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Anyone Successfully Using The 9x12 System In The UK

by zimbizee
8 replies
As the title suggests i am thinking about trying this and was hoping someone here in the UK had already given it a go and might be willing to share any experiences so far.

Cheers
#9x12 #successfully #system
  • Profile picture of the author dublinwp
    Short answer: it works but you wont get repeat clients. So you will have to look for new ones all the time. Or it could be a great way to get your foot in the door. If you like to walk in cold and offer services from postcards to SEO and everything else. All the best
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    • Profile picture of the author newageprofits
      Hi

      Just was wondering why in your experience you won't get repeat clients?
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      • Profile picture of the author dublinwp
        Originally Posted by newageprofits View Post

        Hi

        Just was wondering why in your experience you won't get repeat clients?
        Because business want return on investment. A4 with 6-4 adds on does not bring that many clients. You can sell it easy and people will understand the concept well. However after the distribution is over you will call them up and ask how was it, most of them will be dissapointed. They will try to change an offer or something else but after the 2nd run with different offer they will stop, because facebook ppc and single a5 flyer distribution offers better ROI.

        Single double side a5 brings in 1-2% response with good offer on it

        I sold 6 runs and only few businesses were repeats. I tested many things. Black and white background, different offers etc. Still extremely poor response.

        I did not test it in US but similar response I guess there too, based on conversations in contractor talk. you get 0-10 clients from mailing 10000 flyers with 4 offers on.

        But I gained clients for other services because people saw that I am honest and can provide value.

        Besides most small business as a whole are struggling and they are just few months away from going bankrupt. So they cant start yearly plan.

        Also people are not trained to use coupons. They pretty much dont care how much they spend and dont look for deals. I had butcher put whole chicken for half price what it costs in Aldi and still small response.

        If you have specific questions just ask, will be glad to help.
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        • Profile picture of the author KMalo
          Originally Posted by dublinwp View Post

          Because business want return on investment. A4 with 6-4 adds on does not bring that many clients. You can sell it easy and people will understand the concept well. However after the distribution is over you will call them up and ask how was it, most of them will be dissapointed. They will try to change an offer or something else but after the 2nd run with different offer they will stop, because facebook ppc and single a5 flyer distribution offers better ROI.

          Single double side a5 brings in 1-2% response with good offer on it

          I sold 6 runs and only few businesses were repeats. I tested many things. Black and white background, different offers etc. Still extremely poor response.

          I did not test it in US but similar response I guess there too, based on conversations in contractor talk. you get 0-10 clients from mailing 10000 flyers with 4 offers on.

          But I gained clients for other services because people saw that I am honest and can provide value.

          Besides most small business as a whole are struggling and they are just few months away from going bankrupt. So they cant start yearly plan.

          Also people are not trained to use coupons. They pretty much dont care how much they spend and dont look for deals. I had butcher put whole chicken for half price what it costs in Aldi and still small response.

          If you have specific questions just ask, will be glad to help.
          Interesting experience you have recounted. I don't agree with your declaration that coupon usage in the UK is a rarity, there is much data which indicates the complete opposite.

          In any case I am interested to know who carried out the door to door distribution of your flyers and how much they charged. Can you disclose?
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          • Profile picture of the author dublinwp
            To answer your question I hired my own crew to do drop outs and walked with them, also I checked random homes in the area if the cards were dropped off or not. It took a while, but I had to do it myself. You can hire immigrants and pay them per day cash. Check out gumtree and other sites if you want to hire them.

            To keep discussion going so that it would benefit everyone, I would like to give one tip:

            1. Test - dont believe any data surveys or anything else. Test yourself and you will see it for yourself how it is working out for you or not. It depends on many variables about the data, demographics, location, offers, etc.

            Test yourself everything, dont believe what you read on forums - 80% is BS anyways.

            I tested and I know facts based on my mailouts. You did not start mailing yet and you dont know, so you can think about many things, but after few mailouts you will know for a fact what is working what is not.

            I want you to learn from my experience and improve, succeed at the end.

            There are many variations of coupons: tear off, post cards, others and 9X12 way. I tested only 9x12 and I told my experience. You can take my facts or test it yourself. Maybe you live in location where you will get better response - I dont know.

            Any more questions, let me know


            Originally Posted by KMalo View Post

            Interesting experience you have recounted. I don't agree with your declaration that coupon usage in the UK is a rarity, there is much data which indicates the complete opposite.

            In any case I am interested to know who carried out the door to door distribution of your flyers and how much they charged. Can you disclose?
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        • Profile picture of the author newageprofits
          Thank you for your response. I'm just starting this here in the U.S. I thought I was a bit late to the party but I think my area is really ripe for it. Again thanks for your reply


          Originally Posted by dublinwp View Post

          Because business want return on investment. A4 with 6-4 adds on does not bring that many clients. You can sell it easy and people will understand the concept well. However after the distribution is over you will call them up and ask how was it, most of them will be dissapointed. They will try to change an offer or something else but after the 2nd run with different offer they will stop, because facebook ppc and single a5 flyer distribution offers better ROI.

          Single double side a5 brings in 1-2% response with good offer on it

          I sold 6 runs and only few businesses were repeats. I tested many things. Black and white background, different offers etc. Still extremely poor response.

          I did not test it in US but similar response I guess there too, based on conversations in contractor talk. you get 0-10 clients from mailing 10000 flyers with 4 offers on.

          But I gained clients for other services because people saw that I am honest and can provide value.

          Besides most small business as a whole are struggling and they are just few months away from going bankrupt. So they cant start yearly plan.

          Also people are not trained to use coupons. They pretty much dont care how much they spend and dont look for deals. I had butcher put whole chicken for half price what it costs in Aldi and still small response.

          If you have specific questions just ask, will be glad to help.
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  • Profile picture of the author KMalo
    It is a solid business model but you have to be aware of some marked differences between the UK and the US.

    1. Royal Mail delivery charges are much higher than the US postal service (eddm) charges.
    2. It is unlikely that a UK business will pay $495 circa £342 for a distribution of 10k when they can get leaflet distribution and magazine distribution for a lot less. So you'll have to lower the price or increase distribution.
    3. You'll have to use an A4 sized flyer as the UK doesn't utilise 9x12 paper size resulting in smaller advert sizes per business. A3 size has a prohibitive distribution cost.

    There are other factors I can't think of right now.

    Having said the above, if you make the proper modifications it will work because it is a sound business model. The hardest part is getting your first card out.
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  • Profile picture of the author graeme_pc
    I am looking at the same thing and I have some ideas to combine this with other things which will make it easier to sell and give you back end, or even make this the back end and a very warm sale. PM me and I will happily share since you are nowhere near my area and I am only looking for small-ish revenue streams that don't get out of hand - or collapse suddenly leaving you penniless.
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