All Forum Posts by: Claire Trammell

I understand now!

Well, it can definitely be done. In many cases with direct mail providers, you can schedule out the mail pieces initially. Meaning, you can purchase the mail pieces you are wanting to send and set the date for each piece to be mailed. 

If you are using the same mail piece and sending it over and over, it would be similar. Just schedule the drops for the dates you want.

I like doing it this way because then all that you need to do is check your reminders on the days the drops are mailed and prepare for the calls.

Easy-peasy! 

Hello @Ryan Pal

What exactly are you looking for in a drip campaign? For example: sending the same mail piece to multiple lists as they come? Or same list and different mail pieces?

If I had a better idea what you are wanting to achieve, I may be able to advise better.

Hello @Michael Randle

I know you are looking for other sites to compile a list, however Listsource is my favorite. I find it easy to use and, since the information comes directly from the "big data" companies, I found the information to be accurate.

Plus, a lot of the mail companies that offer lists use Listsource as a provider. 

Hope that's helpful!

Happy investing!

@Alexander Hamilton

I agree with @Heath Ryans, however, I would add that after a 6 month mailing you may want to re-evaluate your list. Check for homes that may have sold, change of mailing address (if its an absentee owner), etc.

Hello @Edward Emerson!

I understand you have done a bit of research on direct mail, however it is still a broad subject to give recommendations on. I'll give it my best shot!

Direct mail tends to work best when you send a campaign of 5-7 different pieces, 4 weeks apart from each other. Follow ups are key as the average person takes 3-5 touches before picking up the phone to respond. That being said, you should set a quantity of mailers each month that you think you could keep up with the phone calls.

There are two things that you should ask yourself that will help you determine your mailing quantity:

1) Your budget

2) Your ability to handle the calls

It might help you to answer these questions if you had an idea on what to expect in respect to the response rates. Here are the average response rates we have seen based on our customer feedback as well as our own mailings throughout the years:

Yellow Letters- average response rate of 8%-9%, all kinds of calls (angry calls, curious calls, tire-kickers, quality calls)

Typed Letters- average response rate of 8%-9%, all kinds of calls (angry calls, curious calls, tire-kickers, quality calls)

Postcards- average response rate of .5%, mostly quality calls.

Zip Letters- average response rate of 2%, mostly quality calls. (Great for follow ups)

Greeting Cards- average response rate of 2%, mostly quality calls. (Great for follow ups)

Once you have an idea of your budget, you can start gathering a list of potential sellers to send mail to. Some folks will pull specific lists (divorce data, tax delinquent, probate, etc.), others will pull an absentee list, and some will go the extra mile and gather a D4D (Driving for Dollars) list. Personally, I like to pulling absentee lists, but I like to add in some owner occupieds as well. I am most comfortable with Listsource to pull the list.

The following is the criteria I like the most:

30 Plus % of equity

5 plus years of home ownership

No corporations

No trusts unless in a high trust state

Single Family Residences

Accessed value not to exceed the area’s median home value.

50% Absentee

50% Owner Occupied

Hope that is helpful!

Happy investing!

Hello @Rudy Avila!

I would recommend looking into the Southwest. 93313 area code is a developing area of town. With your purchase price you could purchase multiple properties.

It's not necessarily a BAD place to purchase in Oildale, it just isn't the BEST place to own. I actually lived there for 7 years, so I know it's not as bad as the reputation says. However, I'm trying to think of the most delicate way to say this... Oildale is a bit lower class, and the stereotypical renters are less conscious of the upkeep of properties. 

Happy investing!

Hello @Brandon Daughtrey!

I usually get my lists from Listsource. Definitely not for $6,000 though. I'm not sure the cost if you go straight to Listsource, but I know you can get lists through third party providers for as little as 15¢ per lead.

As for the actual mail pieces, direct mail tends to work best when you send a campaign of 5-7 different pieces, 4 weeks apart from each other. Follow ups are key as the average person takes 3-5 touches before picking up the phone to respond. 

You won't have to type or write out each individual letter if you use a mail merge feature. Most programs have a way to do that, or a third party printer can take care of that for you. If you get your list from Listsource, you can download it to an Excel spreadsheet and that will directly translate to most mail merge systems.

Happy investing!

@Jay Hinrichs 

"its my experience over decades of marketing that people will ( if no one picks up) do what I did and just move on to the next one that will answer the phone.." 

This is AWESOME advice. It's not talked about too often, however it is one of the most important parts of a successful campaign. 

The flip is absolutely beautiful!!

Also, love the letters! Just a tip: save the saliva and tuck the flaps. :-)

There are a number of ways you can go. Sounds like the biggest factor is going to be cost. 

Do you have a budget set aside for your marketing?

Direct mail tends to work best when you send a campaign of 5-7 different pieces, 4 weeks apart from each other. Follow ups are key as the average person takes 3-5 touches before picking up the phone to respond. That being said, it is tremendously important to have a budget and plan set up before starting a mailing campaign. However, if you have those things in place, go for it!

Hiring someone to hand-write is USUALLY costly and time consuming. I have handwritten letters before and, especially when the letters are wordy, it takes a good 5-10 mins per letter to write, fold, address, and stamp. And that's when I'm on a roll! That's part of why I think with the amount of leads you're wanting to mail to it would be both cost and time efficient to go computer printed or with a third party mailer. 

In a mass mailing I haven't seen TOO much of a difference in response rates between human handwritten and handwritten font, therefore, I tend to recommend the cheaper and faster route of handwritten font. However, if you wanted to run some tests in your market (which I highly recommend) maybe try some of both. You could even try some handwritten font letters and human handwritten addressing on the envelopes. 

You can still make the letters or postcards personalized with using mail merging. Most of the time lists are in Excel formatting anyways, so mail merging is an easy addition. 

Happy investing!