This Is Marketing Lesson #3
with Mike Marchev
Lesson #3: The Postcard
A little known secret about maintaining visibility has to do with the words “discipline” and “consistency”
In the last lesson I introduced the Success Letter. I hope you heard me and understood the logic behind this marketing weapon. The Success Letter strategy works. So does today’s recommendation.
Today we are going to focus on Postcard Marketing.
There is absolutely no better way to keep your name popping up in front of your prospects than with a postcard.
Postcards do the job they are supposed to do. They communicate information in short bursts for relatively low cost. Since people don’t like, or do not find the time to read, these mini-billboards are an ideal communication vehicle.
If you haven’t noticed, (1) people have short attention spans, and (2) they have enough to do, think about and screw up without you having to remind them of other things to do, think about or screw up. There just seems to be an abundance of things to do, think about and screw up without any help from you or your current marketing campaign. Are you “feeling” me?
That being said, postcards are still pretty cool tools.
There are a number of benefits that support this strategy.
1. Postcards are read more often than not. (92.7% of the time.) I made this statistic up but I bet I am close enough to circumvent any pending law suits.
2. The message is short, clear and succinct. Remember. People have short attention spans.
3. The postage is low. 32 cents vs. 45 cents for a first-class letter. As of 3/27/12
4. They are easy to send at a moment’s notice. The jury is out on this one since it seems there are still a lot of lazy slugs in business today. “Easy” is defined by the slug or slug-ess.
5. You can have them printed in four color or print them yourselfon your own printer. Don’t you just love choices?
How do you get em?
You can simply buy them at the post office. White, blank, stamped postcards. These work fine but could probably use a little personality.
You can have your suppliers supply you with a batch from time to time. They usually budget for a couple of million of the things. They end up as door stops or temporary moorings for their boss’s sailboat. These of course will be graphically correct but will carry the supplier’s photo and message. (I must have told you somewhere down the line that there still are no free lunches.)
Choice 3 is to have your own printed. These cost about $375 – $400 for 5000 and you can print four color photos of anything you want on them. These days, I am certain you can find a low quantity printer on the web for less. Do a little research on this and you may very well save yourself a few hundred bucks. Believe me when I tell you that 5000 postcards are very difficult to distribute in one’s lifetime. This for a fact, I know.
I use three separate postcards for my business.
One has me in a suit standing in front of a waterfall. Go figure! I justify this pose because, after all, my product is ….. me. In truth, I look like I am selling men’s suits.
Another has the letters TGIF crossed out in red with my slogan THANK GOODNESS IT’S TODAY underneath it. This one hits a nerve with many people, and they find a spot for it in their cubicle. (This is ideal when you can manage to pull this off)
The third one features a picture of my best selling book “BECOME THE EXCEPTION.” Many people ask me how I got my book to be a “best seller.” I tell them, “Because I say so.” There is a lesson here for you. Tune in.
The single purpose of all three postcards is to remind my prospects and customers that I am alive and well and standing by to help them when they are ready for some help.
My suppliers:
(1) 800 Postcards (NY) Tel: 1-800-postcards.
(2) US Press (GA) 1-800-227-7377
Call them both and ask for a brochure for your files.
I said you could buy these little jewels in batches of 5000. I also told you that that’s a lot of postcards.
Here is how you get them out into the marketplace.
Tell each employee that it is their responsibility to send 25 postcards each week. Period. Five a day. If 25 is too easy, adjust the number accordingly. You buy the stamps, and they find a target. (A good place to start is your database … duh!)
Utilize all of your employees and get in the habit of sending postcards to help put your business on the map and on top of mind.
Sadly, you must remind some employees that it is indeed, their business to get those mini-billboards in the mail. (Remind them of Marchev’s “Time To Take a Hike Seminar.”)
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Again, two sources for postcards are
1-800-postcards which you can contact by calling 1-800-postcards.
The other vendor I use is in Atlanta. 800- 227-7377.
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Next, we are going to discuss Email Marketing.
Keep up the good work. If you are still with me, you are a very good student, and are surely on your personal road to success. If you are not still with me you must be somewhere else … but that couldn’t be. So good for you. See you next time … soon.
Mike Marchev
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