Which of the four B2B offers is right for you?
Which of the four B2B offers is right for you?
Author: Alan Sharpe
In business-to-business direct mail, you are unlikely to reach
prospects at the very moment they are ready to buy. And even if
you do, you are not likely to close the sale with just a sales
letter. That's because business buying decisions rarely involve
just one step (such as dropping a cheque in the mail or placing
an order by phone).
Instead, the buying cycle typically involves a request for more
information, either by way of literature or a visit from a sales
rep, followed by a sales meeting, a product demonstration, maybe
a trial, then a contract.
You do not usually know where cold prospects are in their buying
cycle. So your direct mail should try to hook them wherever they
are. The best way to generate a response is to present more than
one offer.
Hard Offer The hard offer asks for the order. "Call before June
18th to save 40% off your network installation." "Book your
commercial property tax audit now." Use a hard offer when you
want your mailing to generate immediate action--usually in the
form of a sale. Prospects who respond to hard offers are usually
able and willing to buy right now.
Soft Offer The soft offer asks your prospects to raise their
hands in a show of interest, but does not ask for an order or a
commitment. An example of a soft offer: "Return the enclosed
business reply card for your free copy of our special industry
report." Use a soft offer when you want to generate a sales lead
rather than an immediate sale or sales appointment. Soft offers
identify prospects who are able to buy, just not willing to buy
right now. You follow up with them and close the sale later on.
Deferred Offer The deferred offer asks prospects to let you know
when you should contact them again. The wording of such an offer
on a reply card might sound like this: "Not interested right
now, but get back to me on [date]: ___________________." The
prospect fills in the date. The deferred offer isn't really an
offer, of course, since you are not offering anything. It's more
of a call to action. Use a deferred offer when you want to
identify prospects who are neither able nor willing to buy right
now, but might be in the future.
Negative Offer The negative offer asks your readers to tell you
that they are not interested in what you are selling. The
wording of such an offer on a reply card might sound like this:
"Not interested [please give reason]: ________________." The
reader gives the reason. The negative offer is like the deferred
offer in that it's not an offer as much as a call to action (you
are not offering anything). Use a deferred offer when you want
to clean your mailing list, removing business names who are not
prospects and never will be. Also use a negative offer to learn
why people won't buy from you. Their answers are informative
(even surprising!).
I recommend that your direct mail piece include either a hard
offer or a soft offer. You want to generate either a sale (hard
offer) or a sales lead (soft offer). Put the other offers on the
reply device only. You don't want multiple offers in your
letter.
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