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Casual Articles - 55 Tips for Postcard Marketing Success
Most entrepreneurs and senior executives completely miss out on one of the most powerful branding strategies available in today’s market…The creation of their own personal brand. Most people in business understand the need to build brand equity at the corporate level or for products, services, intellectual property, etc., but very few understand the substantial benefits that are created from increasing their personal brand equity.When reading newspapers and periodicals, listening to media interviews on the radio, watching guest appearances on the TV and seeing who gets the speaking invitations you’ll notice that it is usually those professionals who have positioned themselves as innovators and thought leaders through a carefully managed personal branding campaign. These individuals may, or may not, have anything more to offer than their peers other than the fact that they knew how to brand themselves as subject matte
44. Whatever you are offering, position it in a way that showcases its value.
45. Offer something different / better / more unique than what the "other guys" are offering.
46. With the offer in mind, revisit your headline to make sure it relates to the offer. Make the entire message cohesive and focused.
47. Follow your offer with a specific call-to-action (next item).
Evoking a Response
48. Tell people what to do next. Use your call-to-action to move the reader forward.
49. Make your call-to-action stand out from the copy around it.
50. Repeat your call-to-action on both sides of the postcard (using callout boxes or starbursts as needed).
51. Make it as simple as possible for people to respond. Give them more than one way to respond.
52. Restate the reason they should respond. Restate the value of your offer.
Testing and Tracking
53. Make sure you have a way to track and test your postcard response rates. You can't improve your results until you know what they are.
54. Try to learn something from each and every postcard you mail out. Change one element at a time to measure the difference in response. This is how you create "super postcards."
Further Education
55. Spend some time on the website below to further your postcard marketing education.
The average company loses half their customers in 5 years and half their employees in 4 years? This has significant impact to overall customer, employee, investor and supplier loyalty. Loyalty is the degree to which these groups are loyal to your product, service and organization.In today's market, being customer focused is a key to survival and longevity. High levels of loyalty have positive impact on customer satisfaction, profitability, and reputation. Happy employees work harder, produce more and stay with an employer longer. Investors and suppliers feel increased confidence in the organization and their actions reflect that.So how do you know if your organization is lacking in loyalty or strong in it? Here are just a few key steps in gauging and improving loyalty:1. Evaluate current levels of loyalty. Information can be gathered from customers, employees, suppliers, partners and inves
But as with any form of marketing, you only get out of it what you put into it. To help you get the most from your postcard marketing efforts, I've assembled 55 tips for success.
Obviously, some of these tips will not apply to your particular postcard marketing needs, but with 55 of them ... there's bound to be something in there for you!
Upfront Considerations
1. To keep yourself on track through all of the steps to follow, create an overall postcard marketing plan. After reading this article, you'll know exactly what to put into it.
2. To save yourself time, headache and hassle, turn the logistics over to a professional postcard printer.
3. To find the company that's best for you, create a list of postcard service providers and begin comparing them on the points that are most important to you (cost, services, easy of use, etc.).
4. Begin thinking about the various elements of postcard marketing and who will handle them (the copywriting, the design, etc.).
5. Track down some colleagues who have used postcard marketing in the past. Buy them a cup of coffee and pick their brain about lessons learned, vendor recommendations, etc.
6. Start reading up on direct mail marketing in general, and postcard marketing in particular.
7. Create a postcard marketing budget that allows for multiple mailings.
Goals and Objectives
8. Gather your marketing folks together to define your marketing goals.
9. Avoid generalizations. Be specific with your postcard marketing objective. Determine the type of response you want, as well as the volume of response.
10. Set realistic goals and objectives. Get an idea of what postcards can do for marketers, and set your goals within those parameters.
11. Set objectives that are based on some form of response (as opposed to branding, awareness, or some other immeasurable trait). Postcard marketing is a response generator, not a brand builder.
Powerful Ideas
12. Create a reason for sending postcards before you send them (a promotion, a special offer, a news flash or announcement).
13. Come up with a big idea that will get people's attention. Avoid mediocrity at all costs.
14. Strive to be different from other postcard marketing messages you've seen in your industry.
15. Build value into your message and your offer...
16. Just realize that true value starts with the product or service, not the postcard.
17. Make it your goal to make people say, "Gosh, I'm glad I got this postcard."
18. Don't rely on yourself to come up with a big idea. Get your top "thinkers" together.
19. Seek outside input on your ideas. Run them by some of your best customers. Make sure that what you think is a "wow" isn't really a "yawn."
List Considerations
20. Obtain your mailing list from a reputable source.
21. Find out how often your list provider updates their data. Make sure your list is as current as possible to increase deliverability.
22. If plan to use your in-house database, check the list for accuracy, duplications, etc.
23. Divide your mailing list into segments to allow for a more targeted message (current customers vs. prospects, for example).
Your Target Audience
24. Create an audience statement that outlines the people to whom you are mailing your postcards.
25. Expand your audience list to include their wants, needs, fears and concerns — everything you can think of that pertains to your audience.
26. Write down the various ways you (or your product) can satisfy their wants and needs.
27. Keep your audience statement handy as you develop your >postcard message (next item).
Marketing Message
28. Pull out your audience statement from earlier. Craft your message in a way that bridges the gap between your audience and your objective.
29. Take your big idea from earlier (item #13) and inject it into your message.
30. Remember, the better your product (or the bigger your idea), the easier it will be to write about.
31. Create a message that solves a problem, presents a solution, and offers value.
The Postcard Headline
32. Create a direct mail headline that directly identifies your primary audience. Call them by name, if necessary.
33. Offer a strong benefit with your headline. Describe the value of the message and offer that follow the headline.
34. Write your headline clearly and honestly. Avoid the use of jokes, puns and complex language. Keep it simple so people get it right away.
35. Make your headline interesting. You can't bore people into contacting you.
36. Whenever possible, use numbers and other eye-catching specifics. Avoid generalities.
Postcard Design
37. Hire a professional graphic designer to create your postcard design. At the very least, start with a well-designed template and then customize it. Don't ever mail a postcard that reflects poorly on your organization.
38. Be original. Create a "purple cow," not just another brown one.
39. Design your postcard in a way that enhances your message and makes it more readable. Don't ever let the design obscure the message.
40. Create the kind of eye-catching postcard that bursts from the mailbox.
A Strong Offer
41. Create a strong postcard offer to motivate your readers and improve your response rates.
42. Build an offer that's related to your product or service in some way. Avoid offers that will attract unqualified prospects and "freebie hunters."
43. Make sure your postcard offer is relevant and valuable to the reader (your target audience).
44. Whatever you are offering, position it in a way that showcases its value.
45. Offer something different / better / more unique than what the "other guys" are offering.
46. With the offer in mind, revisit your headline to make sure it relates to the offer. Make the entire message cohesive and focused.
47. Follow your offer with a specific call-to-action (next item).
Evoking a Response
48. Tell people what to do next. Use your call-to-action to move the reader forward.
49. Make your call-to-action stand out from the copy around it.
50. Repeat your call-to-action on both sides of the postcard (using callout boxes or starbursts as needed).
51. Make it as simple as possible for people to respond. Give them more than one way to respond.
52. Restate the reason they should respond. Restate the value of your offer.
Testing and Tracking
53. Make sure you have a way to track and test your postcard response rates. You can't improve your results until you know what they are.
54. Try to learn something from each and every postcard you mail out. Change one element at a time to measure the difference in response. This is how you create "super postcards."
Further Education
55. Spend some time on the website below to further your postcard marketing education.<
Some of the best ideas for web branding defy logic. For instance, if you were to develop an ecommerce site you might well seek to establish your business name as the primary branding feature. What if your business name is less important than you think?Developing a catchy slogan seems to be an important step in branding? What if your site visitor is mostly interest in what you do or what you have to offer?In some ways the best ideas for web branding turn the tables of conventional thought and leave the entrepreneur standing on his ‘proverbial’ head.Would it surprise you to learn that the most common elements prospective customers look for is the immediacy of information that allow them to connect with your site as a provider of their need? Frankly, many of these prospects are interested in your company name only after they determine if you can help them.By placing the ‘what we do or sell’ before t
7. Create a postcard marketing budget that allows for multiple mailings.
Goals and Objectives
8. Gather your marketing folks together to define your marketing goals.
9. Avoid generalizations. Be specific with your postcard marketing objective. Determine the type of response you want, as well as the volume of response.
10. Set realistic goals and objectives. Get an idea of what postcards can do for marketers, and set your goals within those parameters.
11. Set objectives that are based on some form of response (as opposed to branding, awareness, or some other immeasurable trait). Postcard marketing is a response generator, not a brand builder.
Powerful Ideas
12. Create a reason for sending postcards before you send them (a promotion, a special offer, a news flash or announcement).
13. Come up with a big idea that will get people's attention. Avoid mediocrity at all costs.
14. Strive to be different from other postcard marketing messages you've seen in your industry.
15. Build value into your message and your offer...
16. Just realize that true value starts with the product or service, not the postcard.
17. Make it your goal to make people say, "Gosh, I'm glad I got this postcard."
18. Don't rely on yourself to come up with a big idea. Get your top "thinkers" together.
19. Seek outside input on your ideas. Run them by some of your best customers. Make sure that what you think is a "wow" isn't really a "yawn."
List Considerations
20. Obtain your mailing list from a reputable source.
21. Find out how often your list provider updates their data. Make sure your list is as current as possible to increase deliverability.
22. If plan to use your in-house database, check the list for accuracy, duplications, etc.
23. Divide your mailing list into segments to allow for a more targeted message (current customers vs. prospects, for example).
Your Target Audience
24. Create an audience statement that outlines the people to whom you are mailing your postcards.
25. Expand your audience list to include their wants, needs, fears and concerns — everything you can think of that pertains to your audience.
26. Write down the various ways you (or your product) can satisfy their wants and needs.
27. Keep your audience statement handy as you develop your >postcard message (next item).
Marketing Message
28. Pull out your audience statement from earlier. Craft your message in a way that bridges the gap between your audience and your objective.
29. Take your big idea from earlier (item #13) and inject it into your message.
30. Remember, the better your product (or the bigger your idea), the easier it will be to write about.
31. Create a message that solves a problem, presents a solution, and offers value.
The Postcard Headline
32. Create a direct mail headline that directly identifies your primary audience. Call them by name, if necessary.
33. Offer a strong benefit with your headline. Describe the value of the message and offer that follow the headline.
34. Write your headline clearly and honestly. Avoid the use of jokes, puns and complex language. Keep it simple so people get it right away.
35. Make your headline interesting. You can't bore people into contacting you.
36. Whenever possible, use numbers and other eye-catching specifics. Avoid generalities.
Postcard Design
37. Hire a professional graphic designer to create your postcard design. At the very least, start with a well-designed template and then customize it. Don't ever mail a postcard that reflects poorly on your organization.
38. Be original. Create a "purple cow," not just another brown one.
39. Design your postcard in a way that enhances your message and makes it more readable. Don't ever let the design obscure the message.
40. Create the kind of eye-catching postcard that bursts from the mailbox.
A Strong Offer
41. Create a strong postcard offer to motivate your readers and improve your response rates.
42. Build an offer that's related to your product or service in some way. Avoid offers that will attract unqualified prospects and "freebie hunters."
43. Make sure your postcard offer is relevant and valuable to the reader (your target audience).
44. Whatever you are offering, position it in a way that showcases its value.
45. Offer something different / better / more unique than what the "other guys" are offering.
46. With the offer in mind, revisit your headline to make sure it relates to the offer. Make the entire message cohesive and focused.
47. Follow your offer with a specific call-to-action (next item).
Evoking a Response
48. Tell people what to do next. Use your call-to-action to move the reader forward.
49. Make your call-to-action stand out from the copy around it.
50. Repeat your call-to-action on both sides of the postcard (using callout boxes or starbursts as needed).
51. Make it as simple as possible for people to respond. Give them more than one way to respond.
52. Restate the reason they should respond. Restate the value of your offer.
Testing and Tracking
53. Make sure you have a way to track and test your postcard response rates. You can't improve your results until you know what they are.
54. Try to learn something from each and every postcard you mail out. Change one element at a time to measure the difference in response. This is how you create "super postcards."
Further Education
55. Spend some time on the website below to further your postcard marketing education.
First of all let's look at what customer service is all about.If you go into a shop and talk to anyone who works there you expect to be treated with respect, not sold to and to have en enjoyable experience.Often that isn't the case, in fact we're often not spoken to at all, or we're asked the silly question, 'can I help you', which virtually everyone knee-jerks an answer to with, 'no thanks, I'm just looking'.We want help, but funnily enough we don't want to admit it. We need an education on what it is we're buying so we can be confident with out buying decision, but we don't like to admit we're dumb or don't know anything to the sales assistant. So we have a dilemma!Then if we do find someone who we feel wants to help us, then often we don't relate to them as a person and so we don't have a good emotional experience.A good emotional experience is what great customer service is all about.
List Considerations
20. Obtain your mailing list from a reputable source.
21. Find out how often your list provider updates their data. Make sure your list is as current as possible to increase deliverability.
22. If plan to use your in-house database, check the list for accuracy, duplications, etc.
23. Divide your mailing list into segments to allow for a more targeted message (current customers vs. prospects, for example).
Your Target Audience
24. Create an audience statement that outlines the people to whom you are mailing your postcards.
25. Expand your audience list to include their wants, needs, fears and concerns — everything you can think of that pertains to your audience.
26. Write down the various ways you (or your product) can satisfy their wants and needs.
27. Keep your audience statement handy as you develop your >postcard message (next item).
Marketing Message
28. Pull out your audience statement from earlier. Craft your message in a way that bridges the gap between your audience and your objective.
29. Take your big idea from earlier (item #13) and inject it into your message.
30. Remember, the better your product (or the bigger your idea), the easier it will be to write about.
31. Create a message that solves a problem, presents a solution, and offers value.
The Postcard Headline
32. Create a direct mail headline that directly identifies your primary audience. Call them by name, if necessary.
33. Offer a strong benefit with your headline. Describe the value of the message and offer that follow the headline.
34. Write your headline clearly and honestly. Avoid the use of jokes, puns and complex language. Keep it simple so people get it right away.
35. Make your headline interesting. You can't bore people into contacting you.
36. Whenever possible, use numbers and other eye-catching specifics. Avoid generalities.
Postcard Design
37. Hire a professional graphic designer to create your postcard design. At the very least, start with a well-designed template and then customize it. Don't ever mail a postcard that reflects poorly on your organization.
38. Be original. Create a "purple cow," not just another brown one.
39. Design your postcard in a way that enhances your message and makes it more readable. Don't ever let the design obscure the message.
40. Create the kind of eye-catching postcard that bursts from the mailbox.
A Strong Offer
41. Create a strong postcard offer to motivate your readers and improve your response rates.
42. Build an offer that's related to your product or service in some way. Avoid offers that will attract unqualified prospects and "freebie hunters."
43. Make sure your postcard offer is relevant and valuable to the reader (your target audience).
44. Whatever you are offering, position it in a way that showcases its value.
45. Offer something different / better / more unique than what the "other guys" are offering.
46. With the offer in mind, revisit your headline to make sure it relates to the offer. Make the entire message cohesive and focused.
47. Follow your offer with a specific call-to-action (next item).
Evoking a Response
48. Tell people what to do next. Use your call-to-action to move the reader forward.
49. Make your call-to-action stand out from the copy around it.
50. Repeat your call-to-action on both sides of the postcard (using callout boxes or starbursts as needed).
51. Make it as simple as possible for people to respond. Give them more than one way to respond.
52. Restate the reason they should respond. Restate the value of your offer.
Testing and Tracking
53. Make sure you have a way to track and test your postcard response rates. You can't improve your results until you know what they are.
54. Try to learn something from each and every postcard you mail out. Change one element at a time to measure the difference in response. This is how you create "super postcards."
Further Education
55. Spend some time on the website below to further your postcard marketing education.
Each year, a number of individuals consider a career in the indoor air quality (IAQ) field. If you are one of those individuals, you may be end up starting a career in an enjoyable and profitable field. As with many other jobs, you will need to undergo training and certification. Unfortunately, there are many individuals who do not always have to time to undergo training. If you are one of those individuals, you may be able to benefit from online IAQ training.Online IAQ training is similar to the training that is offering in most classroom settings. The only difference is that you may see a lack of hands on experience. The good news is that you may be able to save time and money. One of the many reasons why online IAQ certification is popular is because many certification classes allow you to work at your own place. Once you start studying, often with material provided to you, you should have a fairly large win
The Postcard Headline
32. Create a direct mail headline that directly identifies your primary audience. Call them by name, if necessary.
33. Offer a strong benefit with your headline. Describe the value of the message and offer that follow the headline.
34. Write your headline clearly and honestly. Avoid the use of jokes, puns and complex language. Keep it simple so people get it right away.
35. Make your headline interesting. You can't bore people into contacting you.
36. Whenever possible, use numbers and other eye-catching specifics. Avoid generalities.
Postcard Design
37. Hire a professional graphic designer to create your postcard design. At the very least, start with a well-designed template and then customize it. Don't ever mail a postcard that reflects poorly on your organization.
38. Be original. Create a "purple cow," not just another brown one.
39. Design your postcard in a way that enhances your message and makes it more readable. Don't ever let the design obscure the message.
40. Create the kind of eye-catching postcard that bursts from the mailbox.
A Strong Offer
41. Create a strong postcard offer to motivate your readers and improve your response rates.
42. Build an offer that's related to your product or service in some way. Avoid offers that will attract unqualified prospects and "freebie hunters."
43. Make sure your postcard offer is relevant and valuable to the reader (your target audience).
44. Whatever you are offering, position it in a way that showcases its value.
45. Offer something different / better / more unique than what the "other guys" are offering.
46. With the offer in mind, revisit your headline to make sure it relates to the offer. Make the entire message cohesive and focused.
47. Follow your offer with a specific call-to-action (next item).
Evoking a Response
48. Tell people what to do next. Use your call-to-action to move the reader forward.
49. Make your call-to-action stand out from the copy around it.
50. Repeat your call-to-action on both sides of the postcard (using callout boxes or starbursts as needed).
51. Make it as simple as possible for people to respond. Give them more than one way to respond.
52. Restate the reason they should respond. Restate the value of your offer.
Testing and Tracking
53. Make sure you have a way to track and test your postcard response rates. You can't improve your results until you know what they are.
54. Try to learn something from each and every postcard you mail out. Change one element at a time to measure the difference in response. This is how you create "super postcards."
Further Education
55. Spend some time on the website below to further your postcard marketing education.
You should look for hotel job opportunities if you are interested in working in the hospitality industry. You can easily find something in your area because there are hotels everywhere. You can do many different jobs in a hotel, and you have to be flexible to do them effectively. Hotels need workers at all hours and on all days of the week because they never close. If you are lucky enough, you can secure a daytime position, even if you haven’t worked at a hotel for a long time.There are hotel job opportunities that match your skills and capabilities. For example, you can work at the front desk if you don’t mind standing for long periods of time. You may also find daytime positions as a member of the cleaning staff that cleans the rooms, if that is what you are looking for. Maintenance workers and all sorts of administration workers are also in demand in most hotels. You can also land jobs that involve the carrying lu
44. Whatever you are offering, position it in a way that showcases its value.
45. Offer something different / better / more unique than what the "other guys" are offering.
46. With the offer in mind, revisit your headline to make sure it relates to the offer. Make the entire message cohesive and focused.
47. Follow your offer with a specific call-to-action (next item).
Evoking a Response
48. Tell people what to do next. Use your call-to-action to move the reader forward.
49. Make your call-to-action stand out from the copy around it.
50. Repeat your call-to-action on both sides of the postcard (using callout boxes or starbursts as needed).
51. Make it as simple as possible for people to respond. Give them more than one way to respond.
52. Restate the reason they should respond. Restate the value of your offer.
Testing and Tracking
53. Make sure you have a way to track and test your postcard response rates. You can't improve your results until you know what they are.
54. Try to learn something from each and every postcard you mail out. Change one element at a time to measure the difference in response. This is how you create "super postcards."
Further Education
55. Spend some time on the website below to further your postcard marketing education.
* You may republish this article online if you retain the author's byline and the active hyperlinks below. Copyright 2007, Brandon Cornett.
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