Proven Strategies for Plumber, Roofer and HVAC Marketing.
So, you might be thinking, “wait, send Direct Mail? I thought that channel had died long ago?” We believe there is a right way to do direct mail, especially for small business owners. Since 1949, we have helped thousands of business owners with our proven strategies. Today, we want to share some of our tips that will help with your Plumber, Roofer or HVAC Marketing needs.
If this is your first thought that comes to mind, “direct mail is dead”, then keep reading.
Direct Mail Marketing is not a thing of the past, it’s alive and well!
In fact, did you know:
- Direct Mail Marketing has a 29% Return on Investment, which is a higher ROI than Search & Display Ads (Neil Patel).
- 41% of Americans look forward to opening their mail each day. (Gallup)
- 18% of B2B Marketers budget is allocated to direct mail marketing and print advertising. (Hubspot)
- Direct Mail recipients purchased 28% more items and spent 28% more money than people who didn’t get the same piece of mail. (United States Postal Service)
These are just a few statistics showcasing the power of direct mail marketing in 2021.
In this article, we are going to talk about 3 Key Tactics you need to know when creating a direct mail campaign for your HVAC company.
Follow these tips if you’re wanting to create a successful Plumbing, Roofing, or HVAC marketing campaign.
# 1: Copywriting
When you take the graphics away from any campaign you are left with only the copywriting. The goal for the copy is to convince the reader to buy your product or book a service with you.
And in order to do that, the copy must do these three things:
- Get Attention ( The Headline)
- Communicate (Body Copy)
- Persuade ( Call to Action Sense of Urgency)
A direct mail piece has on average five seconds to get the attention of the reader. If the reader scans the letter, and it doesn’t grab their attention, the campaign will be an utter failure.
To gain the attention of the reader, you must utilize the headline of the letter to do that. The sole purpose of a headline is to gain the attention of the reader.
It doesn’t matter how compelling or persuasive the body copy is, if the headline doesn’t grab the reader’s attention, the body copy will be useless.
When writing the headline, remember to keep in the mind the strongest benefit you have to offer. This will help hook the reader and persuade them into reading more.
Here’s a Headline by GE Air Conditioners that appeals to the readers interest and grabs attention.
- “Why Swelter through Another Hot Summer?”- GE Air Conditioners
Now that you understand the importance of the Headline Copy, it’s important to understand the role the Body Copy. The body copy must show a need, satisfy the need, and prove the product or service actually works.
So for example, if you’re writing a sales letter for your HVAC company, you will want to communicate:
- the benefits the consumer gets for working with you (highlight experience, rates, brands of product you install).
- explain how you’re different then your competitors (do you offer a guarantee or no surcharges after hours?)
- provide a testimonial or third party endorsement before stating the call to action.
Lastly, once you’ve done this ( Attention Grabbing Headline + Communicating the Benefits) then you will want to have call-to-action that is easy for the reader to take.
Remember, the goal of your direct mail marketing campaign is to drive readers to take an action.
For example, what do you want the reader to do once they read your letter? Do you want them to pick up the phone and call you? Are you directing them to your website?
Take into consideration what you want the reader to do, and use copywriting to convince them to the action!
#2 Branding & Design:
Once the copywriting segment of the direct mail piece is finished, send the copy over to the professional graphic designer to add the branding and design aesthetic.
This gives the designer a better idea of where to place coupons, call-to-actions, logos.
A key to have a direct mail piece that converts is ensuring that it is a professional representation of the company. I am sure you have a buddy or two that tried graphic design before, and you’re thinking you can just reach out to them to handle this for you.
Before you go and pick any graphic designer to handle your HVAC marketing direct mail campaign, you want to ensure they understand the following: ( this will make the difference between a professional print job and a print job that looks like a 3rd grader created it).
- CMYK Subtractive Color Mode
- DPI vs PPI Resolution
- Bleed, Trim & Safe Area
Now this may sound like a bunch of technical jargon to you, but know this is an essential piece that has the power to make or break your campaign.
#3 Target Market & List Pulling
Just as copywriting and design are key components of a successful marketing campaign, so is pulling the right target market.
In fact, it is probably the single most important aspect of a direct marketing campaign.
You can have a compelling offer and the wrong target market. For example, it wouldn’t make sense to send a commercial private offer to a list of all homeowners in the area right?
- The price points would be extremely high for a homeowner.
- They more than likely only have one unit, where as a commercial may have many.
- Commercial might need a monthly maintenance plan where a homeowner may need a yearly.
Remember, a confused mind will never buy.
That is why it is extremely important to:
- Partner with a provider to pull a quality target list.
- Write copy that hooks the attention of the target market, and compels them to continue to read.
- Partner with a professional graphic designer that will ensure your brand is represented in a professional way and helps the reader move fluently throughout the letter.
Now you may be thinking… “I’m a HVAC Technician, NOT a marketer, I don’t have time for all of this!”…
Well here’s the good news, did you know here at Wes-Tex Printing we can handle this all for you?
See, we know a thing or two about pulling the right lists, writing copy that sells, and designing every type of mail piece. We have been in for 70+ years and our goal has always remained the same… MAKE YOUR MARKETING PROBLEMS GO AWAY!
To learn more about how we can help with you Direct Mail Plumber, Roofer or HVAC Marketing Campaign, then check out our main website, wes-tex.com or schedule a FREE call here! Check out our blog for more helpful information here https://blog.wes-tex.com/!
As always you call us directly at 325-646-3598.