The Prospecting Tool Your Agency Is Not Using-But Should Be

There’s a prospecting tool most ad agencies aren’t using to drive new business-we’re going to tell you what it is and give you some tips on how to use it-stay with us.

Welcome to “3 Takeaways”, your agency new business video series where we focus on one new business category and give you three takeaways to help improve your new business program. 

We’re at episode 98 of this thing! 

If you haven’t subscribed, take a second and do that, along with smashing the old like button if you’re so inclined. 

Now, being so close to episode 100, I wanted to go back to our very first episode, called “Embrace the Snail”.

(Check out this episode below at .53, it’s good stuff.) 

We’ve made some quality strides since then (nice work Craig), but the content in that episode still holds up, and I wanted to provide you with an update of sorts.

A little background-in that episode, I talked about the continued efficacy of snail mail, of a physical mailer as part of your prospecting process.

Our first takeaway back then was:

36% of marketers learn about agencies from mailings.

So that episode was back in 2018-a lot happened between then and now, right. 

And physical mail for prospecting took a bit of a back seat at the height of Covid.

But if you want another new business tool in your arsenal, you need to think about mail. 

It’s funny how often I heard, phone calling didn’t work during Covid. 

Short answer-it did, were you trying? 

Similarly, I hear the same thing-mail?

Pretty old school. 

Yeah, it is, and you know what it works.

Here’s your first take away:

It’s only one prospecting tool. 

I can’t stress that enough-in our own RSW programs, we use mail as one tool in the toolbox, our tech stack is another, well many tools there, but we do not use mail as the main driver to drive new business for our clients. 

If you ever come across advice that you should only use one tool, like email or LinkedIn, to drive new business, potential opportunities will be left on the table. 

Let’s get to takeaway two:

You have to use mail to interact and reinforce all your other tools. 

It’s a succession, a chain if you will, as you reach out to a prospect, referring back to the mailing piece, a phone call, an email, alternating each of these touches-it’s going to reinforce your awareness and make what could be a cold call warmer.

OK, your third takeaway-

Keep your copy concise with any mailing piece.

According to stats from the Who’s Mailing What database, the word count in direct mail they’ve tracked has declined by 62%. 

That’s a good thing, and you should mirror that with any piece you create.

Less copy, more images-that’s the direction you want.

Thanks for watching 3 Takeaways-lots of new business content our site to help you at rswus.com, just hit the resources drop down.