Q: Do you have any information or statistics on the benefits of publishing 4 activity guides per year? And a percentage of municipalities that publish 4 guides per year?
We currently publish 3 and I need some information and benefits on publishing 4 as soon as possible for management staff so any information you can provide would be great!
A: Our research indicates that classes can see a decrease in enrollments if the brochure goes out too far in advance (more than 8 weeks out i.e. generally, classes that begin more than 8 weeks after the beginning of registration see a sharp drop-off in enrollments). Your readers want to know that your information is timely, and you want to create a sense of urgency about signing up. A catalog normally generates registrations for three to five weeks after receipt, so if you mail 8 weeks out, then again to best customers, you are most likely to increase response. The registration game, thus revenue game, is won in the number of times a catalog gets into past and potential participants’ hands.
Research also indicates that a catalog normally generates registrations for three to five weeks after receipt, so three catalogs a year will generate 9-15 weeks of registration a year. Add two more mailings focused on specific time periods, and you are can be up to 15-25 registration weeks per year. The registration game, thus revenue game, is won in the number of times a catalog gets into past and potential participants’ hands. One way of doing that is by producing targeted brochures that are distributed frequently to your best customers for your program.
LERN also recommends that you mail your brochure to your best customer twice, so that you provide reminders to those customers. Be sure to use your brochure to drive people to your web site by making your web address prominent in key positions in your brochure. As with every other marketing strategy you use, be sure to track responses to see what works best.
I also emailed you a special report from LERN about why to not eliminate your print brochure. Thankfully you are not considering that - but the report does contain some very solid information from sources like the USPS about response to mailings that works to support LERN’s findings.