Greetings Floor Dealers!
FLOOR DEALER: What do you think of my ad?
JIM: It’s got your business name at the top, a list of products, and contact information, just like your competitor’s Name, Rank and Serial Number ads.
FLOOR DEALER: So what do you think?
JIM: I think you should start over.
In the last installment of this series, I covered strategies for guaranteeing your direct mail gets opened. So let’s say you’ve succeeded in getting your prospect to open the letter. Now what? Well, you’ve gotta get ’em to read the message! But if you use the Name, Rank and Serial Number formula for your message like most dealers, you won’t hold your prospect’s attention and they’ll toss your letter.
Therefore it’s critical that your mailer uses a carefully crafted, direct-response formula that captures your prospects attention and compels them to take action. There are a number of good formulas, and here is an effective, time-tested-and-proven example you can get started with.
A.I.D.A. Formula (Attention, Interest, Desire, Action)
Attention—Get your prospects attention with a captivating headline. The headline is the “ad for the ad.” The headline makes people want to read your ad, letter or website. Most flooring ads have the dealer’s business name as the headline. This is a huge mistake. The only three things your prospects care about are as follows: benefits, benefits, benefits. (You’ll see that business name is not on the list.) Most business names do not convey a benefit, especially to people who have never heard of or done business with you. Your headline should convey a benefit, pose a problem, or arouse curiosity. Here are a few headline examples:
4 Reasons To Sprint To Jimbo’s Floors
And Book Your Holiday Floor Covering Right Now!
How Barry & Diana’s Installation Nightmare
Turned Into A Dream Come True!
Enjoy A Day Of Pampering And A Round Of Golf
With The Jimbo’s Floors Spa & Golf Package!
How The Jimbo’s Floors “Man Cave”
Makes Floor Buying A Blast For The Guys!
Interest—Create interest with your prospects with a strong first paragraph. The first paragraph, or section, of your ad or letter should feature the most powerful benefits. Then keep the interest of your reader throughout the letter with sub-headlines. Don’t be boring! Remember that your prospect has probably surfed online through multiple flooring sites, looked at dozens of ads, all full of photos and descriptions of products. If the body of your ad or letter is full of the same thing she has seen a zillion times already, do you think she will find this exciting? Desire—Create desire by showing in vivid detail how her life will be better if she buys from you, and by giving her an “irresistible offer.” If your offer consists of teaser prices (like virtually everyone uses) do you think she will find this “irresistible?” Only if your teaser price is way lower than all the others they’ve seen. But now you’re competing on price, and that’s a dead-end street.
Action—Give your prospect a call to action at the end of the ad or letter. For example, tell them to “Bring this letter to our store by November 15th!” Always use a deadline. It’s not direct response if it doesn’t have an offer and a deadline.
Done correctly, direct mail is an incredibly effective method for generating sales. It can be targeted like a laser beam to a specific market, it works quickly, and it’s cost-effective.
Send Me Your Feedback! Do you have a sales or marketing question you’d like to have answered? What topics would you like to see covered? Email me at Support@FlooringSuccessSystems.com. I’d love to hear from you. -Jim
To Tons Of Customers!
Jim Augustus Armstrong is The “Coach”
Jim Augustus Armstrong is the President of Flooring Success Systems, a program that equips dealers to double their profits, cut their work hours in half and beat the boxes! Many dealers have totally transformed their businesses and their lives for the better after joining Flooring Success Systems.
See what real, live dealers are saying!