$ 600 Dollars of Marketing Budget

[Will5597]

Hello How is everyone doing? I am putting together a marketing budget for myself. I have just graduated and wanted to start right away. I was just wondering if you guys could give just a little advice on what I could do. This is what I currently have I know I need more.

$ 44 dollars live answering service.
$ 10 Website
$ 156 400 stamps per month For Foreclosures
$ 75 Materials ( paper, Ink)
$ 50 mailing list in my area
$ 8 real estate networking event monthly

The question I have is is there a recomended Direct Mailing company that I could use to send out 250 post cards per month.
Thanks Will

[fadi]

Are the 250 postcards being mailed out target mailings or to random people?

[Will5597]

The mailings are to divorces and probates

[fadi]

Make sure you send them series of postcards not just one shot. Usually you see response after 4th or 5th letter/postcard. You may also consider sending out regular letters. Alternate between postcards and letters. I learned this concept from Ibuyhousesinc's course and it makes perfect sense. You may also consider going after expired listings.

[Big Cheese]

Will,

First of all, congrats on graduating!

I've recommended these guys on several other posts, but check out www.webuyandsellhomes.net. They cost $40 per month, advertise nationwide, and send leads right to your email inbox for the state you request. Well worth the money spent. Depending on where you live, you can get a TON of leads from these guys.

I noticed you had stamp money set aside for Foreclosures. That is a common market to try to reach, but is very, very competative. I'd suggest expired listings like fadiz said, or For Sale By Owner houses. Both of these areas are obvious sources of leads since they're already trying to sell their house.

Rather than hit 250 people one time, scale back and hit them at least 5-7 times. Make your first mailing a letter, to make a good first impression and to give them all the information they need in order to see that doing business with you is in their best interest (fill the letter with benefits to their situation and to them). Then send a postcard for your 2nd and 4th mailing. Remember, the squeaky wheel gets the oil and when the seller decides to call someone and do something about their situation, you'll get the call if you're the squeaky wheel.

Big Cheese

[fadi]

Another good lead site to consider is http://www.reiu.com/?fuseaction=leads.main where you can view the leads before you can decide on buying them. I have not purchased any since I have not seen any in my area yet, but it looks very promising concept.

[Will5597]

Thanks alot you guys for your help. I will update you once things get started. Once again a BIG Thanks!!!

[rgloans]

What company are you using for answering service? I cant find one that cheap. thanks for the info.

[fadi]

voicenation.com and voiceconnectinc.com

[Big Cheese]

You might want to try www.supersmartwebprofits.com. They offer a killer deal on voicemail systems.

Better customer service than Voice Connect.

Big Cheese

[reevee69]

Make sure you send them series of postcards not just one shot. Usually you see response after 4th or 5th letter/postcard. You may also consider sending out regular letters. Alternate between postcards and letters. I learned this concept from Ibuyhousesinc's course and it makes perfect sense. You may also consider going after expired listings.

Not really. If you target properly and tailor your message accordingly, you should see responses immediately.

[Big Cheese]

It also depends on your market. I agree with fadiz that you should be sending out a series of mailings. I do a 3 page letter first, then alternate between letters and postcards for the next 3-4 mailings after that.

Even with the most targeted message, tailored to what the seller is going through, sometimes it takes a repeated series in order to get the maximum response rate. However, for the first mailing, I do agree that you should see responses immediately as well.

I frequently tell my clients that if you're going to mail someone one time, then you shouldn't have paid for the list in the first place. The whole point of marketing is to get the most leads for your dollar and truly stand out from your competition. By proving to your sellers that you will be in business next week, next month, and next year, you can rest assured that you'll get more calls.

Big Cheese

[reevee69]

I respectfully disagree Big. I've been in direct marketing for nearly ten years now and re investing part-time since 1999.

You said "Even with the most targeted message, tailored to what the seller is going through, sometimes it takes a repeated series order to get the maximum response rate"

That tells me either your message or your target is off. I typically see responses within 2 or 3 days of a mailing. For the purpose of this discussion I'll keep things brief, but getting a response is just the first step of any sales cycle. You still have to convert the lead into a sale or "deal" in REI terminology. Joe Garcia of Give to Get Marketing explains this very simply.

•Contact the WRONG prospect with the WRONG offer and you will generate little or no leads.
•Contact the WRONG prospects with the RIGHT offer and you will generate little or no leads.
•Contact the RIGHT prospects with the WRONG offer and you will generate little or no leads.
•Contact the RIGHT prospects with the RIGHT offer and you will generate the right amount of leads to make you successful.

[Big Cheese]

Reevee,

I'm fine with you disagreeing. You quoted me as saying "Even with the most targeted message, tailored to what the seller is going through, sometimes it takes a repeated series order to get the maximum response rate" (the key word there being MAXIMUM) but failed to note the next line which was, "However, for the first mailing, I do agree that you should see responses immediately as well."

Not everyone is going to respond on the very first mailing, especially if you buy subject to the existing mortgage, as I do. The sellers are only hearing from you for the first time. They need to see that you're going to be in business next week, next month, and next year in order to trust you to make their mortgage payments for them.

It also makes no sense not to keep writing the folks who haven't responded in order to get the maximum response rate from the list that you bought or created.

I agree with Joe 100%. I would also go so far as to say that no one should be content with a lousy 1-2% response rate in their mailings. Heck, I get on average 14-20% and that's not enough for me either.

By writing the folks in a targeted series of mailings, you get a lot of the stragglers that wouldn't have responded to message one, but something in messages 2-4 hit the button in their mind that made them call.

It also depends on what your message says. If you spend most of the letter putting the seller down for being behind on payments, or making them feel bad about their problem, then you aren't going to get a response no matter how many times you write them. However, a letter laden with benefits to the seller on why they should call you and showing them a way out of their situation will pull great responses every time.

Big Cheese

[reevee69]

From this latest response we are on the same page and I guess we do not disagree after all. The only difference that I do is to direct the propsect to a website. In that way I get to them via e-mail instead of a postcard.

I guess what we are trying to tell the original "poster" is that your prospect has to trust you in order to convert them to a lead and then a client. Sometimes that process is completed quicker than others thereby the need for repeated communications.