Even though the internet is all the rage these days, agents are still using direct mail with fantastic success.

The key is to get your mail opened, read, and acted upon.

If you’ve struggled to get new clients with direct mail farming, chances are it’s because your mail was seen as “junk mail” and trashed before ever opened.

Here are 4 essential secrets direct marketing pros use to get past this junk mail hurdle and make big money with direct mail, and how you can use the same strategies for your real estate prospecting…

SECRET #1:   Make it “lumpy mail”

Have you ever heard of “lumpy mail”?  Lumpy mail is the process of inserting “something” into an envelope or doing something “unique” to make it stand out, involve curiosity and get opened.  It’s also known as a “grabber”.

The “thing” you include must tie-into your message inside. For example, one agent mails their farming pieces in a small brown paper bag with a stamp.  Inside, the letter headlines, “Here’s Why There’s No Free Lunch When Selling Your Home…”  The letter talks about “you get what you pay for — so why would you use a discount broker and steal from yourself?”

The letter then talks about the risks of using a discount broker, all the ways the agent can net the homeowner as much or more than a discount broker, makes an irresistible, completely risk free offer for a “Free Home Audit” and a “Free Special Report”.

The agent also uses a few great testimonials and statistics about their success (proof). The letter is then followed-up by a second and third notice.  Can you see how that gets noticed and acted upon?

SECRET #2:   Make it “personal”

Another way to get your mail seen is to make it so personal, the reader thinks it’s just for them.  Here’s what to use on the envelope to make your mail look personal:

• Hand addressed
• Return address is personal with name
• Commemorative “live” postage stamp
• Monarch size envelopes

All of these have a personal appeal vs. junk mail – and they get opened.

SECRET #3:   Make it “blind”

Have you ever received a letter with just a return address and no business name?

This works great when farming to new areas – your prospect’s curiosity will help your mail get opened.

Here’s a blind envelope template you can use when farming (click the image to download the template)…

3-Steps To Use Your “Blind Envelope” Template

STEP 1: Save the document to your computer…
Click the image or download this 6×9” BLIND ENVELOPE template by Clicking Here.

STEP 2: Personalize it with your information…
DO NOT put your name or your broker’s name at the upper left-hand return address. You can disclose your broker at the END of your letter inside of the envelope. Just use your return street address.

STEP 3: Direct impression right on to your envelope…
You can add merge fields to the template and then run the envelopes through your printer to “direct impression” the return address and the recipients address (or send the template to your printer with your mailing list).  But DO NOT use mailing labels.

Curiosity is one of the strongest human emotions –  if you don’t have a relationship with a mailing list this can be one of the best ways to get your mail actually opened instead of being quickly identified as “just another promotion to throw out”.

But remember, curiosity alone won’t help you build a stable business.  You also need to be marketing to a hot prospect, give compelling proof, a great offer, and call to action.

SECRET #4:   Make it “multi-sequence”

Multi-sequence contact always out-pulls single contact.  This applies to follow-up with leads or with farming an area.

Direct mail pros have found that you may spend 2 or 3 times more to send out a sequence of 3 letters, but because the response rates are so much higher your ROI is also higher.

To send a multi-sequence mailing successfully…send your first mailing, then a second notice about 7 days later, then a third notice another 7 days later.  You can continue to send additional follow-up mailings or contacts until it’s no longer profitable.  But first start with a 3-step sequence rather than the usual one-and-done mailing agents usually do.

I’ll write more about “multi-sequence” mailings in an upcoming article, but for now realize that you’re leaving money on the table by not continuing to follow-up with a sequence of mailings.

One last piece of advice from a 35-year direct marketing veteran…

Instead of spending hours each month toiling over how to put together real estate promotions to use with these mailing secrets…use pre-written templates that work.  Check out the numerous examples that appear in our archives, organized by category (on the right side).

You can put together a “swipe file” of direct mail promotions that you have at the ready… or use a collection of proven templates like this toolkit of real estate sales letters for just about every situation you could face in real estate… click here to learn more.

Don’t you wish every FSBO understood the value your services bring to the transaction?

If you’re tired of cold calling FSBO’s to “convince” them to list with you…take just 2 minutes to read how a veteran agent in Illinois gets FSBO prospects to beg her for representation…

Linda’s proven process is a winner if you take this easy strategy and use it in your practice. Here’s her idea (in her own words)…

“I have found that cold calling never works to persuade FSBO’s (or anybody else) to list with me.  Instead, I use the following 4-steps to get FSBO’s to beg me to work with them:

STEP 1:  Gather FSBO Contact Information

On Friday’s I go through our local paper and the FSBO web site and pull all the “open house” notices in the paper (with phone numbers and addresses) in the areas I’m working.

STEP 2:  Contact FSBO’s and Get Appointments

I start making calls to the FSBO’s. My conversation goes like this:

Hi, My name is Linda Fogarty and I’m a real estate broker with Coldwell Banker. I noticed you have your house on the market (NOTE: I DO NOT TELL THEM I KNOW THEY’RE HAVING AN OPEN HOUSE), and I like to stay on top of the market and was wondering if I could preview your home.

Nine times out of ten the FSBO will be more open then any other time. They are getting their home ready for an open house and are afraid no one will show up. So they usually respond by telling me they are having an open house so I can come over. Then, I respond with:

Oh, I would love to but I’m having an open house myself, could I come over AFTER my open house?

They always say, “YES”! The reason I don’t go over during their open house is because I want their undivided attention. I continue to call FSBO’s in the same general area until I have a minimum of 3 appointments.

STEP 3:  Make the First Visit and Become the “Helpful Agent”

When I arrive to their home, I start asking questions about their open house and of course my open house was always better.  I am building rapport while I’m looking through their home and noticing they don’t have any of the following home marketing tools…

• brochures
• seller’s disclosure forms
• sign-in forms

I give them a few extra copies of the forms and tools they need to have a good open house.  In essence, I become their helpful REALTOR^®.  Plus, I just happen to have a copy of one of my beautiful brochures of my listings (so they see what they’re missing out on).

STEP 4:  Follow-Up Each Week with Valuable Resources

During the next few weeks, I drop by with helpful articles that I read and thought might interest them, or I drop off forms I think they might need, or I do a market analysis for the neighborhood and go over it with them.

I have created 10 weeks of “stuff” in files that gives me another reason for going back to them again as a “helpful REALTOR^®.”  I rarely or never ask for the listing.  In most cases it comes right to me.  Why?

Because most agents I know who prospect FSBO’s give up after the 1st or 2nd try.

BIG TIP:   I stay persistent when other agents are unwilling to keep going back.  My average number of contacts with the FSBO is FIVE! I get most listings by the 5th visit, but I don’t give up even if it takes TEN visits. When they’re ready to list, I’m getting the listing.

I’ve calculated the amount of time it takes to call 100 FSBO’s to simply get one deal, and found that following up with a handful of open FSBO prospects each week is far more profitable.  I know it will be for you too.”

Thanks for sharing, Linda. I don’t think there’s any agent reading this who couldn’t immediately start using your system. Best of all, there’s almost no money needed!

One final thought: even if the FSBO sells on their own, you can add them as a contact to your database for regular monthly contact.  And then you open yourself up to getting a flow of referrals. Remember, it’s all about building market share. And market share comes from building and nurturing your House List!  Learn more about maximizing your referrals here.

Do you send holiday cards to your sphere?  There’s a big mistake you could be making causing your message to get lost in the “holiday clutter”…

Try this unique promotion as the end of the year approaches to maximize your income in December AND pave the way for a great first quarter.  This strategy is all about “client recognition and appreciation” (one of the cornerstone’s of my Service For Life!^® personal marketing system).

Agent Nicole Nekolny sent in an idea that reminded me of a brilliant holiday marketing strategy.  And below her description I outline the steps to use this in your practice.  Think about how you could use this strategy this Fall to skyrocket your December production…

Here’s Nicole’s brief description:

“Throughout the year I keep a record of all the homes I list and sell.

As the holiday season approaches, I review my year and thank all of my friends, family and clients for their help in making my business successful.  I include past years clients as well.

This works great in the Fall…when things are seeming ‘ghost-townish’, I send out mailings and call anyone who might need my services.  It usually produces one or two new clients each year.  Well worth a few minutes of my time.”

Here’s the Step-by-Step Process To Use A

THANKSGIVING PROMOTION to

Bolster Your Income:

This may sound shocking, but… STOP sending out Christmas Cards to your sphere as the ONLY holiday contact you have with them.  These promotions simply get lost in the clutter with all the other holiday cards in December.

What’s far better is sending a special ‘Thanksgiving Card’ that makes your sphere (House List) feel appreciated and gives you a surge of new business to fuel your December production.  Here’s how it works…

Step 1:  Get a LIST of your clients

This could be your entire sphere-of-influence on your database (what I call your House List), or it could be your best clients who have sent you a referral or done a transaction in the past year.

Step 2:  Use a greeting card sized envelope

And make your mail look personal… hand address or use a handwriting font to mail-merge your clients name on the front of the envelope, try not to use mailing labels, and use a first-class postage stamp.  See my other mailing tips in this recent issue.

Step 3:  Send out a SPECIAL Thanksgiving Card

Don’t use a bland, ordinary card with pumpkins or fall leaves…use one that stands out and gets noticed.  Plus, have a heartfelt message inside that bonds clients to you through “client recognition and appreciation.”  Here’s an example funny thanksgiving card I found online…

Step 4:  Use an “Insert” to Make an OFFER

This is important:  You must have an offer in this promotion for it to bring you business.

What can your offer be?

Inside your greeting card include an “insert” that says something like…

Do Not Open Until You

Display Your Greeting Card

The curiosity gets the best of the recipient and they open the insert right away to find out what’s inside.

Then on the INSIDE of the insert, offer them:

Final tips:  send your card out with a first class stamp, on the Thursday before Thanksgiving.

This way it arrives just in time for their holiday meal, where they could be talking with friends and family about potential buying or selling.

And follow up with a sequence of contacts…either with a personal phone call or another reminder mailing for your special offer.

“Here’s how to put your hobby to work…bringing you new clients in 5 easy steps…

Step 1:  Join a local hobby group.  Whether it be an indoor/outdoor activity, sports, or otherwise…get involved in some small ‘community’ of similar people.

Step 2:  Become a leader/organizer of your hobby group.  For example, I am a tri-athlete.  I coach swim workouts and I lead recreational bike club rides.  So, I am recognized by all and seen as someone to look up to.  Which is great personal marketing in it’s own right.

Step 3:  Ask newcomers if you can take their picture and add them to the Internet with photos of other members of your hobby group.  It is a great way for everyone to learn each other’s names.

Step 4:  You will need full access to the website to put the photos on the web.  The club or organization that sponsors your hobby group may refuse, so make a mildly branded page on your own website, and once it is established, the club can link to you!

Make sure your photo is first.  And for security and peace of mind, just put members’ first names with their photos.  Click here to see an example website…

Step 5:  You also can get their personal information so you can notify them of club news, but also to add them to your mailing list.

Remember not only to have fun, but to always represent yourself professionally as someone who gives and deserves respect.”