Sponsored Content WEBINAR: ELECTION 2008: E-mail Tips from a Political Insider   WEBINAR: Becoming the Illusionist: The Magic of Using "Brand" to Drive Response without Results Disappearing in the Process   WEBINAR: Score and Win Through Cooperation   TOOLS OF THE TRADE: Holiday's are prime-time for email marketing - maximize your ROI by getting to the inbox   ON DEMAND WEBINAR--MASTER CLASS: High Performance Online and Off-line Strategies for Large Scale Customer Acquisition   FREE WHITE PAPER - Direct Mail and the Internet Find any supplier you need - agencies, CRM, fulfillment, lists, e-commerce, paper, printers, telemarketing, and more. Featured Categories Lists and Data Telemarketing Database Marketing E-commerce Web Marketing Agency & Creative Services Print, Production & Paper Lists and Data Processing :: view all categories Get free access to more than 50,000 list data cards - one of the most comprehensive databases in the industry. >> Search Now DIRECT Buzz Blog Webinars Buyer's Guide Calculators JobZone ListFinder Promo Calendar Research Store E-Newsletters Print Magazine This Month in Direct Magazine Deal With It Direct had a full house for this year's list roundtable. Considering all the additional responsibilities on brokers' plates, that's impressive... See Full July Issue

Advanced Polymer Alloys, a chemical manufacturer facing a budget crunch, replaced postal mail and direct response space advertising last year with an e-mail newsletter. The results were so good that the firm now plans to redesign the letter and increase its frequency from quarterly to six times a year.

To date, the newsletter has enabled Advanced Polymer (APA) to cut marketing costs by better than two-thirds while more than doubling the number of its prospects and customers, according to business development manager Jeff Senich. And the firm hopes the letter will drive 10% growth this year. 2002 sales totaled $30 million, 8% better than the year before.

Despite that improvement, Senich's department had a mandate to cut costs.

“A traditional direct mail campaign for us could cost upward of $15,000,” Senich said. “The cost of each newsletter now is about $3,000.”

He added that “the obvious advantage is the cost-effectiveness of this over our previous advertising efforts in trade publications and through direct mail.”

To boost sales, the firm has revamped the newsletter to include more case studies and testimonials from users. The objective is to help influence the purchase of APA's industrial rubber and plastic chemical compounds, Senich said.

APA spends less than $100,000 per year on advertising, said Senich.

“The economy is not robust so we've had to cut back on direct mail,” he said. “But direct mail will be the first thing we bring back, because it's so effective.”

Senich did not discuss the company's timetable for reviving postal mail.

APA's e-mail newsletter is tailored to prospective buyers of its Alcryn melt-processible rubber, which is used in automobiles and on construction sites.

The newsletter has helped APA reach prospects and customers with fewer than 10 employees, said Senich.

The company, once a unit of DuPont but now part of Ferro Corp., has a total database of about 6,000 companies, a third of which have chosen to receive the newsletter.

As with direct mail, the newsletter is designed to bolster outside sales efforts.

“While we're reaching our sales prospects and current customers, we're keeping our sales representatives and distributors informed,” Senich said.

The firm's products, which fall under the general chemical category of thermoplastic elastomers, sell at prices ranging from $1.50 to $3.50 per pound, said Senich.

APA's mailing list is largely comprised of names from the company's internal database of customers, prospects, and individuals who have contacted the company requesting information.

The APA newsletter offers write-ups of the company's new products, stories about the latest applications for those products, the most recent business contract announcements and tips from technical service managers on how to more effectively use APA's offerings. It also has links to the firm's Web site (www.apainfo.com).