Measuring direct mail results: Cost Per Inquiry.
By Alan Sharpe
Cost Per Inquiry measures how much you must spend to generate one inquiry. But remember, an inquiry is not
a lead. Or a prospect. An inquiry is simply someone who has responded to one or more of your direct mail pieces.
You do not know if this person has the authority or the budget to buy from you. All you know is that they have
inquired.
Cost Per Inquiry is a nevertheless valuable measurement because it shows you the upfront cost of your lead
generation efforts. If you mail 1,000 pieces at a cost of $1 each and you get one inquiry, then you have spent
$1,000 to generate one inquiry. Or, to put it another way, your Cost Per Inquiry is $1,000.
As you can see, calculating your Cost Per Inquiry is simple. You total your costs and divide them by the
number of inquiries. Your costs consist of the hard costs of producing and mailing your package, including
list rental, printing (envelope, letter, brochure, reply device), postage and creative services (hiring a direct
mail copywriter or designer, for example).
Cost Per Inquiry is a good way to measure the effectiveness of different marketing communications tools, such
as advertising, trade shows and seminars, as long as your target audience and offer remain constant across all
media you are comparing.
Remember that not all inquiries turn into leads, and not all leads turn into customers. Cost Per Inquiry does
not measure quality.
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Alan Sharpe is a direct mail copywriter. Alan helps hi-tech businesses generate sales and secure sales meetings with qualified
prospects using cost-effective, compelling direct mail marketing.
Subscribe to "Sharpe & Direct," his weekly
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at www.sharpecopy.com. Browse the best direct mail books,
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and sales lead generation books at Alan's
online bookstore.
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