Why Postcard Marketing Works So Well

By Bob Leduc

You may be surprised to know that postcards produce better results today than they did before the development of the Internet. There are seven major reasons why this is happening.

1. Postcards Use A Modern Communication Style
A postcard delivers information the way people want to get it today. It arrives open and ready to read. The message it contains is always brief because there’s not a lot of space for it. Therefore, a postcard is quick to read and easy to comprehend.

2. Postcards Have High Impact
It’s hard to ignore a postcard – even if the reader is sorting his or her mail over a trashcan and discarding everything that looks like advertising. An attractive postcard with an eye-catching benefit statement will be read by almost 100 percent of the people who get it … and anyone else who happens to see it.

3. Marketing With Postcards Saves Money
Postcards are small. Therefore, it doesn’t cost much for printing. You can even do the printing yourself with your own computer to reduce the cost to about a penny each. More importantly, you can send postcards by First Class Mail in the United States for much less than other types of First Class mail. Currently, the First Class postage for a postcard is 28 cents … if you make its size between 3.5 high by 5 inches long and 4.25 high by 6 inches long.

4. Marketing With Postcards Saves Time
Because postcards are small, it doesn’t take much time to develop a sales message for them, complete the printing and get them out in the mail. It’s not unusual to see results from postcards within a week of deciding to use them.

5. Postcard Marketing Is Easy
Don’t try to put a complete sales presentation on a postcard. There’s not enough space for that. Instead, just list one or two major benefits to arouse the reader’s interest. Then direct them to do something to get more information. For example, go to your Web site where they can get more details – and where you can close the sale.

6. Postcards Are Versatile
Postcards are easily adaptable to any business. They work equally as well for selling either products or services. They’re also adaptable to any kind of marketing activity. You can use them to generate Web site traffic, develop sales leads, generate visits to a store, promote repeat sales or additional sales to current or previous customers, or … well, you get the idea.

7. Postcards Are Personal
People are used to getting postcards from friends and relatives. It’s something they enjoy. Take advantage of this. Don’t design your postcard to look like a magazine ad. Instead, design it to look, at first glance, like a message from a friend. You’re not doing this to deceive the reader. They will immediately recognize your postcard as advertising. But they will give it the same psychological reception they give to a personal message – and that will produce significantly more replies for you.

You’re missing out on a major competitive advantage if you don’t include postcards in your current marketing activity. Fortunately, it is a disadvantage you can quickly overcome.

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This article reprinted with permission. Copyright 2008 Bob Leduc. All Rights Reserved. Bob Leduc has spent 20 years helping businesses find new customers and increase sales. He just released a new edition of his manual, “How To Build Your Small Business Fast With Simple Postcards” and launched “BizTips from Bob,” a newsletter to help small businesses grow and prosper. You’ll find his low-cost marketing methods at: http://BobLeduc.com or by calling 702-658-1707 after 10:00 a.m. Pacific Time/Las Vegas, NV.

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