How to Start a Big Mail Service

A BIG MAIL SHOULD CONTAIN:
At least three to four Mail order Magazines Circulars containing
offers or interest to new mail order dealers. Circulars which the
Big Mail Dealer has been to mail.

Do you enjoy reading Mail Dealer magazines? Do you enjoy ordering
and receiving "Big Mail?" Do you enjoy working with new Mail
Order dealers and opportunity seekers? If your answer is "YES" to
all of these questions, then it would probably be profitable and
pleasurable for you to start a "Big Mail" service.

In the pages to follow I will show you how to set up a Big Mail
Service. I'll show you how to advertise your service and I'll
also show you how to use the Big Mails that you receive in your
mail to your own advantage. I'll show you how to use commission
circulars (how to get a lot of them free!) and I'll also show you
how to keep track of them.

We'll talk about co-publishing and we'll discuss circular mailing
(you'll learn how to get people to pay you cash to mail their
circulars for them!).I'll show a simple trick that will get you a
lot of free advertising and I'll show you where to get a free
mailing list that will create a lot of new customers for you, if
you are willing to put in a little work to get them.

But...before we get into this...I would like to give you a word
of caution. Big Mail selling looks easy and it sounds easy IT IS
NOT! Selling Big Mails is a lot of work,HARD WORK. And it is NOT
a way to get rich quick.

You will probably not make any money at all for a least a few
months. In fact, you will have to invest more than you take in.
If you are willing to invest a little of your money, and a lot of
your time, then you will gain invaluable experience selling Big
Mails, and then you will make money. You will gain experience
that you could gain nowhere else in the whole world. And if you
are alert, creative, and AMBITIOUS, you can eventually turn your
mail order business into a very lucrative enterprise.

If you are still interested...and I hope you are..read on!

The first thing you should od is to sit down with the latest
issue of MAIL SALE ADVERTISER or POPULAR ADVERTISER and order a
least twelve Big Mails. After that, get into the habit of
ordering a least one Big Mail EVERYDAY!

Then devote a portion of EACH DAY to STUDYING them. And I do mean
STUDY!

Feed your mind and your imagination with all kinds of ideas. The
Mail Order Business is a very creative and imaginative one. The
more you feed feed you imagination, the more it will do for you!

Set up a personal notebook. I would suggest you divide into four
sections:

* Commission Circulars Sources
* Sources of low-cost printing
* Prospective Mailing Customers (Save the circulars that other   
  dealers have been paid to mail. I'll show you why later on .)
* Good ideas.

You can set your personal notebook up any way you like, but I use
a loose-leaf notebook and scotch-tape the ads, circulars etc.

Read and re-read every circular and mail order magazine that you
can get you hands on. SAVE ANY IDEA THAT APPEALS TO YOU! Start
ordering SMALL supplies of "commission circulars" that APPEAL to
you. (never try to sell anything merely because it pays BIG
commission.)

When you are satisfied that you really want to start selling Big
Mails, there are two very practical things you must do.

1. Order a name and address rubber stamp. Be sure it is SMALL
enough to use on commission circulars.

2. Open a PERSONAL CHECKING ACCOUNT. Open it in YOUR OWN NAME.
When you start to advertise, use your own name. If you do that,
there will be no problem when you go to the bank to deposit
checks that your customers will send you.

Your next step is to place an ad in a least SIX mail order
magazines or ad sheets. In the beginning you will have to use
publications that will accept handwritten copy, since you do not
yet have "camera ready" ads. Your ad should read something like
this:

BIG MAIL-25 cents Commission circulars mailed FREE! (your name
and address)

A simple ad like this will pull better than one with a lot of
words in it.

You probably already know which magazines and ad sheets you want
to advertise in. That is fine! But I would suggest you start off
by advertising in at least one or two of the following:

Mail Sale Advertiser
Popular Advertiser
Mail Order Bulletin
Timely Tips

All of these are letter press publications, which means they will
set your ad up for you. They appear regularly EVERY MONTH ON
TIME, and almost everyone interested in mail order reads them!

Because these publications are CO-PUBLISHABLE, the publishers of
each publication will send you 50-100 copies to include in your
Big Mails. Your name will appear on your copies as the
CO-PUBLISHER. You will get to keep around 50% as your commission
on any ads or subscriptions you sell. If you are faithful mailing
your copies, you can often make enough profit on ads and
subscriptions to pay for all your ads. This way your ads actually
cost you nothing.

Each advertiser is also mailing his copies to his customers or
mailing list, and every last copy mailed has YOUR ad in it... The
printer is also mailing a copy to every person on his
subscription list...so, usually within about ten days after your
address appears in print, you will start receiving letters with
quarters in them asking for Big Mail. Some advertisers, for one
reason or another are quite slow in mailing their copies, but
this can work to your advantage. You will often get orders two or
three months after your ad appears!

COMMISSION CIRCULARS

Long before you start receiving orders for your Big Mail, you
should have acquired a starting supply of "commission circulars."
You will want to include them in every one of your Big Mails.

Commission circulars are usually 3x6" or 81/2x11" circulars
offering such things as:
Rubber Stamps       Name-address Labels    Folios      Magazine
Samples             Mailing Lists          Envelopes            
Printed Stationary  Business Directories   Catalogue Samples    
Drop-ship Samples   Printed Circulars      Formulas         
Books               Mail Order Plans       Magazine Subscriptions
Name Listing Services   Pen Pal Clubs, etc, etc.

Wholesale firms supply commission circulars to mail order
dealers, usually at cost. The dealer stamps his name in the blank
space under "Order Form" and mails them to prospective customers.
When he receives orders (and he will if he mails them regularly),
he keeps his commission, which is usually about 50%. He then
sends the balance, along with his shipping label, to the
wholesaler, who drop-ships the order directly to the customer
under the dealer's shipping label.

Commission circulars can be profitable for you, as a Big Mail
Dealer, if you are very careful to select only those circulars
which appear to MAIL ORDER BEGINNERS. You will soon learn that
gift items and general merchandise rarely appeal to people who
are ordering Big Mails, unless you are offering them on wholesale
basis. (Safari boots, transistor radios, hunting knives,
automatic can-openers, $15.95 necklaces are nice, and they can be
sold by mail...but not to mail order beginners!)

If you work at it, you can make a lot of extra money by including
good commission circulars in your mails. Test a few hundred
copies of each commission circular. If it evokes no interest,
discontinue it. But if it produces and order or two,then include
one in every piece of mail you send. When you have found a
circular that "pulls,"try to have them printed with your name and
address on them. (printed circulars will often pull FIVE times
better than stamped ones.)

Don't mail poorly printed circulars. They tend to make your
entire mailing look sloppy> You will also find that 6x9" and 8
1/2x11" circulars pull better than 3x6", although some 3x6's pull
surprisingly well.

Once your ad appears ( starting COMMISSION CIRCULARS MAILED FREE)
you will start receiving commission circulars. Test every
circular that is given to you. Push the winners, discontinue the
duds. You will eventually develop a list of real money makers to
include in your Big Mails.

Most of the suppliers of commission circulars are honest people.
They offer items of real worth. But occasionally you will find
circulars that you should not mail. They will get you in TROUBLE!

* Adult Offers (pornography). Even if you do not object to this,
some of the customers will...and some of your customers may be
minors.

* "Stuff and Address Envelopes at Home..Send a $1.00 for your
Starting Kit," These offers are illegal. People have been
convicted in court for selling them. Beside, the plans are
worthless.

* Chain letters--These are also illegal. Beware of any circular
that says you will receive $20,000 in sixty days if you will mail
a dollar and "follow the instructions, etc."

There is one more thing I would caution you about. There are
about 40-50 standard folios that have been around the Mail Order
Business for the last twenty years. They are EXCELLENT folios,
well written, well printed, and the advice in them is absolutely
valid. But it is a waste of time trying to sell them to mail
order beginners. Most of them already know where to get them at
wholesale prices! If you receive FREE commission circulars
offering these folios, by all means, mail them. You may get an
order or two. But if you are going to buy expensive circulars, be
sure you are offering something NEW something which EVERY mail
order dealer has not already seen at least one hundred times!

FACTS AT YOUR FINGERTIPS!

As a Big Mail Dealer, you will be selling many things. So that
you can fill each order accurately and promptly, I suggest that
you start another looseleaf notebook Divide it into three
sections:

1 Commission Circular Information
2 Co-Publishing Information
3 Advertising Schedule

1. Commission Circular Information---Every time you receive a new
supply of commission circulars, sit down and examine them.
(Sometimes you will receive two or three varieties in one
envelope.) Tape one sample of each circular in your notebook.
Underneath it write:

* Name and Address of the Drop-shipper
* Amount to forward to the Drop-shipper
* How to obtain additional circulars. (Are they available with
your name and address imprinted on them?)

2. Co-publishing Information--Most publishers of mail order
magazines will send a "Fact Sheet." If they do, simply
scotch-tape the sheet in your notebook. If not, record these
facts yourself:

*Name and Address of Printer
*How much to forward on new advertising, subscriptions, etc

3. Advertising Schedule--To keep your ads running CONTINUOUSLY,
you will have to keep track of "closing dates" (the last date on
which a publisher will accept advertising for his next issue.)
Here is a very simple method to use:

Take a page of common notebook paper. At the top of the page,
write the name of the month. Then number down the page from 1 to
31. (Use one line for each day of the month.)

The closing date for Mail Sale Advertiser is the 15th of the
month, but you will want to mail your ad on the 5th of the month
(always mail your ads in TEN DAYS EARLY.) So next to the number
5, write down the code letters "MSA." If you check this sheet
religiously every day, you will never forget a closing date.

Before you mail your ad, turn to the page for the following month
and make a notation of that month's closing date. If you will use
this system ( or your own variation), you will remember every
deadline, whether you are advertising in five magazines of five
hundred!

CIRCULAR MAILING

Once your Big Mail ads are appearing regularly, you will start to
receive orders for them regularly. As soon as you are averaging
five a day, you can advertise yourself as a CIRCULAR MAILER. It's
easy to get started. Each time you renew your Big Mail Ad, send
in another ad like this. (As co-publisher, your ads cost half the
advertised price!)

             100         250       500

3x6          .50         1.25      2.25
6x9          .60         2.50      2.50
9x12        1.00         2.00      4.00  

These prices are given only as examples. The postal rates and
other costs change and you should check the ads currently running
Circular Mailers and charge about the same rates. Cut-rate prices
will NOT get you more orders.

A circular mailing ad will almost ALWAYS pay for itself
immediately. ( Incidentally, many dealers have tried to run a
combination Big Mail and Circular Mailing ads. They do work half
as well as TWO SEPARATE ADS!)

As soon as you receive a circular mailing order, send your
customers a sample mailing. Be sure it is neat and be sure it
includes the LATEST issues of several mail order magazines.

Then include ONE of his circulars in every Big Mail until you
have finished mailing them. If you have not received any more
circulars to mail, send him a friendly thank you not and let him
know that you have finished mailing his circulars. Tell him you
hope he receives some orders from your mailing. Include some new
circulars from new advertisers and a NEW magazine. If he has any
more circulars to mail, he will likely send them to YOU!

Remember, circular mailing depends on REPEAT customers. Never
exaggerate mailing capacity ( either in personal letters or ads.)
If you really try to get orders for your customers, they will be
back for more!

HOW TO GET FREE ADS

There are many editors of mail order magazines and ad sheets who
will print your ads free if you will mail 100 to 200 copies of
their publication. Here is a very effective way to get them to
run YOUR ads:

Take a sheet of white typing paper. Type the following words on
it.

PRINTERS PUBLISHERS: If you will print any of these ads in your
publication, I will mail 100 copies for you FREE! (With
co-publishing rights, I'll mail 200 copies!) Note that all of
these ads are camera ready for your convenience.
       
Then use a rubber-cement to paste copies of ALL YOUR DIFFERENT
ADS on the sheet! (If your ads have been printed on colored
paper, bleach them before you paste them up. Pour a little clorox
over them, until the color disappears. Rinse them in water, and
dry them on a piece of flat cardboard.)

Once your circular is pasted up (camera-ready), take it to your
local instant photo offset printer and have 500 or 1000 copies
printed on WHITE paper. (Be sure its on white paper.) Enclose one
of these circulars in every mailing. You'll be amazed at the
results!

WHERE TO GET GOOD MAILING LISTS FREE

If you advertise regularly, you will get a lot of response to
your ads. But if you will do a little specialized direct mailing,
you can double your business almost immediately. Here's how:

Imagine that you have just received your mailing copies of TIMELY
TIPS from the printer. If you look at your self, you discover
that you still have 14 of lasts month's issue left to mail. Sit
down and make up 14 SPECIALIZED mailings. In each mailing,
enclosed:

1. One copy of last month's TIMELY TIPS
2. One copy of each circular you have been paid to mail.
3. One copy of your new FREE MAILING FOR FREE ADVERTISING
circular.

To whom do you mail them? COMPILE YOUR MAILING LIST FROM THOSE
BIG MAILS YOU HAVE BEEN ORDERING EVERY DAY! Mail them too:

* CIRCULAR MAILING PROSPECTS--Each time you receive Big Mail,
examine all the circulars. Who has paid the dealer to mail
circulars for them? If they have paid him, THEY WILL ALSO PAY
YOU...if you will take the time to send them a sample mailing!

* NEW AD-SHEETS AND MAIL ORDER MAGAZINES--Whenever you see the
announcement of a new publication, send a sample mailing and be
sure to enclose your Free Mailing for Free Advertising circular.
You'll get many, many free ads, if you work at it.

* NEW MAIL ORDER ADVERTISERS--Save the names of new advertisers
in the mail order magazines or ad-sheets. You'll be amazed at how
responsive they will be to your mailings!

Every time you receive new mailing copies, mail out the remaining
copies of last month's issues to the categories listed above and
your mail order business will grow faster than you ever dreamed
it could. You'll be surprised at the new business you will be
able to generate using this method.

WHERE DO YOU GO FROM HERE?

I honestly can't answer that question! Only you have the answer.
If you are ambitious--if you are willing to develop your
imagination--if you are willing to experiment with new
ideas....the sky is the limit!

Don't let anyone tell you that Big Mail Selling and Circular
Mailing is only for beginners. There are SUCCESSFUL mail order
dealers who have been selling Big Mails and mailing circulars for
twenty-five years! If you really love it, don't ever give it up!

What direction your mail order business takes is entirely up to
you. I hope you will keep your ads running, and I hope you will
expand your business by constantly adding new publications to
your advertising list.

Keep your eyes and ears open. Saturate yourself with fresh, new
and imaginative ideas. I hope you'll keep excited about the Mail
Order bussiness...I hope that ten years from now, You'll love it
and be more involved than you are today.

Mail Order is far more than just a money-making business for me.
It's a way of life! And I hope it is your way of life, too!

Copyright 2004 by DeAnna Spencer

Note to editors:
To show my appreciation to the editors that use my articles, I offer a free solo ad. Simply send an email to me by using the form on the contact me page on my website to tell me the url the article was used on or send me a copy of the ezine it was used in.