Postcards vs. Self-Mailers – Which Should You Use in Your Marketing Part I – Timing vs. Price
February 17, 2009 5:50 pm direct marketingFunmarketer Tip of the Week
A small business owner friend and I had an interesting conversation the other day: Which was the best marketing tool for his business, a postcard mailing first class rate or an oversize card (self-mailer) mailing at the standard class rate?
Like so many other choices in marketing, the correct answer is: It depends on your goals.
For example, if you mail to consumers (B to C) and timing is an issue, then you can saturate an area quite effectively using a good lettershop, pre-sort, and trucking facilities. If you have enough mail going out, you can control the delivery of your piece to the customer’s door nearly as effectively using Standard Class mail, properly sorted, as you could with First Class mail.
And, of course, your Standard Class mail will be at a fraction of the cost.
But what if you are mailing to businesses (B to B), and you need to control your timing of the delivery of the message? Here you will probably want to mail out a First-Class postcard or, if you have enough pieces, a First-Class presorted mailpiece. The advantage of First-Class in this case is again in the timing. You are going to pay the post office to make sure your mailpiece arrives as quickly as possible.
If timing is not an issue in your B to B mailing, and you have enough pieces to qualify, then I recommend you use Standard Class. The money you’ll save will drop straight to your bottom line.
But what about tests that show First-Class vs. Standard Class improves response rate? Feel free to do your own head-to-head tests, but most consumers aren’t sophisticated enough to pay attention to the difference. If you really think it’s that big of a deal, use a precancelled stamp on your Standard Class mailing.
Funmarketer Free Campaign Idea of the Week
Sometimes basic and blunt and bold can be very effective — especially if you have limited space on your ad. This would work well for a postcard:
Headline: Low on Cash? Stop by Acme Payday for an Advance on Your Check!
Happy Marketing!
Craig Lutz-Priefert
February 25th, 2009 at 7:45 pm
At what level (how many customers) is it generally cost-effective to go to standard class mail vs. first class?
February 26th, 2009 at 6:17 am
Kathy, that’s a great question. Here is a link to a very short overview from the USPS website that gives a good answer. You can print or bookmark the page, and it gives the info very quickly.
http://pe.usps.com/text/dmm200/commercial7.htm
The general answer on this page is “1,000 pieces, between 2 and 4 times a year.” I think that is a good ballpark number.