planning a bulk mailer

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jasonsresin
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planning a bulk mailer

Post by jasonsresin »

my wife and i are putting together a postcard to sent to every po box in our zip code, and see how it goes. mom and dad did that for their business and got a few hits. have you guys had any luck with that?

i've never had a retail pricing before, but i'm thinking $60 if i go to a house or work, and $40 if they come to my shop (aka. house garage). i was debating on offering a windshield repair day where i do windshields for half price, at $20. just one or two days a year. but for now im just getting the flyers out.

i'd like to give them a little package for any retail jobs i do. like a brochure on windshield repair, my card, and some logo chip savers. slowly but surely im trying to incorporate retail sales to my business. let me know what you guys think the mailers would do for me, or if you have any advice on what information should be on them.
Frank EU
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Re: planning a bulk mailer

Post by Frank EU »

jasonsresins, you haven't filled out your member profile. It would certainly help us answering your question to know where you are located at! Small town? Metro area? Green fields?
Chips be-gone

Re: planning a bulk mailer

Post by Chips be-gone »

Jason

For starters, If you are going to try to use your home for having customers to come to you, You will have added traffic to a residential area and you are not zoned for commercial, you may be in hot water with your neighborhood and then the city or town.... RED FLAGS
jasonsresin
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Re: planning a bulk mailer

Post by jasonsresin »

im located a little south of waldorf md. im pretty sure there is not a safelite in waldorf. so i've got a good 40 miles in every direction (which is about my range) to market with nothing but a few glass shops to compete with. glass shops are 20 miles north in waldorf md and 20 miles south. (i saw a safelite truck go down my road a week ago, could have been a guy going home)

what do you guys think of me having a windshield repair day where the repairs are only $20. i was also thinking of setting up a tent but where in the world would i set one up at. find any parking lot and just setup shop with signs and stuff? seems like i would be doing alot of sitting. there is a farmers market that gets pretty busy. i was thinking of renting a booth so customers could have a face to talk to, and so i could do their cars while they shop the market. but the special day and bulk mailer i'm working on are two different things. i'm going to try the bulk mailer first, and basicly get all the full price business i can out of it. two post offices to see how many calls i get at once. then once phone calls slow down, try two more. i figure i'll get a little spike out of it when they first go out. i need something that goes in their house, a frig magnet or a chip saver. something for remembering me when im done their repair.
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Re: planning a bulk mailer

Post by Kgobin »

It sounds like you aren't too far from the Washington, D.C., metropolitan area and Andrews Air Force Base, so it seems like you shouldn't have a problem setting a tent up anywhere, or you could just go to the St. Charles Towne Center. Charles County is called the "shopping capital of Southern Maryland"
Korey Gobin
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Frank EU
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Re: planning a bulk mailer

Post by Frank EU »

A few years ago, we had the joy of many posts that were left her by our Canadian fellow repairer Yvan. He used to organize special days like you mentioned.
He indeed had some other ideas as well. I do not want to just copy and paste his post, it would be unfair to just nick and claim his thing, so I am asking you to do a search here on the forum -use Yvan as search term. I checked it myself and 13 pages are coming up as a result (however, I didn't look for that particular post).
screenman
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Re: planning a bulk mailer

Post by screenman »

Now in this area people wait for the sales before they shop, think about that one. I would say a discounted sale day a big NO NO. How many insurance companies can you do direct billing with? If it is a lot just set up a tent any day you want to and you will do work if you market it proffesionaly.

Do not go the lowballing route, it is hard work getting the price back up. People will assume that if you did it for $20 one day then they will pester you the next for the same deal. Now I do not your circumstances but overe here most guys are looking for about £250 in terms of sales or about $350 that is a lot of $20 repairs.

Price high and work less.
jasonsresin
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Re: planning a bulk mailer

Post by jasonsresin »

so you're saying setup a tent somewhere (the st charles town center for instance) and set myself up to be able to direct bill the insurance companies? how do i get an insurance company to pay for it without prior authorization or a claim number. will they just trust me when i sent in a bill with customers policy number? i need more info on how to do this. it sounds great cause i could book a repair and cost customer nothing out of pocket.
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Re: planning a bulk mailer

Post by Crack_King »

Jasonresin, you need to talk directly to the insurance agents/brokers directly to get them to waive the deductable. Most of the time you can call the number right on the insurance card and ask to be directed to the claims department. You will need a fax number for them to send you the work order.
Look at life through the windshield, not the rear-view mirror
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