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Analyses R KMA |
Where do
we get these Rules of Thumb (ROTs) and norms from?
We have a fetish
for recording and measuring everything
we do.
This has resulted
in a huge database of results covering
hundreds of projects and millions of
mailers and phone calls.
Our other fetish is analysis. We actually enjoy data mining
and factor analysis.
The result is a very comprehensive set
of norms, probabilities and ROTs that we
love to share with others. If you are
interested in understanding marketing
and results this way, then we are your
sort of people and we should be working
together. |
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What results
should you expect? Without realistic
expectations you could be asking too much or not
getting enough for your money.
We have a huge database of
results for projects over the last decade.
This database contains real results for many companies, big
and small, and demonstrates the trends in the
industry. From these results and trends we are
able to provide (below) the answers to the
common questions asked about expectations when
designing or measuring a marketing campaign.
Response rates
How many responses should I expect for mail or
email?
How do
premium offers and incentives affect my response
rate?
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Real response
rates for mail |
We only count "real" responders.
Some people count "take me off your mailing
list" or "please update my address" or "I want
some information for my homework project" as
responders. We only count the ones who are
raising their hand to positively indicate
that they are interested in the content of your
mailer. We call them "positive" responders.
Our rules of thumb (ROTs) may look depressingly low. But the
results of most mailers have been depressingly
low since the mid '90s.
Much higher response rates are often
obtained by bribery; a free pen or some other
trinkets and trash. Since you are selling a
solution that costs many thousands of dollars it
is silly to think that a senior (that is, rich)
decision maker's desire to engage with you will
be affected by offering them a $2 or even a $10
toy. So, the extra responders pulled in by a
premium usually drop out at the next stage. |
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Simple letter |
0%-0.5% |
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Self-mailer |
0%-0.5% |
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Fancy mailer |
0%-1% |
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Real response
rates for email |
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Simple text |
0%-0.3% |
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Simple HTML |
0%-0.5% |
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Elaborate HTML |
0%-1% |
Lead rates
What is a
good lead rate for a direct marketing campaign?
How is lead
rate affected by the type of tactic being used?
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Qualified lead
rates from telemarketing |
Assuming the common single-touch,
three attempt project against the typical list. |
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To positive responders from mail, email or Web |
5%-35% |
Positive responders (as defined
above) often represent a rich vein of
opportunity - as long as they were not "bribed"
to respond. |
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Cold calls for a simple $40,000 solution |
2%-3% |
We often see plans that say
"20% of the market needs my solution". Even
if this is true, valid leads will only be
generated for those contacts who can be reached,
who are aware of the need and who are not
already engaged with another solution. The
lead rate tends to go down as the ticket-price
and complexity of the solution goes up. |
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Cold calls for a complex $200,000 solution |
0.5%-2% |
Win rates
If I give
my salesmen good leads what percentage should
they win?
How is win
rate affected by the type of tactic being used?
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Win rates from
qualified leads |
Win rates depend critically on
the quality of leads. The quality of leads
depends on how the qualifying is done - or in
the case of telemarketing, the experience of the
callers. |
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Self-qualified |
0%-5% |
Business cards in a fish-bowl,
responders to a mailer, Web site visitors who
fill out a form. Some people call these "sales"
leads and believe that you can get a prospect to
qualify themselves by filling out a form. We
don't agree. As you can see from the win rates,
our experience indicates that leads from these
sources shouldn't even be called qualified. |
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Generated by regular telemarketing callers |
5%-15% |
"Regular" callers are college
graduates with two to five years relevant
experience in industry or in your solution area.
This level of caller generates leads with a high
proportion of false positives. |
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Generated by experienced callers |
15%-30% |
An experienced caller probably
has a better resume than the sales reps they are
passing the leads to. KMA's HiQ reps have an
average of over 25 years in the IBM world of
high-tech solutions. Cold calling on
valuable solutions and accurately judging the
needs of a prospect in minutes demands a level
of sophistication that only comes from
experience. It can't be injected in a training
session. |
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Need Help?
Need ROTs or norms for
other parameters?
Just ask! We have a comprehensive set of norms
based on real experience in the high-tech world. Our huge database of results
almost certainly contains some examples that
overlap with your targets, your solutions and
your size of company.
How to ask us
Call or email
Donna Meyer
888-500-2536
Donna.Meyer@kmaone.com |
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