PET PRODUCT NEWS ARTICLE
FOR APRIL 2006

“Making the Most from Your Mailing List”

by Paula and Lewis Turner
Special to Pet Product News

Creating and maintaining a mailing list is one of the simplest, yet most important features for your store. The ability to contact your customers informing them of various events, promotions or specials can make the difference between a successful or an unproductive year. We will explore how to obtain names, mailing options, and suggest opportunities when your list can be extremely beneficial.

Nothing fancy is needed. The basic information for your mailing list should include the customer’s name, address, zip code, phone, E-mail and type of pet(s) owned.

How to Approach the Customer

There are three phrases we highly discourage our staff from using. “Have a nice day!”, “Can I help you?”, and “Would you like to sign up for our mailing list?” The first is so over-used that it has become robotic in nature. The second and third phrases set up your sales staff for a negative response. When most hear the words mailing list, they think junk mail. All of us collect enough without consciously signing up for more!

A better approach might be – “Would you like to receive our special discount coupons in the mail?” You’ll probably get far less resistance to this form of question. One concern we hear is whether our customer’s names will be provided to other companies. Even though there is a market for pet owner information, we secure more names by promising that our list is proprietary.

Staff Incentive

As we have mentioned in previous articles, the success of your store is impacted greatly by the enthusiasm of your staff; especially concerning features, events and promotions. It’s not likely that many customers will ask to be put on your mailing list, so it is up to your super sales team to encourage participation. We ask our staff to print their initials on the mailing slip, and at the end of each month, calculate which staff member collected the most names. The winner is referred to as the Mailer King or Queen. They receive a gift certificate, cash award, movie tickets or something comparable. The monthly totals are posted on our staff message board, and the recognition is likely to mean more to them than the physical reward.

What To Do with the Information

Transferring the data from the customer mailing slip to a simple spreadsheet would allow you to easily manage and make use of the collected names (see our click-to-page for a sample). Even if you’re not proficient in using a spreadsheet, place your name on the local high school or college job board, and you’ll likely receive a number of responses. Mailing labels can also be generated from your list with very little effort.

If you are familiar with a spreadsheet, remember to use a separate cell for each piece of information. That will allow you to sort your list in a variety of ways. You may want to select specific zip codes or mail to dog owners only.

Since you’re capturing phone numbers, your list does not solely need to be used for mailing purposes. How about having your customers called alerting them of sales or special promotions? We have found having a written script prepared for a staff member to read speeds up the process.

The Cost of Mailing

There are other options besides mailing first class. Keep in mind that when paying this higher rate, undeliverable mail is returned to you (including forwarding addresses), which ultimately saves on future mailing costs. Consider using first class mail only periodically. Purchasing a bulk rate permit from your local post office is a minimal expense and provides reduced postage rates. However, the time of delivery is extended for up to two weeks. A third option is “pre-sorted”. In order to qualify for this rate (which is between first class and bulk), you’ll probably need to work with a company to prepare your mailing due to specific postal requirements.

List Sources

Besides your own customers, there are companies that can either sell or rent their large number of lists. It is usually a price per name, but you’re able to select specific parameters - such as zip codes, income, and pet owners. Generally, the more refined the list, the higher price you pay. The good news is that once a customer from the rented list comes in and signs up, you then own the name and don’t have to pay for future use.

Consult your local Chamber of Commerce. Their list of members is offered at a very reasonable price, and when you consider that 52% of the population owns pets, it’s a good investment.

When participating in community events, solicit your best manufacturer to provide a gift basket to raffle. This is a great way to collect names. Many manufacturers will help offset the cost of a mailing with co-op money or product.

Staying in contact with your customer helps ensure loyalty, and including them in mailings is one way to accomplish that task. We hope at least some of this information receives your stamp of approval.

If there are topics or issues you would like to see addressed in this column, please email us at lewisnpaula@petcarecompany.net and we’ll give it our best shot. To learn more go to: www.petcarecompany.net/great-reading.html

Lewis and Paula Turner own The PetCare Company in Hermosa Beach, Calif.