Small Starting Budget

[Brandon Beverly]

Hey Guys,

I am seeking some advice about starting a direct mail campaign. I currently live in Raleigh NC and have a limited starting budget. My starting niche is wholesaling to build capital for my business. As part of the budget, the initial start up cost will be:

LLC set up cost: $300

PO Box:              $ 50

Office start up    $200 (This includes laser printer, business cards, paper, etc.)

Total: $550

This leaves an estimated amount of $1,450 left for direct mail marketing. I currently have a business phone number which I pay for monthly that will not be included in this cost. I have located a list of absentee owners which will cost $100 at $0.10 each and a list of vacant houses for $250 at $0.50 each for a total of $350. The last $1150 will cover the cost associated with persistent marketing and weekly mailings.

ADVICE:

How would you use your savings to get started? Would you obtain a list of absentee owners? What about vacant houses? Would you spend more on your list? What kind of advice can you give about marketing with a budget such as mine?

Thank you in advance for your help and support!

[Jaysen Medhurst]

Hey Brandon, good to see some well allocated numbers on your part--really thinking it through.

I'm going to come at your question from a different angle: Is direct mail the best use of your money?

Probably not at this point. Reason being direct mail takes time to pay off. Months, sometimes years. $1500, $2000, $3000 every month. They can be great lead generators, but not instant ones. You'll do 1 mailing and then be out of money.

Making an assumption here, but I would guess you probably can spare more time than cash right now. Why not spend more of that time driving for dollars, honing in on the neighborhoods that fit your investment profile, and finding specific properties? Knock on the neighbor's doors and see what's up.

Then head over to city hall and pull the records. A list of 20 potential properties might show 10 with good equity and out-of-state or long-term owners. Then contact those 10 owners. Try hand-written letters (there's only 10). That will set you apart from everyone sending yellow letters.

Very low cost, but obviously takes time/effort. The learning will be invaluable.

Remember, most of the lists you buy are all public information. There's nothing "secret" in there. You're paying for the companies to search, collate, and organize the info.

Good luck! Oh, and 1 other thing: no need to set up your LLC right away, wait until you're actually circling some properties.