[NeonLobster]

Hi

My site is up with a profile, now I need to get some new clients in. How are you guys (and girls) doing it? Do you cold call people or do you mailshot them with information on your services?

I obviously plan just to contact those without websites at the moment then later for redesigns.

Thank you

Neonlobster

[BabyBen]

I'd go with mailshot, then phonecall.

[Expat629]

I've been wondering this myself. I'm a fan of free methods (email, cold calling... yes, I know phone calls aren't free but they sure feel free!) but am wondering about the success rates of mail shots? Also, do you tend to target the mailings or just send, say, a generic promo brochure to 2000 people?

[NeonLobster]

Expat629, on Jun 21 2007, 02:58 PM, said:

I've been wondering this myself. I'm a fan of free methods (email, cold calling... yes, I know phone calls aren't free but they sure feel free!) but am wondering about the success rates of mail shots? Also, do you tend to target the mailings or just send, say, a generic promo brochure to 2000 people?

Hi Expat,

Well I've send my first 20 mail shots today to a targeted audience. What I have done is I looked in the local business directories and on yell.com for various businesses and then checked and see if they got websites. If not I send them a introductory letter. I have made some phone calls too.

Will let you know how I get on.

NeonLobster

[Eskymo]

I would always personalise your introduction - that way it's unique to that person/company and they won't take it as SPAM or just any old mailing...if you target them specifically and mention how you could improve their business/sales directly they are more likely to take notice...always follow up with a phone call too.

[NeonLobster]

Eskymo, on Jun 23 2007, 08:16 PM, said:

I would always personalise your introduction - that way it's unique to that person/company and they won't take it as SPAM or just any old mailing...if you target them specifically and mention how you could improve their business/sales directly they are more likely to take notice...always follow up with a phone call too.

Thank you Eskymo. Great site by the way

[Eskymo]

thanks.

[markthedoc]

NeonLobster, on Jun 21 2007, 02:49 PM, said:

Hi Expat,

Well I've send my first 20 mail shots today to a targeted audience. What I have done is I looked in the local business directories and on yell.com for various businesses and then checked and see if they got websites. If not I send them a introductory letter. I have made some phone calls too.

Will let you know how I get on.

NeonLobster

How did you get on with the mailshots NeonLobster. Did it work for you?
I've done a lot of flyering recently and had a few phonecalls and meetings from that but I'm
considering trying mailshots next (when the postal strikes over of course!)

[php_penguin]

my experience with Email-shots is that of quite a low conversion rate.

Even with a 10% discount coupon included, it is still maybe only 2%-5%, and that is with 2200 existing customers - not just randoms or a bought list.

[bennyboy7]

You could to approach local printers?

When they print any material without a website, they could pass them your details and they get a %, plus if you ever get any printing work you'll pass it to them for a %?

Every ones a winner?

[artcoder]

I would email or postal mail an advertisement postcard. If they are not looking for web site services, they might find your cold calls an intrusion into their time. Even emailing can sometime (but less likely) to get this kind of bad rap. Postal mail on the other hand is not a problem. You can postal mail all sorts of advertisement and somehow they are not consider spam.

But still the conversion rate is low because the probability of hitting someone that is currently in need of web services is low. So if you are just starting out I recommend freelance portals such as guru.com, elance.com, getafreelancer.com (some more listed here). The prices are a bit low, but at least there you got people who *are* looking for web services. You can use these projects as learning experience and portfolio pieces to fill your portfolio.

[DesignArrow]

Anyone else had any luck with mailshots?

[Jack23]

Cold calling is the right way to get business, but its not that much easy as people thinks..Cold calling will tell you if you are made for being a serious Private Equity guy and if your cut out for it. 90% of my cold calls are no, not interested and not interested now.
You have to learn how to build relationships fast, over the phone and how to over come all the bull**** objections to get to the real objection, which is usually trust.
Very few can raise money in the sum of millions and less have the skills to raise hundred of millions.
I use 'My Sales Dialer' dialer in my cell phone, to reach big number of prospectuses, I make on average, 150 calls a day when I'm not dealing with current clients. I spend a good 4 hours on the phone. Of the 150 dials I get about 3-5 business cards out.

[smoothonline]

sent a mail campaign out friday already had a call back from it.

if you have a free uk landline calls why not cold call? i dont see a problem.

the thing is for me; i find it very impersonal and annoying. 5/10 you're not going to speak to the person who runs the business and I think it seems a bit desperate unless of course you're running one of those award winning development agencies.

Char

[sash_oo7]

also just a thought though not applied u can search for diff business who has shabby websites and make nice redesign of their site and shoot them mail with watermark on it or can code the whole site it adds to ur portfolio too? who knows they might like ur design?

This post has been edited by sash_oo7: 01 November 2011 - 10:41 PM

[smoothonline]

that's alot of effort if you ask me.

send a nice mail shot, with some nice design elements, that will be enough to convince them if you're good enough

[itc]

for small targeted campaigns: a personal approach and a hand-written address on the envelope ensures that it will at least get opened and looked at (:

[Ste Hughes]

this thread is from 2007...