Good
day!
Welcome
to the first issue of Communication Matters! In every issue, we will
review topics that will help you grow your business faster with cutting-edge
communication skills.
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not sell, rent or give out our mailing lists. If you find this newsletter
to be of value, we invite and encourage you to forward it to your friends.
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In this
issue:
Database
Communications 101
Direct
Mail News
New Study
of Web Reading!
Database Communications 101
Do you
use your Customer Database to its fullest extent? We surveyed our customers
and most of them replied that customer communication is difficult for
them to maintain. These accomplished business people have time to service
their current customers, but little time to talk to their past customers.
Here are some ideas to remedy this problem:
· Automate your communications with an online email system
· Send postcards to your customers at least quarterly
· Invite a group of your past customers to an event
· Do surveys
· Do free teleclasses as follow ups to training or services
· Offer incentives to buy more product from you
· Set up a referral program
These are
just a few of the hundreds of ways to stay in the “sights”
of your current, past or even future customers. Using Databases to coordinate
your communications plan is a smart and efficient way to organize your
marketing. For more *free*information to learn about database functionality,
http://www.mason-works.com/FreeResources.htm
Direct
Mail News
There is
now an exciting new option for those of you that use Direct Mail. Contrary
to what the press would like you to think, Direct mail is still the
most successful method to drive sales (and ROI). If you’d like
to see the research on this, please go to http://www.mason-works.com/AdvertisingAgeroireport102303.pdf
for your copy of the report.
The new
kind of Direct mail Marketing is called CMM, Customized Market Mail,
an innovative way to add shape to your direct marking pieces. These
collateral pieces are dye cut to outline the shape of the product to
allow for non-rectangular, over-dimensional pieces of mail to be shipped
without a package, carton or envelope They look just like a flat version
of the real thing! Large companies (like Krispy Crème Donuts)
have been testing the new medium and the results are remarkable: the
eye-catching ads have resulted in a five-fold increase in response rate
from customers. In an era where it’s difficult to get your customer’s
attention, this could be just the ticket for jump-starting your product
or service.
We have
a list of three local Colorado Companies that the USPS authorizes to
provide this service. Please call or email if you’d like the list.
New study
of Web Reading!
News websites
have been with us for about a decade, and editors and designers still
struggle with many unanswered questions:
- Is homepage
layout effective?
- What
effect do blurbs on the homepage have compared to headlines?
- When is multimedia appropriate?
- Are ads placed where they will be seen by the audience?
A new research white paper, The Eyetrack III, was research released
by The Poynter Institute, the Estlow Center for Journalism & New
Media, and Eyetools could help answer those questions and more. Eyetracking
research like this won't provide all the answers to these questions,
although it is a start. This data combined with other website metrics,
can provide design direction for quality web communication. To read
the entire story, go to http://www.poynterextra.org/eyetrack2004/main.htm
Designers
are always interested in using techniques for the best communication
results. This is just one report on using design to be more effective.
Stay tuned for other articles in following issues.
We hope
that you have enjoyed our first newsletter and will gain many useful
ideas from our experience to Accelerate your business! Please contact
us if you do not want to receive future mailings. For more information,
email kathy@mason-works.com
or go to our website, www.mason-works.com.
Have a
great month!
Kathy
Kathy Mason,
President
Mason Works,
LLC.
303-527-2978
