I always get asked marketing questions like how do I find a great marketing list. Notice I called it a marketing list. Nowadays, that list may not be only for direct mail. A marketing list is also used for telemarketing, email marketing or reaching out to your social media channels.
I start by asking answers to the 5 Ws. In my case I called it the 6 Ws – I added HOW into the mix because it’s so important from today’s marketing perspective.
As you start your campaign, ask yourself these questions:
- What are you marketing?
- Where?
- Why are you marketing this? (What’s the benefit?)
- Who are you looking to reach?
- When are you planning to do this?
Answering all of these questions help you define your target your audience for your marketing outreach.
Since your goal is to reach the best possible prospects, you need to be aware of why your audience can benefit from what you re offering. Remember, you’re not just selling – you want them to be buying.
Demographics are not enough
Demographics might not be enough. That’s why I ask the when question. For example, marketing timing might be important to your campaign. If you are marketing security alarms systems, you will want to market to new homeowners. If you are an insurance agent marketing supplemental medical insurance policies, you will want to reach out to individuals who are turning 65.
There are also many lifestyle selects available on a marketing list. These may include criteria like sports enthusiast, pet ownership, political party, viewership interests, or vocation. Religion and ethnicity are also available. So are property ownership elements – such as home ownership, home value and credit score.
When you are looking to find a great marketing list, you need to do some homework on your own. That mean looking at your current customers and seeing how you can duplicate them.
The 6th W – determining the HOW
As I said earlier, HOW is not typically part of the 5 Ws. But when it comes to marketing outreach it’s really important to know how you are planning to market.
When it comes to creating the perfect marketing list, you need to understand that not all households are available with email addresses. In fact, if we were to append email addresses to a given marketing list, we expect to locate verified emails for about 40% of the list. That means if you wanted to reach every single person that meets your criteria, you wouldn’t be able to reach them all using email.
This is important for you to understand. Many marketers think that they can just get an email and they can reach all the people they want cheaply and effectively. The honest truth is that besides the fact that many people are not reachable through an email list, the response rate to cold emails is pretty low. Typically 1%. That is not to say don’t try it. It’s just to make sure you are aware that the reason you are sending a cold email out is to see if you can get someone interested in your product. We call that generating a lead. Most likely you are not going to sell someone on a first email.
Where is easy
Always remember, everyone is not your customer. Most local businesses know their trading areas. When it comes to selecting a marketing lit, you can pull by zip-code, county, state or radius around your location. Radius can be selected either by distance or driving time.
What
Your message. Make sure it matches your audience. Remember, everything you do has to make sense. That means your message is directed at your audience. If you’re marketing to families with children, your message needs to reflect that. If you’re marketing to new homeowners, your message needs to call attention to that. “Welcome to your new home” might be a phrase you use in your marketing.
In addition to having a message that resonates with your prospects, you also need an offer that encourages them to respond. That offer also has to work for your audience. Everything needs to work together.
When
There are lots of studies that recommend better days and times for email marketing. As you test your own audience, you will find what works best for you. To get your message across and get people used to receiving and opening emails from you, you will need to remail frequently. Email has a short-term life…but it helps you with visibility, helps you to get your brand known.
On the other hand, direct mail has lasting power. People hold it in their hands, save it, share it with others. There are so many tips I can give you, including how to use “hot spots”, how to take advantage of postcard marketing. Go through my blog – there are lots of ideas.
The two marketing channels work together to create a lasting impression.
That’s why your marketing list is so important. And that’s why so many people ask how do I find a great marketing list. What you choose, how you use it can make all the difference in the success of your campaign.