Generating sales is the lifeblood of every business.
For many, it’s also challenging and costly. So this month I’m going to reveal how you can create one of the most powerful and reliable lead generation marketing pieces — the ‘tear sheet’…
So, what exactly is a ‘tear sheet’? Quite simply, it is a ‘mock’ magazine or newspaper article mailed the good old-fashioned way to your targeted list of prospects.
With some simple-to-apply tactics, the tear sheet will look like it’s been ripped out or photocopied from a magazine and sent to the recipient by a friend or colleague, giving it instant credibility and appeal, resulting in good-quality leads.
Before I explain how you can create your own lead generating tear sheet, let’s quickly review why tear sheets work so well…
- You may think direct mail is dead! On the contrary, direct mail is a very powerful and highly successful marketing channel. You’ll know yourself that the volume of mail you receive each day at home and at the office has been reducing over the last 10-15 years. That’s your opportunity. Whilst most people spend their money on online channels like Facebook, Google and YouTube, savvy marketers are seeing unprecedented results through direct mail.
- Because tear sheets look like an article, readership is very high (5 times more people read an article than read an ad). By personalising the tear sheet as if it’s been sent by a friend, it immediately grabs attention and rises above the clutter, almost always making the ‘A-pile’ (mail that looks personal and usually gets opened rather than being thrown in the bin).
- Even though the results are often excellent, it is an unconventional marketing piece—so much so that very few businesses use it. Therefore, unlike over-used email and other more conventional media, it still looks ‘new’.
So let’s look at how you can put your own powerful tear sheet in action for your business…
STEP 1: Choose The Type Of Tear Sheet
A Two-Page Tear Sheet looks like a page that’s been ripped out of a newspaper or magazine. Your article must therefore extend over the two pages
A One-Page Photocopy Tear Sheet looks like the article has been photocopied straight from the magazine or newspaper
Clearly, if you’re going to create the illusion that the tear sheet is an actual article from a newspaper or magazine, it has to look like one.
Therefore, you’ll want to use text columns, images and a host of other notable techniques used by the publishing industry.
For further inspiration, simply look at any other magazine or newspaper and base your format on theirs.
STEP 2: Write As If You’re The Journalist
Perhaps one of the biggest differences the tear sheet has, compared to all other marketing pieces, is that it has to be written as if a journalist wrote it.
That means you have to provide a high degree of information without it reading like a sales pitch.
STEP 3: Image, Headline & Sub-Head
As with every other marketing piece you create, the headline is the most important part. In a magazine your headline element will also include a powerful and relevant image.
Then, include the name of the journalist under the headline, followed by a sub-headline. This will make the article really look and feel like a magazine article.
STEP 4: Highlight The Biggest Problem Your Product/Service Solves
The easiest way to start your article is by stating the biggest problem your product or service solves.
STEP 5: Emphasise The Problem
Next, you should emphasise the problem, so it is eye-catching and craves a solution and then you should provide the solution (your solution).
Again, remember this is not to read like a sales pitch but a well-balanced article written by a well-informed journalist.
Of course, it’s okay to quote throughout the article, just like any other article would, and you should also include at least one customer testimonial, especially if you’re using the Two-Page Tear Sheet.
STEP 6: Your Contact Details
It is, of course, imperative that you include your contact details in the article.
If you use a One-Page Photocopy Tear Sheet, then your contact details need to go in one of the last couple of paragraphs on the front page.
With a Two-Page Tear Sheet, include your contact details at the end of the article.
STEP 8: Personalise
Now you need to add the finishing touches to your tear sheet, which includes handwriting the name and address of the recipient on the front of the envelope and using stamps (never use a franking machine).
Plus, you need to attach a Post-It note to the front of the tear sheet with the following handwritten message: ‘I saw this and thought of you. J.’
Now you’re ready to mail the tear sheet and get ready for the response!
Example Tearsheet:
