Savvy Real Estate Investors Make The Most Of A Direct Mail Campaign

The advent and explosive growth of the Internet has created countless marketing opportunities for successful real estate investing. One overlooked, "old fashioned" method for real estate investing marketing is being underutilized by new and seasoned real estate investors alike is the use of direct mail. A successful marketing campaign should include a recurring direct mail strategy. 

How Do You Implement An Effective Direct Mail Campaign?

Before you put the first word on paper you must do some careful planning. The idea is to organize your direct mail marketing plan to give yourself the best chance to effectively reach as many motivated sellers as you can manage.

Grab some paper and pencil and start by answering the following questions:

Who is my target market?
You have to understand what type of prospect you are going after. There are countless ways to make money in real estate and finding the right prospects with direct mail means your message should reflect the target market you are seeking. For example if you are focusing on single-family homes in pre-foreclosure then your message shouldn't also include information you also buy tax lien foreclosures. Your prospect needs to feel you understand their situation and are speaking directly to them through your direct mail marketing piece

Where Do I Get A List To Mail To?
Most mailing lists are worthless. Read that first sentence again and let it sink into your brain. There are countless list providers out there selling lists that are outdated and non-specific. Too many times real estate investors get caught spending thousands of dollars on a mailing list that produces nothing after all their hard work and money has been invested. Too late they discover the information is woefully out of date and inaccurate.

Finding a reputable list provider will take some time and testing. Yes, you are going to have to test your mailings and a reputable company should allow you sufficient time to test their list. The best companies will ask you for a small deposit up front and once you are satisfied pay the balance.

What Should I Mail And Is What Are Some Tricks I Can Use To Make It More Effective?If you were to poll successful real estate investors on how they put together their direct mail campaigns and more importantly what tactics are they using it likely their "check-off list" would contain the following must do items:

• A well-written letter that clearly states what your intention is. You are in the business to make money. Buying houses for cash or retail isn't considered creative real estate investing. You have to let your letter pre-screen potential sellers. Let them know your conditions and that if they are willing to be flexible it may be possible to close the deal in as little as 48 hours. Remember, you are looking for quality versus quantity.
• A postcard designed to let the seller know what is in it for them. You must get them excited, let them know what you can do for them, and what you can truthfully say to get them to believe you can help. Designing the postcard is a topic for another article as it is an art unto itself, but unless you have the time to create your own postcard I suggest you outsource this task.
• Make the mailing personal by handwriting their name and address on the outside of the envelope. How many times have you tossed without looking mail pieces that had your name and address stamped on them? How many of you would open a letter with your name and address hand-written, even it was from a complete stranger?
• Use unique stamps. I can only speak for myself that every time I look through my mail I notice stamps that stand out from the others.
• NEVER stop at just one mailing. If you have gone to the expense of purchasing a prospect list you owe it to yourself to exhaust all possibilities of marketing to it. It is infinitely better, and economically smarter, to send a letter or postcard five times to a thousand people than to send one letter to five thousand only once. You will likely get the most responses from your first mailing but often it takes more persistence to get through to some prospects.

If you plan on being successful at real estate investing you should harbor no doubts that it costs substantial amounts of money to initiate and maintain an effective direct mail campaign. When you put together the cost of postage, letter printing, postcards, envelopes, postage it adds up fast. The wise investor includes these costs in their marketing budget and understands this is an ongoing process.

Direct mail marketing is a creative real estate investing strategy that must be part of your overall campaign. Considered by some to be old fashioned" it remains one of the best ways for locating motivated sellers. Your goal is to find truly profitable deals and the means you go about doing this are contingent upon your target market, quality of the mailing contact, multiple messages to same contact, pre-screening ability, and finally your commitment to direct mail and an investment in your real estate business. Be organized and focused in your direct mail campaign and soon you too will be finding all the motivated sellers you can handle!