How to get a marketing mailing list and why you would want one

Direct mail is a form of advertising where you mail communications to a specific individual. Most mailing lists are targeted to specific audiences, people with kids, retirees, etc.If selected carefully, the direct mail campaign can be very effective.

So, let's take a look at how you would get a mailing list, what the uses are, and how to use one:

First let's look at the uses, as knowing how to get a list without how to use it is worthless. So, the uses are as follows:

- Distribute product samples or newsletters
- Get new prospects.
- Sell to current customers.
- Announce changes to your service.
- Announce upcoming events such as sales, and special offers.
- Launch new products.
- Send out questionnaires.
- Gather valuable marketing information.
- Win back lost customers.

There are probably a few more uses, but this covers the basics. Now you do all of this through the mail.

So, now you have to recognize that a mailing list only going to work out well for you if the mailing list is of people who are interested in your product or service, who still live at the address you have, and that are worthwhile.

So, how do you get a mailing list? Well there are a few ways to go about doing this. You can create your own. This is usually done by having people sign up for it on your website, or by thinking of the people who would want to receive whatever it is you are mailing out, and then expanding from there. It could be people whose business cards you have collected over the years due to similar interests etc. These are the ways you can do it yourself. When you create a mailing list yourself, it is usually more effective, especially if people voluntarily sign up for it. However, you can also take the approach of renting a list.

If you rent a mailing list you want to do it because you are looking to get new customers, obviously not contact old customers or inform existing customers of sales, etc. So what you are going to do is approach a list broker who will provide you with a list of names and addresses of people who match your customer profile. So, if you are selling baby bracelets, you will want a list of people with girl babies. Make sense? You then rent out a certain number of uses of the list. So, you can use it that many number of times, and then you have to pay to rent it again. Be warned, there are seed names to ensure that the list is not overused. So, you will get caught. These people are cold prospects. Once they respond you can legitimately add them to your warm mailing list, and then use them all you want.

When renting a list, if you want to ensure it is a good one, then be sure to ask the broker these questions:
- How was this list compiled?
- How recently has this list been updated?
- How has this list performed?
- How are the response rates for others who have used this list?
- How do we get the list (what form? Disk, labels, etc.)?

When you use a mailing list you want to ensure that you have easy to read and understand information, that it is attractive so that the people who receive it actually take the time to open it or check it out. Etc. You are basically becoming junk mail, so think about what junk mail you open. Make yours interesting enough to get noticed.