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Do you utilize direct mail techniques to increase business or are you still stuck in the ad agency train of thought that says direct response mail doesnt work?

Dollar for dollar direct mail outperforms and out delivers many traditional media outlets. However, there is a method to the madness and reasons why some DR techniques fail.

Recently a direct mail piece was sent to my list and Ive received fantastic feedback. I know there are some people shaking their heads and wondering why I would invest in direct mail with typical response rates of 1 to 2%. Let me explain.

Direct mail when implemented properly does produce results. There was certainly a time, back in the day when I worked for ad agencies, that I questioned direct mail too. I trusted the statistics and previous mentors who had experienced direct mail results that were less than favorable. Then I started studying the masters of direct response copy and mail. My tune has changed and I am sure a lot of that has to do with exposure to Dan Kennedy and Glazer Kennedy Inner Circle (among others).

Here are some tactics I use to make my direct mail stand out. My direct mail is well branded, lumpy and provokes thought. Not only that, its personalized with a call to action.

You can experience DR success by implementing the following techniques.

1. Have a purpose. Clearly define what you want your direct marketing piece to achieve.

2. Know who you are talking to and speak in a language that reaches them.

3. Personalize the piece by using your customers name.

4. Re-educate clients on your value.

5. Ask your reader to take action.

6. Include a promotional item that adds dimension to your mail piece and value to the recipient.

7. Timing - schedule local market delivery to coincide with networking events and national delivery to coincide with something timely on your blog or in your ezine.

This list may seem simple and it really is a quick highlight of what you need to incorporate. However, it works. Heres what I did to make the most out of my mailing.

I sent a personal letter to my list to ask them to hire me for future copywriting projects.

Each letter was addressed to the individual by name.

I included a brochure that re-educates clients on the value of copywriting and made sure all materials were branded.

I asked recipients to not only hire me in the future but to do something for themselves in the interim.

I included a promotional pen and suggested it be used for personal correspondence and that I should be hired to write copy.

Locally, I mailed this right before a Chamber of Commerce networking event. Key people at the event received my mailing the day before or the day of the event. Buzz was created and others wanted to know more about the mailing.

The ultimate outcomeseveral new leads including requests to develop training for a program via the local college providing customized employer training in the workplace. Oh and an increase of my list because the buzz made others so curious they requested a copy of the mailing.

Finally, about the cost effectiveness of direct mail~ with only one of the leads converting to a sale (and I am sure there will be more), I have more than paid for the mailing.

This article may be reproduced in its entirety with the following inclusion: Lisa Manyon specializes in POWERFULLY communicating business messages to get results. Her work has been featured by the National Association of Women Writers and her article Nine Ways to Network More Effectively is slated to appear in Bob Blys upcoming networking guide. Manyon acted as a team leader for Lorrie Morgan Ferreros Red Hot Copywriting Bootcamp. Manyons eBook is now available and you can learn more here http://writeoncreative.com/blog/biz/ Be sure to sign up for Manyons Musings to receive savvy marketing insights delivered right to your in box http://www.writeoncreative.com Write On ~ Creative Writing Services, LLC.

Over the years, cruises have become a more poplar way to travel. Because there are many different types of cruises, you will have to narrow down where you want to travel to first and then find a cruise line that is headed to that location. Some cruises make stops in more than one port along the way, which can give you a chance to see more areas than you would have if you were traveling by car or other mode of transportation. Many people take cruises because they don't have to worry about driving, navigating, or finding their way out of strange towns and cities when they become lost.

On a cruise, you will have to ability to set your own schedule. If you want to sleep in one day and get up early the next, you can do so. There are plenty of restaurants that serve food all day long on a cruise ship. As you get closer to your destination, you will begin to feel the excitement of visiting a new place. The people you meet on cruises are usually very friendly and want to explore a new place as much as you do. You will make many new friends while on a cruise.

Travelling by sea is a great way to relax while on vacation. Depending on the length of your cruise, you may be able to relax for an entire week or more. Many people take two or three week cruises when they want to relax. The longer the cruise, the more ports the ship will stop in. This will give you an opportunity to shop, try new foods, and take some great pictures. Being able to tell people what a great time you had through pictures is one way to not miss any details when describing your trip to places like Costa Blanca and Alicante.

Before you choose a cruise, you should find out if there will be added expenses for travel, accommodations, and travel insurance. If you are traveling with a group, you should nominate one person to handle the arrangements in order to avoid confusion. Once the arrangements have been made, you should pay close attention to the weather to see what you will need to pack. Since you will be on the water for a few days, you should pack a few long sleeve shirts and a light jacket. You may also need to pack formal wear if it is required during dinner time.

Cruises can be taken at any time during the year. Planning in advance is the best way to have a good time. This means making sure you have all of your reservations, seating arrangements, clothing, and other items in order before the cruise dates. During your vacation, make sure you take plenty of pictures, make new friends, and have a great time.

The technical writer Kurt Schefken is specifically passionate about information much like Benidorm. Through his reports, he proofed his experience on issues related to Costa Blanca and Benidorm.

Book marketing professionals know the secrets of success that drove the sales of Rick Warrens The Purpose Driven Life to a chart-busting best-seller and Mel Gibsons The Passion of the Christ into a huge cinema phenom. Those of us in the business understand that sales of both blockbusters were driven by techniques outlined in a new book called PyroMarketing by Greg Stielstra who gained fame in book publishing circles when he served as the marketing director for The Purpose Driven Life, the best-selling hardcover book in history.

PyroMarketing embraces an idea that really has been in use for some time niche marketing. That tool is well-known and used every day by book promoters but Stielstra lays out the niche marketing principles with a new, crystal clear message that is so compelling that it is a must-read for anyone who wants to promote an idea, service or product.

In a nutshell, PyroMarketing involves finding the driest tinder (customers most apt to buy), touch it with a match (customers experiencing a benefit), and fanning the flame (customersword-of-mouth marketing), and save the coals (keeping a record of customers).

As a book-marketing expert, Stielstra found the driest tinder when the Rick Warren organization tapped into the Christian faith community in America to market The Purpose Driven Life. An initial six-week campaign for Purpose Driven Life involved 1,200 people who read the book each day, listened to sermons each Sunday, and met with friends each week in book study groups. At the end of six weeks, 400,000 people were intimately familiar with the book. Within four months, 2 million books were sold. More than 5,000 churches signed up during the fall 2004 campaign.

From the first campaign and for the next couple years, explains Stielstra, it seemed that for every book sold at a discount to someone in a church-based campaign, five more books were sold through retail stores. By focusing on the driest tinder within the church and encouraging them to spread the word, we were rewarded with many more sales to people beyond its walls. Fanning the flames didnt just double the campaigns impact, it multiplied it by a factor of five!

In an exchange I had with Rick Warren, the author emphasized that his personal pre-existing contacts with pastors and church leaders was key in creating initial interest in his book. That very limited, specific market was the driest tinder, the book study groups was the match which produced customer benefits, and ministers and study group members talking up the book was the all-important fanning of the flame. The bookkeeping function of saving the coals by recording customers into a database is a sometimes-overlooked step which promises to deliver repeat customers.

Early on film producers wouldnt touch The Passion and so Gibson employed PyroMarketing techniques to generate $500 million to become the top-grossing R-rated movie of all time. By the fifth day alone, the film had earned $125 million in box office receipts against only $45 million in combined production and marketing costs.

While it is amazing when you look at the success of Warren and Gibson, PyroMarketing techniques are not a collection of hidden secrets suddenly discovered. In my own practice, I find it helpful to re-evaluate all my processes to make sure all elements are followed and to look for new angles to pursue. Part of this constant evaluation of how I meet customer needs involves keeping up on whats going on in marketing, promotion, public relations, and publishing. To accomplish this I am reading constantly to keep pace and better understand how my colleagues are thriving. Thats why I recommend anyone read Stielstras book, PyroMarketing: The Four Step Strategy to Ignite Customer Evangelists and Keep Them For Life. I have experienced success promoting authors using the same basic principles Stielstra spells out in his book and found that discussion to be a very helpful check-point.

In book marketing, a book cannot be promoted without first identifying who the readers are in advance of a single sale. When we find the reasons why that reader will read that book, we then craft the most effective message to be conveyed to the information sources that reader relies upon. We dont bombard the market with propaganda but send out promotional information to selected streams that reach specific persons. That approach has always worked and always will. Salesmen know that you cant sell a refrigerator to an Eskimo because he has no need of one, but youd have a shot at selling him thermal underwear.

So in drawing up a promotion plan for a client, I first find the niche(s) the client can go after and determine how that specific media can be pursued. Getting media coverage is all about creating interesting angles. I try to find out everything I can about the author using a questionnaire that even asks about fraternities or sorority membership, roommates in college, and other tidbits about them personally and about the book itself.

To successfully market a book, Westwind Communications determines who will read it and then targets that media directly. By way of example, one of my clients has published a book of poetry. Now the average person wont buy a collection of poetry. However, certain people love poetry. So we aim our book marketing efforts for this client to poetry magazines, poetry web sites and poetry societies who are the driest tinder.

The reason most authors seek book reviews is that the people reading them represent the driest tinder. You dont read book reviews unless you are looking for a book to read or give. So, it makes sense to target reviewers at media outlets. Furthermore, people will tell their friends about a book review they read in a magazine or newspaper, see on television, or hear on the radio because the media is a third party, disinterested source disseminating the information. Thats why getting book reviews is so important in starting the word of mouth every successful author desires. The challenge is that these reviewers are bombarded with hundreds or thousands of books every year and it takes skill to cut through the clutter to get a book reviewed.

For any author, we make sure galleys and the finished books are sent to the reviewers at major publications and broadcast outlets. We write and send press releases, pitch letters in an electronic press kit, and make follow up phone calls to media outlets encouraging reporters and reviewers to write about our clients book. Being reviewed by The New York Times, Washington Post, The Chicago Tribune, The Los Angeles Times and USA TODAY are major goals. In fact USA Today has 4.3 million readers every day. Furthermore, it gets more notice from the other media than the other four newspapers combined. That's a major reason why we will make a concerted effort to get our authors noticed by USA TODAY.

We also contact national magazines and others that may be interested in the authors personal story. Sometimes the media is more interested in the author than the book itself and that is just one more angle well use to promote our client's book. We contact TV and radio outlets. Every day thousands of interviews are conducted on TV and Radio stations across North America and several hundred are with authors. We have developed relationships with many producers over the years and those contacts combined with well-thought-out pitches produce results.

I regularly attend major media events in New York City for face-to-face meetings with journalists, editors, writers and producers from top national magazines, newspapers and radio/TV programs. I have successfully pitched such media outlets as 20/20, Prime Time, CNN, People, Good Morning America, Newsweek, Time Magazine, Dateline NBC, The View, Oprah's O magazine, Cosmopolitan, Fox News, Good Housekeeping, Newsweek to name a few.

Details on Stielstras PyroMarketing approach are given at www.pyromarketing.com.

Scott Lorenz, is President of Westwind Communications, a public relations and marketing firm that has a special knack for working with individuals and entrepreneurs to help them get all the publicity they deserve and more. Lorenz has handled public relations and marketing for numerous authors, doctors, lawyers, authors inventors and entrepreneurs since 1980 and is an integral part of the strategy for many authors in their own book marketing. Learn more about Westwind Communications book marketing approach at http://www.westwindcos.com/book or contact Lorenz at scottlorenz@westwindcos.com or by phone at 734-667-2090.