Direct Mail: Long Copy Vs. Short Copy

[Danny Johnson]

My experience:
I've done a lot of mailings in the past to owners of vacant properties that I've found while driving neighborhoods and for out of town owners (compiled from county appraisal data). The mailing sizes were not very big (usually 100 letters week).

For the properties found driving around, I've mailed yellow handwritten letters and professional letters, both with handwritten envelopes with stamps.

I get about 3%-5% response on the yellow letters. Convert and actually buy about .5%. The professional letters (short copy - 2-3 short paragraphs - that is not very interesting) I get about 3% response and buy about .4%. The letters were mailed in sequence of 3 different letters. (remember these are the houses that are vacant that I physically saw while driving)

I've sent postcards to the larger (about 1500 addresses) list pulled from the county data. Simple postcards that just say that I Buy Houses and small paragraph of copy stating the benefits of selling to me. I got about 1% response and maybe bought 1. It was several years ago.

To get to the point:
I haven't mailed letters for a while as I have been focusing on REO's the last couple of years. The competition has been growing rapidly for the REO's so I am going to supplement with direct mail again. In order to get a better grasp on direct mail, I've been reading a lot of material on direct marketing and copywriting (mostly Dan Kenedy).

What I've learned is that most direct marketers preach that long copy always outperforms short copy. Ron LeGrand had some longer copy letters in one of his courses that I always thought was just way too long. "Who would want to read all of that!" But, I soon learned (from what I read) that the people that would want to read that LONG copy are the people that are most likely to respond to the letter. :idea: They will want to find out as much as possible about what you are offering before they ever pick up the phone to try and contact you.

I've always wondered if the people receiving the short letters (especially the yellow letters that just mention that I want to buy their house) were just confused by it or a little weary. I've had responses from recipients that wondered if it was a scam.

Your Thoughts:
So, what experience have you all have regarding long vs short copy?

What ideas do you have regarding using one over the other or a mix of both?

Even if you've never mailed before, I would like your input. Maybe considering it from a recipients perspective.

I realize there are a lot of variables that affect response with direct mail, but let's discuss this with all else being equal.

Thank you all your help. Sorry about the length.