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R. R. DONNELLEY & SONS COMPANY "FOUR-STEP LEAD-GETTING" LETTER
There are many times when the initial lead produced by a direct mail program needs further
qualification before assigning it to a salesperson for follow-up. An outstanding "Verified Inquiry
Program" developed years ago by General Electric is described in detail in Dartnell's Direct Mail
& Mail Order Handbook. A key element in this effective program is the use of a "May we help your
further?" form, which accompanies literature sent in response to initial inquiries. It is, in reality,
a questionnaire that asks recipients some specific questions (the answers indicate the degree of
interest in a specific product). George M. Robertson explained its role:
■ The idea behind the questionnaire is to determine whether the respondent's interest
is casual or serious. If he is not in the market now, or if he wanted the publication
for information only, the chances are pretty good he will not reply. If, on the other
hand, he is serious and ready to do business, he will either call our sales office or take
the time and effort to answer the questions and, presumably, we will have a lead on
a bona fide prospect.
I adapted General Electric's idea several times with considerable success. The lead-getting program
shown here started with a simple letter. It began:
How long has it been since you
took a good, hard look at the
tools your salesmen are using?
Perhaps you already have every possible sales aid . . . and your
salesmen are using these tools efficiently to produce ever-increasing
business for your company.
But if you're like most of the business executives we've met, chances
are you're continually looking for new ways to improve the output of
your sales force.
The letter also offered a booklet, "Getting More Leads for Your Salesmen."
A second mailing package went to the same list a month later and offered a portfolio of "Case
Studies in Profitable Printing." The letter in that package began:
We'd like to send you a FREE portfolio
filled with ideas on how you can increase
the value of your promotional material.
When replies from each mailing were received, the booklet or portfolio was sent immediately,
along with this additional offer:
To give you a better idea of the type of printing we do — and a
chance to inspect the quality of our work firsthand — we'd be most
happy to prepare a portfolio of samples of pieces we've printed for
companies like yours.
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