[John Reidy]

I would like to add a thanks to Richard for his input. Your experience in marketing is most helpful and priceless. Having been in advertising for almost 30 years has helped me gleen marketing infoormation but I am not nearly qualified as Richard.

A few points I would like to add are, advertising will not make the sale. The most advertising can do is to put your name on the shopping list. In some instances it can create a call for action but in the portrait business it seems impossible to "force" a potential customer to act now, i.e. "ON SALE NOW!" Our's is more of a passive campaign especially when considering direct mail.

My second point is to carefully consider your mailing list. The fewer your criteria the fewer the potential response. Find a provider who can help you fine tune your list. This is a very important step and is worth the price of a good professional.

Also, if you can, design your card to the specific client you are trying to attract. A good example would be a mailing to (age specified) parents in a single house residence with a specified worth, a household income of a specified amount or range plus children in the home of age specified. Then naturally you would mail them your card showing children portraits.

Children is the easiest example I can think of. Anyone have any other ideas? It would be interesting to see various suggestions.