Marketing: It’s in the cards — postcards, that is

Keeping your name in front of customers and prospects can be a challenge in today’s business environment. Spam filters often block e-mails, many solicitation phone calls and faxes are banned by “do-not-call” lists, and increased security measures at most companies prevent unannounced visits.

So how can you make sure your company stays top of mind when you can’t get in the door?

Postcards are a great way to stay in touch and generate sales. They’re cost-effective, versatile and informative and help you reach thousands of clients and prospects with minimal effort. They also work well with other marketing activities.

Review these tips before getting started:

Make a good first impression. Select a bright, bold, colorful graphic or image. You want your card to stand out from the rest of the mail. Don’t overload it with artwork, though, or it may have the opposite effect. If recipients don’t “get it” right away, they may toss the card in the trash.

Get to the point. Keep your message brief and make sure it’s understandable after just a quick glance. Limit the copy to a few short sentences with blank lines between them. Reduce several sentences to a short bulleted list to save space and reading time.

Break out of the mold. Consider attention-grabbing, nonstandard sizes. It may be tempting to stick with the traditional 4.25-by-6-inch card because it qualifies for a cheaper mailing rate, but this size easily gets lost in the shuffle.

Include a tracking code. Special codes or messages requesting recipients to return cards for value make postcard mailings easy to track. Leads and sales generated can be easily identified.

Encourage action. Persuade recipients to visit your Web site, call your company or take some other action to get more information. You might offer them a discounted price for your products or services or some other benefit if they reply to your postcard before a deadline.

Consider hiring the pros. A creative agency such as The Simons Group can create and manage the entire postcard project from start to finish. Services include writing, design, mailing and follow-up for professional results.

Once is not enough. A single mailing isn’t nearly as effective as a long-term campaign, so mail cards frequently. A series of mailings can really set you apart from the crowd. To reinforce the message, complement mailings with related marketing collateral.

From invitations and marketing messages to special sales and announcements, postcards are a tremendous way to increase your prospect and customer base, along with your profits.

For more information about how to engineer and drive successful post card mailings, contact Lee Simons at (312) 252-8900 or lsimons@thesimonsgroup.com.