When will the phone ring?

[Chris Nowlin]

One thing I didn't think about until I mailed my first direct mail campaign was the time frame from which I should expect to receive calls. I ended up with two calls within the first week. I am curious what others have experienced and if any patters have developed through your longer running campaigns.

I'm not as curious about the number of calls received overall, but the time frame in which they were received. 

Do you guys experience the bulk of the calls withing the first week followed by a steady trickle down as weeks go on? 

Have you seen that calls before or after a certain point tend to be stronger leads?

Do you guys tweak any strategies to keep a steady amount of calls coming in based off of these results? (such as breaking a list in half and mailing twice a month)

More curious than anything. Would love to hear some of the things you guys have learned through the years!

[Ryan Blake]

@Chris Nowlin I have noticed that all my calls for a particular mailer happen within the first week. I send smaller mailer numbers and send them every week to keep leads coming in. My goal is to continually get phone calls every week. I place a different reference number on each letter or post card I mail out and then ask the callers what their reference number is. This helps me track what piece is getting the best response rates.