Marketing using flyers

[MRES]

Good evening

I have got a really good deal on 5000 flyers, ive done some work for a graphic designer and she has offered to design and print me 5000 flyers in exchange for my services.

So I am going to have the flyers stuck in the local papers etc which is quite cheap to do. I think I am going to focus on consumer unit upgrades however I am struggleing to come up with some text etc in laymans terms so Joe public can grasp why it is important to have an upto date unit.

Obviously I will include pictures and the old FREE NO OBLIGATION QUOTE.

Do any of you guys have any ideas what to have on the flyers ?

Also I hate telling customers they need a new consumer etc so any advice on how you guys break the news would be quite helpful. Joe public tend to not give two poops about the regs.

I have done some research into this kind of marketing and the response rate is said to be 2%. So if I send out 2000 flyers in the papers, it is estimated that I will get 40 responses, if I can convert half of those into business then it will have been a good bet.

Has anyone tried this method and how did you fare ?

Cheers

Mark

 

[AlanDavies]

I would push the safety angle, if you can make Joe Public understand that the fusebox they have had for the past 30 years has the potential to injure them or damage there property. The Electrical Safety Council should have some useful information.

 

[WILLRUK]

Hi Mark,

Don't want to rain on your parade so to speak but can I suggest you ask the paper to give you their candid opinion as to response rates for this kind of Direct Mail marketing? Better still speak to someone or a company who does this kind of thing to get their thoughts.

Before becoming an electrician I spent more years than I care to remember working with this kind of marketing activity both in local and national newspapers and magazines. The generally accepted response rate is more like 0.5%. Obviously there are spikes depending on any number of variables, but 2% from experience is very optimistic.

If you were to recast the campaign figures using the 0.5% as an anticipated response rate you'd at least would get a feel for the lower end of expected business generated and a perspective on what value for money you'd potentially get.

Also newspapers offer different rate costs depending on the area(s) covered and the timing of the paper publication. Usually cheap is cheap for a reason. No doubt you know the areas in you locality that are those to target or conversely avoid all together. Might be worth checking these against what the paper is offering.

As to content, if the leaflet is full colour make sure you use decent high resolution photo's not just jpegs grabbed off of the web. They can be blurred when resized and printed and can make a decent piece of marketing material look pants.

Keep the message simple and avoid tecno speak. If you can put a website address on it too, so much the better - people can check you out more closely and it allows you to give more info to potential customers than a flyer ever can.

Please don't think I'm anti flyers, they are a useful marketing tactic and I'd be delighted for you to prove me wrong, but I'd also hate to see a fellow electrician spend hard earned money on marketing that doesn't give the right pay back!

Best of luck

Will.

 

[MRES]

Thanks for your advice Will, dont worry about raining on my parade its good to have some advice from someone in the know. Can you give me any direction on marketing stratergy ? I am already part of a Business Networking group called BNI and I have found that word of mouth marketing works really well, but obviously if you want your business to grow you have to explore other avenues.

 

[Dan924]

I would push the safety angle, if you can make Joe Public understand that the fusebox they have had for the past 30 years has the potential to injure them or damage there property. The Electrical Safety Council should have some useful information.

I have to object that a piece of equipment that has been in service for thirty years has suddenly become a hazard, and scare mongering will give us all a bad rap, the danger will usually only arise after additions or mods are carried out on an existing install.
A customer needs to be told that there are better ways of doing the job now, and the kit they have at present has been up rated and could do with renewing.
I say this as I am responsible in my career for installing such equipment which was cutting edge then.

 

[MRES]

I say this as I am responsible in my career for installing such equipment which was cutting edge then.

Good point made by the old timer

 

[Dan924]

Good point made by the old timer

Steady I'm still this side of 50! lol

 

[wattsup]

>>>>>I would push the safety angle, if you can make Joe Public understand that the fusebox they have had for the past 30 years<<<

Big mistake, the safety angle has been eningineered by the government creating jobs for the boys. It is blatently simple, the government creatate jobs for 'government officials'
The public are not stupid, that is their big mistake. The law always protected consumers from cowboys. Nowadays the council (government) get a cut of the stealth tax. It is absolutely bent beyond reason, they the government create pretend watchdog sparks, most could not wire an xmas tree...It is corrupt and very very corrupt. In effect the government /councils are the waterfront guys. But hey, the more guys on their side the more chance of re-election... Nearly all 'watchdogs' work for the friggin government...they need stopping, and they will but the new lot will be no better. Pond life on 100k per year plus exes of course

 

[Chris2289]

If you haven't already got them printed have you considered put a promo code on their and offering a discount if they quote a code when booking. That should help differentiate you from the rest of the market and also improve response rates and ROI.

Other than that I would deffo get as many ways that they can contact you on their if poss!

Hope it goes well.

 

[amp]

I use these flyers but had them posted through the door on estates. you would be surprised at how much they can generate in some places and how little in others. putting them in a local paper is probably a good idea, but i would see how much they charge for a printed advert anyway. When i first went self employed i delivereed my own. got my first 5000 for about £110 but it is £20 cheaper when i get them now because they've got the template saved. The official measure of rersponse to flyers is about 1% so dont expect an avalance but if you do get one great. I dont concentrate on one thing on my flyers i put down everything i do fuse boxes, showers, alarms, re-wires, etc. Try to look as versatile as possible. also put done that your work is gaurenteed which it will be if your with the niceic or similar you can also use their logos eg. domecstic installer or approved contractor.

good luck and let us know how you get on.

P.S. i get call sfrom people who got leaflets over a year ago so dont give up hope if you dont get any enquiries straigh away

 

[sean-uk]

Can anyone post a picture of flyers they have used in the past and that have been succesful?