STAND OUT WITH LETTERS

Although I am adamant about using social media as my source for business, I do enjoy sending letters out to my database. As I've noticed, so many of you do as well. Now sending letters can get expensive with the paper products and stamps, and it has to be done consistently for months before you see a pay off that's worth the time, so I'm going to go through the steps with you to make sure your letters stand out and you get faster business. For starters, are you sending letters that look these? ↴

If you said yes, I want you to walk over to where those generic envelopes are and throw them in the trash, or hide them somewhere where they will never see the light of day again. If you're anything like me, from a consumer stand point, when you get a little white envelope with a letter inside of it, you automatically think, "Oh great, another bill," or, "Oh great, more junk mail." And after opening the letter, what's the first thing that you do? You throw it in the trash after quickly scanning the first sentence and making sure it's not another bill. So from the get-go, when someone gets a letter like this they are already put into a defensive mind set to avoid whatever the content of the insides are. Not a good start when you are trying to make an impression.

And you know what these generic letters and envelopes scream at me? That there was no true value invested in getting my attention, I'm just a fish in a pond of thousands of other fish, and I don't really matter to the person sending the letter. And it only puts a dollar sign on top of my head if I choose to call back. Again, not a good impression to make. And when I make points that your brand needs to be consistent in every aspect of your business, the marketing method above is not your brand and does nothing for you. Your logo isn't your brand, it's only an aspect of your brand. If you put a logo on the letter you send out and call it a day, you're already on the wrong foot. Your brand is how you make people feel. How does that letter make someone feel when they open it? I don't want them to start hating me the moment they see that letter, I want them to open a letter from me and feel like they are exclusive to my business, that I will go a step out of my way to take care of them, and make sure they feel welcomed into something important when they go to open the letter. I want them to get the excitement that it's an invite to something unique. And it is. It is an invite for me to get to know them, and assist them in all of their real estate needs, and that's what you need to be doing and staying on top of. Make your brand an experience, and let that experience reflect even when someone is opening a simple letter from you. Here is what your envelopes should look like ↴

Yes it will be a little more expensive than the generic ones, but guess what? They'll have a much bigger impact. You'll get a better response rate, and most importantly: stay on people's minds. They may not reach out to you right away, but they'll remember you when they are ready or have a referral, and they'll remember you because you took the time to make them feel a little more valued. You gave them the impression of excitement when opening your letter, instead of dread of more spam and bills. And emotion is what you use to win business. If you can connect with your audience on an emotional level, they'll be more inclined to do business with you.

And if you can afford to take it a step further, add something in the card that will really stand out. When I'm marketing in a small neighborhood, I would always include $1 scratch offs in my letters. It really stands out and gets people excited. Even if they don't win anything, it was fun to get a scratch off for free. And if they do win something, well all the better, because then you really stand out. Or add something more than just a business card, something they feel inclined to keep instead of just throwing in the garbage. In my case, I always did the fridge magnets that had the fun recipes or the sports team calendar. All those had my branding, but with the value filled content, they felt inclined to put it up on their fridge, and got to see my face every day. Put your brand into your letters and you'll see a bigger return on business.