Direct Mail Mistakes to Avoid

Postcard Marketing Mistakes You Must Avoid 

Postcard marketing has always been an inexpensive way for businesses to reach prospects. Not to mention, effective. Thanks to advancements in technology, postcard marketing has come a long way. Business owners have begun to realize this and are more than eager to give postcard marketing a try.

Compared to mail in an envelope, a postcard is ready to read. It is already "opened" and so nearly 100% of all postcards get read. You need careful planning and execution to ensure that your postcard marketing campaign is a success.

Here are a few mistakes you must avoid at all costs:

Don't make the content too general

Postcard marketing is an effective way to increase awareness and encourage prospects to try your business. You may want to try and target as large a prospect pool as possible. However, if you generalize the content too much, it might lose its value and just end up in the junk pile. Ensure to include a clear, personalized message to attract the attention of prospects. For example, if you are a realtor, the postcards you send out should contain an invitation to an open house rather than real estate photos to be more effective.

Not setting a goal

Before you launch a postcard campaign, decide on what you intend to achieve from your postcard mailers. Do you need to create new sales leads or do you need to bring back your old customers? Perhaps, you need more people to come to your location. When you are clear about the goal, you can personalize the message and call to action, making your campaign more effective. If you do not have a goal, you will only be sending out generalized postcards which will eventually end up as junk.

Trying only once

You will reap what you sow. Postcard marketing is very effective, but it is not magic. If you try a post card marketing campaign just once and expect your clients to just keep coming in, it is wrong. You must care for your garden! Constant reminders and messages are essential to build brand recognition and recall. Business owners should treat postcard marketing as an investment. Instead of having a single campaign, they should aim to have multiple postcard marketing campaigns over a period of two to three months.

Not having a clear call to action

If your postcards only have a message but no call to action, people will not really know what to do with it. Worse, it may end up in the junk pile. When you include a clear call to action like "Order by " or "Call today," your prospects know exactly what they need to do next. A clear call to action helps them make a decision easily. Be sure to include your contact information on your postcard, including your businesses address and website.

Not keeping the message simple

If you try to put everything about your business on a postcard, people are not going to read it. Neither should you include long messages, jargon, or a long list of the services you offer. The more complicated your postcard is, the more chances it has of ending up in the junk pile. Use short sentences in simple language and bullet points to grab attention. Don't try to promote multiple things on one card. Keep it simple and your postcards will be much more effective.

Every campaign you do will teach you something! When a mailing goes south, don't throw in the towel, rather, evaluate it and learn from your mistakes. Once you figure out the right formula, a good mail campaign is a cash machine for your business.

Ready to get your direct mail maketing campaign up and running? Give Mail King USA a call today or request a simple direct mail quote.