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Using direct mail to help market your products or services must employ sequenced mailings if you want better response. To increase the response of your sequenced mailings, you can add more testimonials to each sales letter in the cycle.

You can tell the reader, "This is what this reader has done since the last time you received a mailing." It reminds them that they could have gotten similar results if they responded. Then remind them they lost out since they didn't take action.

The recommended method is to provide separate sheets of testimonials. Also, spot testimonials throughout your sales letter.

If you're selling a product with a high profit margin, you might include an audio or videotape in the subsequent mailings. This will lend credibility and authenticity to your testimonials because they are from your customers.

Please keep in mind that the function of this sequenced mailing process is really to move the relationship along and create familiarity with you and the sales process. Once they feel comfortable with you, then they will open up and buy from you.

One key point is that there are different types of buyers. Your first mailing will pull the aggressive responsers that are willing to take a little more risk even though you have a risk free guarantee, but they're ready to buy right now.

There are just as many people who aren't ready yet as there are who are ready to buy. They're interested. They wouldn't have responded to your lead generating if they were not. The second mailing brings in the stronger "maybes." These are the ones who kind of like your product, but weren't sure about it or the timing wasn't right.

Subsequent mailings bring in even more of the "maybes." These were originally skeptical, but now you've created some familiarity and reinforced yourself with testimonials or an audio tape and now you've broken down their buying resistance.

The big question here is how many mailings are right for your product or service? The answer is, I don't know. You want to keep mailing until it's no longer profitable. If you make money by sending out that second letter, you should send out a third. If that third makes money, you should send out a fourth.

You want to factor in that if you know your customer's value and you know how much back end you are going to be able to sell, then you know how much you can spend to get a customer and you can keep sending letters even if it might become unprofitable.

For the most part, continue sending the letters. Remember to test and find out how many cycles make the best sense for you.

You will be more profitable by increasing the number of mailings that you make to your prospects. In fact, some very successful direct marketers are doing 8, 9, 10, 11, 12 steps before they stop sending out letters.