There’s one thing I think every IT service provider needs to add to their marketing plan this year—even though it gets a bad rap. I am talking about the long copy sales letter.
Yes, a sales letter. I can hear the moaning and groaning now: “Stuart, sales letters never work!” Well, I’m here to let you know that’s just not true. Sales letters do work, but they need to be part of your overall IT marketing strategy.
One of the reasons many of your peers fumble when it comes to their MSP marketing efforts is that they think they know what the market is looking for. They think everyone wants brevity, assuming many people are busy, never have time to read a marketing message, have a limited attention span, and will tune you out if you don’t get to the point fast enough.
Think about it, though. Have you ever read a great book that was longer than the average novel? Of course. We all have. What kept your interest? The book grabbed you and sucked you in. The same can be said about effective marketing.
That’s why long copy sales letters will never truly burn out and fade way, so you need to take another look at making them part of your overall managed services marketing efforts.
Here are five things to remember as you reconsider using the long copy sales letter:
- The length isn’t that important. There is no secret formula that two pages or 10 does the trick. If you have a big story, tell it in a dramatic fashion. People love stories, and if you can tell a good one and grab customers’ attention, then you’ve got it figured out.
- It can help you break open new markets. There are people out there who currently don’t know who you are. So, use your long copy sales letter to enter these new markets with a bang and tell your story in a memorable way.
- It lets you educate customers. People want to know how you’ll help them, and they want to be informed with both facts and social proof before they even call you. Long copy sales letters simply make sense when you are trying to educate your market. They give you the space you need to fully educated customers.
- People don’t have to work to find the facts. When it comes to important business decisions like outsourcing their IT services, people want all the facts up front without having to dig around for them. The long copy sales letter helps you make their lives easier and does the heavy lifting for them.
- You should give more information, not less. I know some marketing people will tell you to just give them enough to get them interested. This is so far from the truth. People crave information, and they normally hold back making a decision until they have all the facts. That’s why you should share information and share it abundantly. Your long copy sales letter will normally answer all of their questions and objections right up front so they’re ready to get down to business when they call you.
Looking for a marketing strategy that’s proven to work, over and over? This is it. The long copy sales letter is not going away anytime soon, and it needs to be part of your overall MSP marketing strategy. Take into account your offers, your products, and your services, and work them into a long copy sales letter. You’ll be glad you did.
Photo Credit: Ron Reiring via Flickr. Used under Creative Commons 2.0 license.
