Fresh Leads...is This Even Possible??

[Watchman]

A well known IMO did a mailing for me (at my expense) to get me started with leads. The mailing went out last Monday, 08/22/2011 from out of state into my area. By Friday, 08/26,2011, (the same week) 25 people had managed to fill out the card and mail it back to the state that it had originated from. The leads were electronically forwarded to me on that same day, Friday, 08/26/2011. These leads must be really fresh.

Does anyone else get return times like this?

Please comment.

 

[Todd King]

Wow! That is pretty quick. It throws up a red flag for me since there's no way they U.S. Postal system works that fast.

Now, on the other hand, if they are already ordering leads in your area and they've filled your request from those leads that are coming in, then I give them kudos. I've never seen a company pre-ordering mailers though.

Do those leads that you got back show the card that was mailed? Does it show a signature from the lead? If not, then I doubt these were actually mailers.

 

[Watchman]

Wow! That is pretty quick. It throws up a red flag for me since there's no way they U.S. Postal system works that fast.

Now, on the other hand, if they are already ordering leads in your area and they've filled your request from those leads that are coming in, then I give them kudos. I've never seen a company pre-ordering mailers though.

Do those leads that you got back show the card that was mailed? Does it show a signature from the lead? If not, then I doubt these were actually mailers.

Yes, it shows the actual card and whatever the prospect wrote on it. I would love to see the backside that contains the postmark. Funny they don't show that.
An agent can buy aged leads much cheaper than what I paid for these. I'm not trying to be cynical, but fresh is fresh and aged is aged. Big price/quality difference.

 

[djs]

No big deal, except it seems like you got a very good response.

Mailing went out Monday, arrived Tuesday (out of state doesn't really matter)
People responded in Wednesdays mail, arrived back on Thursday, you got the leads on Friday.

Bulk mail (errrr, standard mail) has a funny way of getting processed very quickly somedays and very slowly others. It's basically 'if capacity allows' type of routing, but its also the bread and butter of the post office nowadays. Since its usually setup for full automation, it can go pretty quick a lot of times.

Now, the challenge is whether the leads you received really have an interest. Always a few clowns in the bunch, but you should do well.

Dan

 

[CHUMPS FROM OXFORD]

Reminds me of an outfit called "Best West Coast Leads" from the 90s. Even back then, they were pricey (about $12 for shared health insurance lead).

But because they were three hours ahead of us, I was able to purchase leads well in advance of when the customer keyed in their information. So often, I would talk to people as they were contemplating going online to shop for coverage.

ROI was about 20-1. It was great while it lasted.

WebNanny was not used in this post
WebSilliness was used inthis post

 

[b61mack]

once you start calling, you will know very quickly, how old they are. keeps us informed. we want to know about the good also...

 

[Watchman]

once you start calling, you will know very quickly, how old they are. keeps us informed. we want to know about the good also...

I want it to work out. I'm not trying to distrust on the first run through. However, like most of you, I have been taken advantage of by lead suppliers in the past. In their defense, as one vendor explained, they are not going to sell me the winning lottery ticket.

I am going to have some discussion with my supplier tomorrow before I start calling. I also want to get some feedback from Forum members before I do. Nobody needs any unwarranted stress. Whole wars have been fought over one misspoken word. I read everything I could about the people I am working with before deciding to go with them. There was some negative but mostly positive information posted.

Just trying to be objective.

 

[b61mack]

who are you working with? you have to read the good and the bad. if someone complains with out any facts, it should be given, less weight. it sounds like you are off to a good start. good luck

 

[Watchman]

who are you working with? you have to read the good and the bad. if someone complains with out any facts, it should be given, less weight. it sounds like you are off to a good start. good luck

At this point in time, I don't want to mention names. It's way too early in the game. I have learned in life that I can easily mis-judge people and their intentions.

It's only fair to work with and communicate with my peeps first. I have read too much good about them to think that they would intentionally screw me over...but then...
After I have objectively worked the leads they sent and get feed back from the IMO I may post again about my experiences.

My main concern is that they were going to mail for me starting Monday and then I got hit with 25 leads by Friday. Being new in the business, I only wanted 10 a week for a few weeks. Lead pulls are about a half of a percent in my area. This would indicate that they dropped 5000 (or more) cards to get the 25 responses. At $300/1000, that's $1500 bucks...considerably more than I paid.

The math and logistics of mail time just don't seem to add up. Not even close. However, if they were mailing my area 2-3 weeks ago and gave me these leads (unworked that is), that could be very convenient. My big concern with that is: are they unworked leads and are they 4-6 months old rather than 2-3 weeks. As I previously stated, I can buy aged leads much cheaper than what I paid for these and there is less pressure to sell them.

Thanks for the input.

 

[somarco]

Makes me wonder if these are shared leads. They are selling them numerous to agents.

Ran into an outfit a few years ago that would batch order mailers by zip code where they had contracted agents. Leads were distributed every Monday by the DM.

I know for a fact that several of the leads were rehashed. Also, the DM presorted the leads and picked the ones that looked best for himself. He would take new agents on calls with him to show how easy it was to make a few sales.

Not saying this is happening here of course . . .