Two things to remember when testing.
By Alan Sharpe
One advantage of direct mail is that you can test your
hunches. Before you spend your entire budget on a campaign
that your gut tells you will work, you can test and find
out. Things to test include:
- offers
- lists
- packages (including design and copy)
- timing (when you mail)
By testing, you spend your marketing dollars where they
are most effective (without relying on guess work or
hunches). Two things to bear in mind about testing are
to test one thing at a time and to make your tests big.
To test one thing at a time, take one variable of your
mailer (such as the offer), change it in a way that you
believe will improve results, then conduct a small test
mailing to see if you are right. Keep all the other
variables (timing, design, list and so on) the same.
Make your test mailing large enough to be statistically
valid but small enough to protect your budget if your test fails.
When I say "make your tests big" I mean that you should
change the variable you are testing in a big way. If you
are testing offers, for example, offer a free sample versus
no sample, or, if you are testing package design, test black
and white against four color, or, if you are testing copy,
test a four-page letter against a one-page letter.
If the change you make is not different enough from the
original, you cannot trust your test results. For example,
if all you do is test a red headline against a black and
white headline, you cannot trust your test results as
confidently as you can if you test color versus no color
throughout the package.
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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
direct mail marketing newsletter
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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