Business Instruction Thoughts

If you’re selling by mail order, you’ll have to advertise. Publicity can take you just so far. Then you must start to pay for space in a publication.

What kinds of ads are lowest in cost? The quick answer is classified ads. You’ve no doubt read hundreds of such ads when looking for an item you want to buy. Some people spend hours every month reading classified ads in their favorite publication. I read classified ads in magazines and newspapers every day – just to keep up with who’s selling what!

Classified ads – by their name – are run under various classifications like these:

Money Available Money Wanted
Sales Opportunities Books and Courses
Finance Moneymaking Opportunities
Inventions Mailing Lists
Cash Grants Business Opportunities
Catalogs Government Surplus
Personal Multi-Level Marketing

To make big money from classified ads, take these easy steps once you know what you’ll sell by mail order:

Decide which publications you’ll run your ads in, after you’ve looked over the candidates you think will be suitable for selling your item or service. Key Idea: You can get free back issues of any publication that you think you’d like to advertise in by writing the Advertising Manager (or calling on the phone) and asking for their Rate Card and sample issues. The same is true of radio and TV stations, except that they will send you tapes of previous programs.

Select the classified category under which you want your ad to run. Key idea: If your offering is so unusual that it doesn’t fit under any of the regular categories used for classified ads, ask the publication to use a new and different category just for your ad. This way your ad will be the only one under the new category. As such, it is almost certain to get wide readership – which is exactly what you want!

Write (or have someone write) your classified ad. For your first few ads, I suggest that you write them yourself. Why? Because you’ll learn how important each word in your ad is. Key Idea: Write every classified ad so it is as short as possible! Why? Because it costs you less to run and it will usually pull better.

Place your classified ads by sending a typed version to each publication in which the ad is to run. Since payment is usually required with the ad, include your check. Key Idea: The measure of the effectiveness of your classified ad is the dollar sales it produces. Some large-circulation publications will produce hundreds (or thousands) of inquiries. But they don’t convert – that is send you money – when you send them your advertising materials. Yet some smaller publications which produce many fewer inquiries will convert at a 25 percent rate – i.e, 25 out of every 100 people who inquire about your offer will buy it. Such conversions help you take money to the bank every day of the week! This is the ultimate test of an ad outlet – does it put money in your bank? So be careful to place your classified ads in publications that pull for you!

Keep an accurate record of your ad results. Don’t try to slide by without an ad control form. You’ll only get very confused and you won’t know which ads are making money for you. Key Idea: Be sure to figure your Cost per Inquiry (Ad Cost/Number of Inquiries Received from the Ad). The lower
much – or more – from their list rentals than they do from the sale of product! That’s one of the success secrets of this business that few people know.

For courses and training in Mail Order visit http://howto-business-kits.com/mailorder-business-kits