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Printed Postcards

Printed Postcards are one of the most cost effective means of print advertising if used correctly. If not used correctly, printed postcards can be costly with very little return. This article will provide some tips on how to use printed post cards correctly with the highest return value.

Dimensions and Paper- Part of the complexity with postcards is the sheer number of different dimensions available. One printer we work with offers 19 different dimensions of postcards depending on the use. The size I recommend most to our customers is 4.25" x 5.5". We will get into the reasons why in usage.  The sizes range up to 6" x 9" and 6' x 11". The typical papers offered are 14pt, 16pt, 100lb gloss cover with some printing 100lb linen cover.

Design/Message - The design of postcards is heavily dependent on whether the intent is to mail them or distribute them by hand. The US post office has specific criteria for postcards to be mailed on location of address, available white space for bar code addressing, and stamp or prepaid location. If you don't get this right, USP will not mail them at  a loss of the stamp on the card or they will be returned to sender. The other important factor associated with mailing is that the 4.25" x 5.5" can be mailed for about $.28 each versus the 6" x 9" that will cost standard postage of about $.44 each.

Uses - As you are suspecting, the key on postcards is an early decision on whether they are to be mailed, hand distributed or both. The following recommendations will apply to each of those decision options.

1. Mail - If the decision is to mail and you are a small business, the recommendation is to use the 4.25" x 5.5" due to reduced postage cost, reduced print cost and, hopefully, reduced design cost. Considering the USP criteria, an approach we have used many times in the past is to display your business information on the front of the postcard and put coupons for specials on the back. One or two coupons with a pleasing lay-out will fit nicely on the back left under the return address. We don't recommend putting coupons on the front as it cheapens the appearance. Do put a notification on the front that the coupon specials are on the back.
2. Hand Distribute - If the decision is to hand distribute use one of the smaller sized cards because of the reduced printing and design cost. If you are not mailing, it frees up front and back of the postcard (4" x  4" is an excellent size to distribute by hand) for your business information and coupons or specials.  Again, the recommendation is to put the business information on one side and the coupons or specials on the other. If you are hand distributing, hand them to prospective client the business contact information on top and tell them verbally there coupons or specials on the back that they must look at. If you are distributing behind windshield wipers on cars, put the business contact information facing out so it is seen when the driver is approaching the car and the coupons side facing in.
3. Both Mail and Hand - When a small business decides to mail and hand distribute the same postcards, the recommendation is to go with the 4.25" x 5.5" for the same reasons provided above.

Again, we are going to emphasize importance of branding on your postcards whether they are for mail or hand distribution. Ensure all of your promotional materials are branded for quick recognition of your business. That means using the same logo, colors, fonts, taglines and themes on all of your print marketing (and web site) materials.

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