Direct mail vs cold calling — I ran both for 90 days, here are the numbers

Same Phoenix market, both running simultaneously for 90 days.

Direct Mail:

• 1,200 pieces sent
• 31 inbound calls (2.6% response rate)
• 8 appointments → 2 signed contracts
• Cost: $1,847 → $923/contract

Cold Calling:

• 1,847 calls via dialer
• 312 conversations (16.9% connect rate)
• 14 appointments → 1 signed contract
• Cost: $340 → $340/contract

Cold calling was cheaper per contract. But direct mail leads were warmer — they called me back, so the seller had already self-selected. One of my two DM contracts closed; the cold call contract fell through at inspection.

Recommendation: cold call to validate a market before spending on mail.