"Sneak Up" Envelopes
Posted 19th August 2008 at 04:49 AM by Dean Kennedy
Updated 2nd November 2008 at 05:28 PM by Dean Kennedy (All Halbert credit)
Updated 2nd November 2008 at 05:28 PM by Dean Kennedy (All Halbert credit)
People sometimes wonder what "A-pile" or "sneak up" envelopes are.
Put simply, it's an envelope that looks PERSONAL. No ads or teaser copy, no postage meter labels or address labels ... a live postage stamp and something that looks like it came from a REAL person. No window faced envelope, no graphics/photos -- it looks nothing like advertising or bills (the "B-Pile") -- in fact, it looks interesting and personal enough to warrant your personal attention.
This approach helps to convey a 1-to-1 message ... which is the whole point of A-pile envelopes!
It is a theory by Gary Halbert, who said all A-pile envelopes get opened, but not all the other (B-pile) envelopes.
In a business setting, it can still have a business feel to it (standard business size envelope) -- it doesn't have to be hand-written (although that helps).
For personal non-business mail, the handwriting is definitely most effective, and the envelope can be an odd shape and a different color (it can be especially effective if it appears to be a greeting card).
If you have stamps available which are of a commemorative design, or even having two stamps to make up the full value of the postage (eg, if you have 50c postage like in Australia, it looks very personal with a 45c and 5c stamp).
Even as an Internet Marketer, "offline" marketing can be VERY effective (especially getting attention when compared to emails).
The envelope has two purposes -- to get the material to the recipient safely and to get opened ... the "A-pile" approach is often a good way of achieving this.
Put simply, it's an envelope that looks PERSONAL. No ads or teaser copy, no postage meter labels or address labels ... a live postage stamp and something that looks like it came from a REAL person. No window faced envelope, no graphics/photos -- it looks nothing like advertising or bills (the "B-Pile") -- in fact, it looks interesting and personal enough to warrant your personal attention.
This approach helps to convey a 1-to-1 message ... which is the whole point of A-pile envelopes!
It is a theory by Gary Halbert, who said all A-pile envelopes get opened, but not all the other (B-pile) envelopes.
In a business setting, it can still have a business feel to it (standard business size envelope) -- it doesn't have to be hand-written (although that helps).
For personal non-business mail, the handwriting is definitely most effective, and the envelope can be an odd shape and a different color (it can be especially effective if it appears to be a greeting card).
If you have stamps available which are of a commemorative design, or even having two stamps to make up the full value of the postage (eg, if you have 50c postage like in Australia, it looks very personal with a 45c and 5c stamp).
Even as an Internet Marketer, "offline" marketing can be VERY effective (especially getting attention when compared to emails).
The envelope has two purposes -- to get the material to the recipient safely and to get opened ... the "A-pile" approach is often a good way of achieving this.
Total Comments 2
Comments
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Gary Halbert said that the most important thing anyone doing business over the web can obtain from their prospects and customers is their physical address.
Getting into the A-pile is definitely priority one when it comes to direct mail. Doesn't matter how singing your sales copy is if the dang thing doesn't get read.Posted 20th August 2008 at 02:52 PM by Dan Sherman
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Thanks Dan -- yes, it's a great tip for online marketers to take up.
I love Gary's "A-pile" / "B-pile" approach for what gets opened, and how people stand over the garbage bin / trash can and sort their mail (I think it was Dan Kennedy who said that) -- you really want to do everything you can to get their attention before it's discarded!Posted 2nd November 2008 at 05:25 PM by Dean Kennedy
