The postcard is a highly effective business tool you can use to generate prospect leads at very low cost. Even the smallest business on a tight advertising budget can afford to implement a successful postcard mailing campaign.
Postcards are simple and easy to prepare. You can have postcards in the mail within a few days of making your decision to send them. And, delivery is fast because they're First Class Mail. You'll get replies from your postcards within two or three days of mailing them.
Don't try to close sales directly from a postcard. There's not enough space to provide the information a prospect needs to make a buying decision. The purpose of the postcard is to generate inquiries from qualified, interested prospects. Respond to each inquiry with your sales literature, phone call, personal presentation or whatever you normally do when a prospect requests information about your product, service or opportunity.
The most effective message on a postcard is brief. It presents just one major benefit the reader can gain and tells him or her exactly what to do to get more information. I've found that providing a phone number with a pre-recorded phone message usually generates the largest number of responses. A toll-free 800 or 888 number will significantly increase your number of responses if your market is not local.
Nearly 100% of the people who get your postcard will read it... when your message is brief. There's no envelope to slice open and no letter or brochure to unfold. With just a flip of the wrist your message is in front of your prospect's eyes. That's one of the reasons why postcards are so effective. The postcard format guarantees you'll never lose prospects who would have been interested in your offer... but didn't open the envelope to read about it. These same prospects will read your offer when you deliver it "already opened" on a postcard.
In the US there's even a special postage rate for postcards. For just 20 cents you can send your postcard by First Class Mail. This special 20 cent postage rate for postcards was not changed by the 1998 postage rate increase for other types of mail.
To qualify for this special 20 cent 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. You also need to use paper with a thickness similar to index card stock. A standard 4" x 6" index card can be mailed at this special postcard postage rate. Also, a standard 8 1/2 x 11 inch sheet of index stock paper cut into 4 equal pieces will produce four 4 1/4" x 5 1/2" postcards that qualify for the special postcard postage rate. The printing cost for both of these formats is also low - about 2 cents per postcard.
Postcards don't enjoy a special postage rate outside of the US. However, many non-US business owners who use postcards tell me they are exceptionally effective. That's probably because postcards are seldom used for business purposes outside of the US. Therefore, they attract more attention than in the US. Getting more attention to your offer always results in more responses to your offer.
Postcards are inexpensive and easy to prepare. They're First Class Mail with a special low postage rate. You don't have to spend much time or invest much money to get profitable results with postcards. When you want to generate prospect leads fast while keeping your costs low - send postcards.