You know what happens when you assume, right?
A wrong assumption between two people can be embarrassing enough. But when you make a wrong assumption about your customers, embarrassment is the least of your worries. It can end up being expensive and wasteful…for you.
Chances are good that you have some idea of the kinds of offers your customer persona is likely to respond to but when you want to deliver an even more highly targeted offer, what’s the shortest line from A to B?
You do it with by stealth survey.
What Is It?
Put simply, a survey presents two similar things (we’ll call them A and B) to an audience to see which one the majority of that audience prefers.
With a stealth survey, the audience doesn’t realize they’re being surveyed. They think they’re just looking at an ad. (They are.) But the way they respond to it provides the marketer or business with a survey result.
(Don’t worry; it’s totally legal.)
When Would I Use It?
There are three scenarios in which you would do a stealth survey. Each is a different way which a business could use to create growth:
- Expanding into a new market
- Introducing new products
- Changing the pricing structure
Whereas a routine postcard mailing would present a single offer, a “stealth survey” postcard presents three. It not only will give you back valuable data on how to target your offers in the future, but with three offers, you’re casting a wider net and thus have a better chance of coming away with a customer.
Some Ways To Do It
A dentist wants to start offering cosmetic dentistry services. So rather than shock his existing customers with a sudden shift in focus, he could instead prepare a postcard with three offers:
“Call and set an appoint to get one of the following discounts:
- 10% off cleaning
- 15% off of braces
- 20% off of cosmetic dentistry”
Perhaps you’re a janitorial service and you want to begin offering more extensive, higher-priced services. Don’t just change your postcard to reflect the new service and price, but place three offers:
- Office cleaning – starting at $150/mo
- Day porter services – starting at $75/day
- Full building maintenance services – starting at $750/mo
Or, let’s say you run a mobile auto mechanic service and you want to expand your business into the next city or county but you’re not sure what the demand is or if your current messaging will hit home. So make three offers:
- Factory-scheduled maintenance
- Engine, transmission & electrical repairs
- High-performance upgrades
Then design and send your postcard. Monitor your responses as they come in. You’ll get your “survey result” (which of the three is most interesting to your prospects) and you’ll probably get some customers in the process as well.
Most importantly, you will know how to target and design your future postcard mailings, and thus produce increasingly higher ROI.
Need a little help? Call Opportunity Knocks at 1 (866) 319-7109; they can design your “stealth survey” offers for you!
Or if you got the gist and you’re ready to mail, you can start at www.prospectsplus.com or just give us a call at 877-222-6010. We’re ready to help.