Senior Advisors Wealth Management’s Joshua Mellberg on Predictive Modeling

February 2007 By Tracy A. Gill

multipage

I took that list and mailed it in July. In June, I had a 0.74 percent response rate; in July, using the same mailer, I got a 1.44 percent response—same mailer, same offer, more targeted list. There are always some variations, but this was a dramatic difference for the return.

TM: What were some of the changes you were able to make to your marketing program?
JM: What I’m looking for is to put people in front of me at a cheaper cost. The next step is getting a more qualified person at a cheaper cost.

One thing I found is that a lot of marketing companies say to mail to people that have homes because they typically have more money. But all those people are getting five or six invites a week, while people in apartments are only getting maybe one a week. The model showed me what type of person is coming to my seminars; a lot of them are people that live in apartments. They used to live in homes, but sold them because they want simplicity. So they have more money to invest. …

I was able to change the type of mailer I use. … I was using a wedding-style invitation that cost about 60 cents. Now I’m using a 29 cent postcard and getting about the same result. It might be a little less, but I’m saving so much money. Overall, it probably shaved about a third out of my marketing costs. I’m spending close to $12,000 a month in mailers right now; so it’s saving me over $40,000 a year.

TM: What plans do you have for further improvements?
JM: I’m continuing to test different cities. I think where the model will really come into play will be high-density metropolitan areas, such as Los Angeles … where people are getting bombarded with advertisements and mailers. That’s where this is really going to shine.

This interview appeared in the February 2007 issue of Target Marketing.

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