Low-Cost Marketing With Business Postcards
by Bob Leduc
Published
on this site: May 11th, 2004
Modern, low-cost business postcards can drive a high volume of
traffic to your web site, generate a flood of new sales leads, or
promote any other business activity you want. They are easy to use,
cost very little and produce results almost immediately.
Brief And Personal Works Best
Keep the message on your postcard brief. Announce a major benefit.
Then ask the person reading the postcard to visit your web site
or respond in some other way to get more information.
Set up your postcard to look like a personal message instead of
a sales promotion. Prospects cannot resist reading a postcard if
looks like a brief personal message - even when they quickly recognize
it as a business communication. This happens for several reasons.
- Your message on a postcard arrives already opened and ready
to read.
- It creates the feeling of reading a note from a friend instead
of reading an advertisement.
- Your brief message cannot be overlooked - even by people quickly
screening their mail over a wastebasket.
Nearly everybody will actually read your postcard ...intentionally
or unintentionally. Therefore, you will get the maximum number of
responses.
Simple And Low-Cost
You can print postcards with your own computer for about 1 cent
each or have them printed professionally for about 7 or 8 cents
each.
One cost-effective method when using your computer is to print
four postcards on an 8 1/2 x 11 inch sheet of standard index paper.
Then cut each sheet into quarters to produce four 4 1/4 x 5 1/2
inch postcards. 100 sheets will produce 400 postcards for about
1 cent each.
For small quantities, print your postcards individually on the
4 x 6 inch blank index cards available from any office supply store.
Reduced Postage Rate
The current postage for mailing a postcard in the US is just 23
cents. That's almost 40 percent less than the postage for sending
a letter - yet the Postal Service processes postcards the same as
First Class Mail letters.
To qualify for this special postage rate, your postcard must be
at least 3 1/2 inches high by 5 inches long but not over 4 1/4 inches
high by 6 inches long. The paper thickness must be similar to an
index card. All office supply stores carry paper designated as 67
pound card stock. This is ideal for postcards and it meets the thickness
requirement.
Non-Us Advantage: Business postcards used outside of the US do
not enjoy a reduced postage rate. But, non-US business owners tell
me their postcards are very cost-effective even without a reduced
postage rate. Since postcards are rarely used for business purposes
outside of the US, they attract a lot of attention and generate
a high rate of response.
Hidden From Competitors
Postcard marketing enables you to conceal your marketing efforts
from competitors. Nearly all other advertising uses mass media where
your competitors hear or see what you are doing - and copy it.
Postcard marketing is personal. Only you and your prospects are
aware of your strategy. And only you know how effective it is. When
competitors become aware of your postcard marketing program, they
will not be able to evaluate your activity. And they will not know
how to copy it.
Postcards achieve almost 100 percent readership and generate a
high rate of response. Use them to drive traffic to your web site,
to generate sales leads, or to promote any other business activity
you want. You can create and send postcards within a few days of
deciding to use them. And you will enjoy the results they produce
in less than a week.
Bob Leduc spent 20 years helping businesses like yours 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 call: 702-658-1707 After 10 AM Pacific Time/Las Vegas, NV.
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