People often overlook this inexpensive yet highly effective way to promote products, services and businesses. But it’s one of the easiest things you can do…
Ever thought of the humble postie as your new salesman? Using good old-fashioned snail mail and direct-mail advertising is perhaps one of the most cost-effective ways of doing business. And postcard marketing is perhaps king when it comes to the most innovative and inexpensive ways of getting your message across)…
They give you first-class delivery and get your name, service or product in front of your target audience (ideal customer).
In fact, postcards are powerful self-marketing tools for most business people.
The last postcard mailing I did generated a 2% response, which is higher than average. This meant that out of 500 people, 10 inquired about the services offered and two became customers. The life-time profits to be yielded by these two customers? Around £50,000. Not bad for £140 worth of postage.
The Ultimate First Step in Getting Clients
Perhaps one of the biggest advantages of postcard marketing over traditional direct-mail marketing is that a postcard doesn’t have to be opened. Your message is instantly visible.
What’s more, because you don’t have to send out large quantities, you can test and evaluate a promotion at a bargain price before committing to a bigger campaign.
A brilliant ‘first step’ getting clients, postcard mailings are also far easier to put together than full-blown packages. And they’re perfect for following up, keeping in touch with clients, or sending out word about, say, your latest product sale.
Other media don’t even come close to giving you all these benefits for the delivery cost of a stamp.
Secret to Their Success
The secret to a postcard mailing’s success is simplicity. Keep your message short and to the point, and your prospect is much more likely to read it. Put the most important benefits of using your product or service at the top, and include plenty of ‘white space’ (to keep it uncluttered).
If you need a bigger space for your promotion, for the same postage cost you could send a double or even triple postcard. Use the extra portion to include a response form, which your prospective clients can tear off and return to you.
Make sure you give people a reason to respond. The benefits of what you’re offering might not be enough. Consider giving a free sample to all those who respond. Or how about a discount if they quote a particular code (on the postcard)?
Whatever you decide, be prepared for answer responses quickly and efficiently. Don’t send out a mailing before you go on holiday, for example. There’s nothing worse than a ‘dead’ sales lead.
Many Ways to Effectively Use Postcards
Apart from generating sales or leads, direct-response postcard be used for:
– Keeping in touch with existing or ‘old’ customers
– Saying thank you
– Directing people to your website or social media pages
– Introducing something new
– Inviting people to a special event or seminar
– Announcing a competition or a contest winner
– Notification of an upcoming sale