Direct Mail Campaign Results - Comments & Suggestions Welcome

[Chris Bounds]

Hey everyone.  I did a lot of research on BP about direct mail before I started my own campaigns last November. I figured some people might get some value if I posted the results so far. I'll appreciate any comments or suggestions too.

1. Target Market: Absentee owned 15+ years, Below average ARV
2. Campaign Type: Postcards
3. Total Prospects: 854
4. Total Mailings: 6
5. Frequency: Monthly
6. Total Leads: 13
7. Total deals: 2
8. Deal types: 1 flip (back-end sale pending) and 1small wholesale. One other seller backed out at the last minute and breached contract.
9. Comments:This was my first mailing and surprisingly the first deal (the one pending back-end sale) was the very first call I received. Lucky, but I'll take it!

1. Target Market: Absentee owned 15+ years, Average ARV
2. Campaign Type: Mixed Mailing (Postcards, White typed letters, Zip Letters)
3. Total Prospects: 899
4. Total Mailings: 4
5. Frequency: Monthly
6. Total Leads: 9
7. Total deals: 0
8. Comments:I'm pretty disappointed with this campaign so far. The area is nearby the above postcard campaign. I'll ride it out up to 7 mailings and see how it goes.

1. Target Market: Absentee owned 15+ years, Average to Above Average ARV
2. Campaign Type: Mixed Mailing (Postcards, White typed letters, Zip Letters)
3. Total Prospects: 905
4. Total Mailings: 2
5. Frequency: Monthly
6. Total Leads: 7
7. Total deals: 0
8. Comments:This is a hot area in town with a lot of tear downs and rebuids. I expect fewer deals from this campaign, but the profit margin should be much higher.

1. Target Market: Probate
2. Campaign Type: White typed letters
3. Total Prospects: 544
4. Total Mailings: 1
5. Frequency: Every 6 weeks
6. Total Leads: 12
7. Total deals: 0
8. Comments:Overall, this has been the most impressive campaign. The response rate to the first mailing was more than I expected. No deals yet, but I have several warm leads that I am working on. We'll be add new probate to the list monthly.

Overall Comments: DM is generating leads, but I would have expected a few more deals by now. Is that an unrealistic expectation? Houston is a hot market and very competitive. Most of the motivated sellers I've spoken with mention that they receive multiple letters/postcards a month. Call volume is picking up more now so hopefully a couple of deals are right around the corner. We're going to start supplementing DM with bandit signs periodically until more deals start to roll in.