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Do-Not-Call Lists, Anti-Spam Legislation, and You!
Recently, there have been several laws passed or presented with the intent to protect consumers from receiving unwanted solicitations. Two of the most pressing laws center around use of the phone and the use of email to contact potential clients.
This Saturday, the House of Representatives overwhelmingly approved a bill that would fine spammers who violate restrictions on unsolicited commercial email. The Controlling the Assault of Non-Solicited Pornography and Marketing (CAN-SPAM) Act was approved by a vote of 392-5. The move follows the U.S. Senate's approval of it’s version of the CAN-SPAM Act in October with a 97-0 vote. The bill mandates that all commercial email have a valid return address so that recipients could more easily ask to be removed from future mailings. In California, users must also opt-in to giving their email address. Sending a commercial email without permission in California will become potentially illegal on January 1st.
The Do-Not-Call registry allowed consumers to enter their names on a list requesting that telemarketers not call them unless solicited, or face fines. It went into effect October 1, 2002. This doesn't mean that businesses can NEVER call a consumer, however. Consumers may still receive calls for 18 months from businesses from which they have made a purchase or payment. If a consumer has requested information from a company, that company may call them for up to three months after the request. It's worth noting too that charities, political organizations, and organizations conducting surveys are not covered by the Do-Not-Call provisions, although that certainly doesn't effect real estate agents.
So, how do you keep your email from hitting the trash bin and your phone call from getting you sued? You adjust your strategy.
First off, it's worth noting that neither of these new laws are necessarily bad things. They are, after all, presumably not anti-marketing but laws designed to protect consumers from un-ethical business practices and harassment. Consumers registered more than 50 million phone numbers with the National Do-Not-Call registry; literally flooding the service almost past capacity in it's first few hours alone. This sends a powerful message that most people feel strongly against receiving "cold" calls. Similarly, most people who are online know the frustration of sorting through an email inbox crammed with solicitations offering you help to get out of debt you don't have, or to enlarge a body part you don't have either! If you keep in mind that the purpose of marketing is to build solid relationships with potential clients, making people feel harassed or inconvenienced probably isn't the best way to go about it.
The truth is, the most effective marketing methods won't be effected by these new laws at all, and that's because effective marketing contains one or both of two important elements: permission and incentives.
Permission, or opt-in, simply means that the consumer have given you their email address or telephone number willingly. Incentives are what you need to entice the consumer to do this. Our internet marketing section talks widely about methods for providing incentives, but the most important factor is that your message is immediate and simple. You don't need to give details in your pitch; chances are people will be too busy to read them. Our October Client of the Month, Patrick Allen sums it up perfectly, "All of my advertising, as well as my voice mail and letterhead are geared towards grabbing people's attention and leading them to my website. If I can just get them to check out the website, I can get a lead."
Once you have persuaded a potential client to contact you, you can always ask for a phone number and then can, legally, contact them via phone for up to three months of their inquiry. If they purchase from you, that window expands to 18 months.
Another great way to get email addresses and phone numbers via this permission method is to use direct mail. Most real estate professionals are already familiar with this marketing medium, and it's a pretty safe bet that there will never be a Do-Not-Mail registry. Post offices won't be closing their doors like the telemarketing companies any time soon. One of the most effective methods of direct mail are postcards.
Most of us have become pretty adept at sorting through our mail. Busy schedules, family obligations, and careers have made us swift and efficient in grabbing the contents of the mailbox and swiftly sorting "junk" into the garbage and keeping the bills, cards, and catalogs we really need. When you mail a postcard to a consumer, there's no need for them to open it to read your message. Their initial scan will register your name, logo, tagline, and your message, providing that message is short and sweet. Sure, in 90% of the cases, your postcard will then end up in the trash, but the key is that you were recognized.
If you mail again the following month, you'll be recognized again. In six months, the odds are significant that the vast majority of your mailing base will consider you the leading realtor in the area. Many will assume you've been doing business in the area for years, even if you've only been there for a matter of months! Getting your name seen and recognized is powerful. You will be remembered. Just make sure you're listed in search engines and the phone book for when your name comes back to mind for someone deciding to look you up! Chances are they won't have kept your postcard.
Perfect Reach allows you to create personalized direct mail campaigns from start to finish all from the convenience of your computer! For more information about this service, and how Z57 clients can receive their first four mailing free of service charges, click here.
