment for your mailroom can be a great investment in the overall efficiency of your company, but it’s important to do the necessary calculations to determine whether buying expensive mailing machinery is a good course of action for your business.In general, mailroom equipment is only worth having if you send a large volume of mail (100+ letters per day) for either marketing, invoicing, or customer and employee relations purposes.For the majority of small businesses, it makes more sense to lease mailing equipment than purchase it outright, as the cost of fully equipping a mailroom all in one go can easily run into the tens of thousands of dollars.It is generally possible to lease low-grade mailing equipment starting at $25/month for each machine. Industrial-level machinery, such as automatic envelope printing and sorting machines, meanwhile, will generally lease for between $100 and $250 per month.Overall, it’s a good idea to add up the total monthly cost of the equipment you plan to buy, and compare it with the time that your employees are currently spending on manual mail-related tasks. Making this simple calculation is the only way to find out for sure what, if any, automated mailing machines it makes sense for your company to acquire.
use in this catalog.
If there are significant differences in the primary reasons for
purchasing different types of products, make the presentation for
each specific type of product fit the product of using the same
type of presentation for different types of products...
5. If the preceding reasons indicate that different appeals are
needed for different groups of prospects or customers, change the
wrap-around, letter or introductory page of your catalog to
appeal to different groups, and separate your mailings
accordingly.
6. Plan your catalog completely before you start preparing
layouts and copy.. Use all 60 suggestions in this list as your
guide for your planning..
7. Plan to ring your cash register more often by using approaches
in tune with the times.
8. Plan to attract new customers-reactivate dormant customers-and
get bigger and better orders from present customers by adding new
and excitement and extras pleasure to owning or using the types
of products offered in your catalog.. For example, feature
dramatic new items, unusual items, items that are especially
timely, etc... Include unusual facts of interest about specific
items.
9. Plan to add interest to your catalog-and give it a much longer
life--by including helpful information on how to use, operate and
maintain your products...unusual uses, etc.. This is information
that customers can use to advantage and will want to keep for
future reference, such information also increases customer
confidence in your company which correspondingly increases the
customer's inclination to buy from you.
10.. Determine whether items that were unprofitable or barely
profitable in the present catalog should be promoted more
vigorously in the new catalog or should be dropped and replaced
by new products, Never keep an unprofitable
I knew this one would get your attention. How can you, the savvy business entrepreneur, get FREE ANYTHING from your competition? The answer is simple: Google!Yes, there are many things that Google can solve. As listed above, they are providing their users with endless utilities to help you in your web search. So how can they help you with your site? Watch this: Go to Google (http://www.google.com) and type in the following, exactly as shown, using your business URL in place of the examplelink:www.yourwebsite.comThe results show you a listing of all sites that link to your site. While chances are your competition will not be listed, you can get an overview of the 'type' of websites that link to you. If there are a bunch of similar sites, that can help you with your marketing and target advertising in the future.Now here's where the fun begins. Now that you know who links to you, check out the competition. Put in those guys down the street who provide the same service you do.link:www.theirwebsite.comWho's linking to them? Are there some big names listed that you WISH were linking to you? You may find out that getting your name on that list is easier than you thought. Sometimes a simple email to the webmaster will get you added to the l
and excitement and extras pleasure to owning or using the types
of products offered in your catalog.. For example, feature
dramatic new items, unusual items, items that are especially
timely, etc... Include unusual facts of interest about specific
items.
9. Plan to add interest to your catalog-and give it a much longer
life--by including helpful information on how to use, operate and
maintain your products...unusual uses, etc.. This is information
that customers can use to advantage and will want to keep for
future reference, such information also increases customer
confidence in your company which correspondingly increases the
customer's inclination to buy from you.
10.. Determine whether items that were unprofitable or barely
profitable in the present catalog should be promoted more
vigorously in the new catalog or should be dropped and replaced
by new products, Never keep an unprofitable product in your
catalog just because it is one of your favorites. If it doesn't
sell, get rid of it!
11. Give your company a distinctive personality. Promote this
personality in all future catalogs as a means of making your
company not "jut another mail order marketer" but a very special
marketer in the minds of your prospects and customers.
WHEN YOU CREATE YOUR NEW CATALOG...
Use Procedure 12 to 19 to make your prospects want your products:
12. Write your copy to tie in with and stimulate the specific
reasons for buying discussed in the preceding section.
13. Wherever possible show your prospects how your merchandise
can accomplish the results desired by the prospects to a greater
degrees than competitive products-and prove it by citing results
of lab tests, field tests, wards received, other special
recognition- and especially testimonials and case history
stories, preferably with photographs. Give the prospect every
possible incentive to buy from you rather than somebody else.
14. Put special emphasis on your products and/or services which
are exclusive or markedly superior to those of your
competitors-and tell your readers WHY your products and/or
services are superior!
15. Take the prospect "behind the scenes" if practical and show
what you do (especially exclusive or improved procedures) to make
your products better than competitive products.
16. Make the most of new items the first time you offer them;
they are only new once.. Give them every opportunity to succeed
sales wise by giving them preferred position and allowing adequate
space for you to do a proper educational and selling job on them
at the time they are introduced.
17. Assure prospects that is easy to use these products...that
instructions are included with each order (if true) and/or are
available in specific books or magazines (preferably obtainable
from you)...and cite case histories to prove how successful other
customers have been in using them.
18. Tell prospect how to start using your merchandise properly
and what other action should be taken-and when-or state that this
information will be included with the shipment.
19. If your products are bought primarily for pleasure or are
considered a luxury or "non-necessity", help the prospect
rationalize the value of the purchase.
Use Procedures 20 to 26 to make it easy as possible for the
prospect to make an accurate selection of the types of
merchandise and the specific items of each type best suited for
his or her purposes:
20. Group all items of the same type in the same section of your
catalog.
21. Arrange the groups of items in their present or potential
order of importance to you profit wise. Put the most important
group at the front of your catalog and the least important near
the end of your catalog (but not on the last three pages).
22. Within each group , arrange the individual items in
descending order of quality, price, popularity or promotional
possibilities.
Give the most important items the most valuable positions and
extra space for copy and illustrations. Allocate positions and
space to the other items in the order of their importance.
23. If practicable, use the Sears system of offering the same
type of item in three different qualities-- GOOD, BETTER and
BEST- with different price ranges to match the differences in
quality. Usually it is more effective to talk about the BEST
quality first and the GOOD quality last.
24. Use COMMON copy to present features or qualities that are the
same for all or most items of the same type.
25. Use INDIVIDUAL copy to talk about the features or qualities
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