If you’re considering direct mail for your HVAC, plumbing, or electrical company for the first time, it’s crucial to make a key decision to assess if it’s a worthwhile investment for your marketing budget. The key question is: “Are you ready to allocate the necessary resources and time to fully test direct mail marketing?”
Here’s why this matters: Many HVAC, plumbing, and electrical companies reach out to us about direct mail, but often the owners or marketing managers don’t fully understand how it works. This usually leads to requests such as, “I just want to try one mailing to see if it works; if it does, we’ll consider more.”
The issue with this approach is that running a single direct mail campaign and reaching prospects only once isn’t an effective strategy. A single attempt won’t reveal the true potential of direct mail for your business.
Effective marketing demands more than a one-off effort. No marketing channel can provide meaningful results from just one execution. While you may get some response from a single mailer, it won’t demonstrate the full effectiveness or potential of direct mail. To properly evaluate its impact, you need to commit to a consistent, well-planned series of campaigns.
So, what is the most effective strategy?
The answer will be different for every business and is driven by factors such as your specific budget, your specific capacity to handle new customers, etc. With that said, to start you will want to implement a strategy that ensures you have a direct mail marketing program that touches your potential prospects a minimum of 3+ times with the ideal being 6+ touches.
To see an example of a direct mail marketing program that ensures multiple touches, check out our Annual Mailing Program. This fully customizable marketing solution is designed to provide the optimal number multiple touches, helping you maximize your ROI. Keep in mind that this example should be customized to your specific business’s goals and budget. The key is getting a plan and putting it on a calendar to ensure there is accountability to execute.
FACT CHECK:
Simply google something like “how many times does it take a prospect to see your ad before they take action” and you will see a plethora of different answers none of which are 100% definitive. However, what is definitive is that multiple touches are required. You will not find a marketer on earth that does not agree with that. Next, ensure you use a variety of direct mail products when targeting the same prospects. For instance, combining paper postcards, postcard magnets, and plastic postcards creates a strong mix of impactful marketing pieces that will stand out in the mailbox and grab your customers’ attention.
However, while selecting the right direct mail products is crucial, the content, messaging, and offers included are arguably even more important. As you evaluate potential direct mail marketing partners, ask them specifically about their strategies and, most importantly, the reasoning behind them.
At Mail Shark, we understand the importance of getting to know the homeowners we target as potential customers for your HVAC, plumbing, or electrical company. To achieve this, we conduct thorough consumer market research.
For instance, our research reveals that 50% of homeowners surveyed nationwide don’t understand what HVAC companies do. This highlights the need for ad copy that speaks in simple, non-technical terms to effectively communicate with your audience.
To view the full details as well as our other latest Home Services (HVAC, Plumbing & Electrical ) Consumer research click below to download “Cracking The Code” .
Finally, as you explore the best marketing strategies for your HVAC, plumbing, or electrical company, keep in mind that marketing is an investment in future sales. Everything else you spend money on for your business are merely expenses that marketing must pay for. This is why it’s critical you invest wisely and choose the right partner.
Josh Davis