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Post Card Copy?

by RKCastillo
34 replies
Anyone ever sent out post cards to local businesses to get clients?

If so...

What did you write on them?
#card #copy #post
  • Profile picture of the author WillDL
    "Want to know what I do? Type "Yourtown Dentist" into Google. I'm the first result."

    Have a funny, totally unrelated picture on the front. No idea how it will convert, but they will remember when you place the follow up call. The ice breaker is almost half the battle, if you've got the chops. Replace Yourtown with... your town and dentist with the niche you are targeting.

    I was about to run that as my first post card campaign when I got my job. Always wanted to see how it would convert.
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  • Profile picture of the author Kelly Verge
    1. Hook
    2. "What's in it for me?"
    3. Call to action

    If you try to do more, your postcard will lose impact.

    For the best results, you should have a different postcard for each type of prospect (hook/WIIFM will change).
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    • Profile picture of the author RKCastillo
      Kelly...

      Would you give an example for a "Chiropractor"?
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      • Profile picture of the author TE2
        Pick prospects that are not in the top 7 results.

        Send a post card with a picture of their competitors SERP's

        Title it (above SERP picture) with something catchy like: "Customers Can't Find You, But They Did Find Your Competitors"

        Place your call to action below the SERP picture.

        Something like: Want them to find you? Go to www.yoursite.com and get your free report on you can dominate.

        Regards,

        John
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        • Profile picture of the author patadeperro
          Originally Posted by TE2 View Post

          Pick prospects that are not in the top 7 results.

          Send a post card with a picture of their competitors SERP's

          Title it (above SERP picture) with something catchy like: "Customers Can't Find You, But They Did Find Your Competitors"

          Place your call to action below the SERP picture.

          Something like: Want them to find you? Go to www.yoursite.com and get your free report on you can dominate.

          Regards,

          John
          Great Idea!!!!!!

          Have you done something with recording messages? or video? I have done a couple of experiments outside the IM arena, but I was just wondering
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      • Profile picture of the author Kelly Verge
        Originally Posted by RKCastillo View Post

        Kelly...

        Would you give an example for a "Chiropractor"?

        Obviously your market is bigger than mine, so you're probably able to get very specific with your marketing.

        Just kind of brainstorming off the cuff...

        Assuming that your call to action is to get them to schedule an appointment for a consultation, I might start with something like the following:

        Something about aligning their marketing efforts to bring them more patients.

        Maybe on the front of the card have a picture (or xray) of a spine with a call-out to each vertebra saying, "website, direct mail, social media, mobile marketing, etc." and then a headline saying "Is Your Marketing Aligned?"

        Then on the back talk about how you can help them bring in more clients by bringing all of their marketing efforts into alignment.

        Again, that's just first-pass.

        (A Chiropractor's view tends to be that if any part of the spine is out of alignment that it can affect the entire function of the body. You're implying that marketing is the spine of his business and that if any part isn't working it can affect his entire business.)
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        • Profile picture of the author immeanyway
          Originally Posted by Kelly Verge View Post

          Assuming that your call to action is to get them to schedule an appointment for a consultation, I might start with something like the following:

          Something about aligning their marketing efforts to bring them more patients.

          Maybe on the front of the card have a picture (or xray) of a spine with a call-out to each vertebra saying, "website, direct mail, social media, mobile marketing, etc." and then a headline saying "Is Your Marketing Aligned?"

          Then on the back talk about how you can help them bring in more clients by bringing all of their marketing efforts into alignment.

          I think this is a brilliant idea to use with a chiropractor and a good example of how to think about stimulating interest in a prospective customer.
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        • Profile picture of the author RandyRandola
          Originally Posted by Kelly Verge View Post

          Obviously your market is bigger than mine, so you're probably able to get very specific with your marketing.

          Just kind of brainstorming off the cuff...

          Assuming that your call to action is to get them to schedule an appointment for a consultation, I might start with something like the following:

          Something about aligning their marketing efforts to bring them more patients.

          Maybe on the front of the card have a picture (or xray) of a spine with a call-out to each vertebra saying, "website, direct mail, social media, mobile marketing, etc." and then a headline saying "Is Your Marketing Aligned?"

          Then on the back talk about how you can help them bring in more clients by bringing all of their marketing efforts into alignment.

          Again, that's just first-pass.

          (A Chiropractor's view tends to be that if any part of the spine is out of alignment that it can affect the entire function of the body. You're implying that marketing is the spine of his business and that if any part isn't working it can affect his entire business.)
          Nicely done! Love the analogy!
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          • Profile picture of the author TimCastleman
            It's a good thing I didn't see this thread years ago when I sent out my first postcard.

            I would of never landed my first client with them, landed many more clients after them, and make a lot of money in the process.

            I respect Dan's opinion but I suggest you test prior to throwing the baby out with the bathwater.

            Best part is for 33 cents per card (US based) and a few thousand cards you can actually see what the results are instead of guessing.

            Here is my suggestion.

            1. Run a test to at least 1000 business owners.

            2. Make a postcard that is designed to do one thing only - get them to call, visit a website, etc. You're not selling here - you're just getting them to raise their hand.

            3. Change only ONE element of the postcard. Start with the headline since it has the biggest impact.

            4. Test the results and see how many website hits, phone calls, etc each card brings.

            The card with the best response wins and that is now your control.

            Suggestions for headlines???

            Well first try to personalize it as much as possible.

            Attn Lubbock Business Owner

            See that lets them know at least it is for business owners in their city.

            Even better?

            Attn Tim Castleman

            Now you really have my attention because my name is in the headline or subhead.

            As far as the main headline I'm not going to try to give you a ton of suggestions - spend 15 minutes writing headlines, ask some people in the know, and test them.

            When your customer goes online to find you - do they find your competition instead?

            That one has always pulled nice for me, along with others which I won't be sharing.

            Then explain a little bit about who you are and what you do. Remember they care about themselves, not who you are.

            They want results - not someone who has been in business 27 years.

            Finally a call to action. If you've got balls you should do it to a live number and setup an appointment for later in the week.

            If your shy or timid then send them a free report or something.

            Don't mess around.

            Make the shortest line possible between initial contact and cash in bank account.

            Most of all - do something.

            Get an idea today? Make sure your postcards go out tomorrow.

            Hope that helps.

            Tim
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            • Profile picture of the author cchipster
              Now go buy my postcard WSO LOL
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              No signature, I'm sure you will be ok.
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  • Profile picture of the author Steve Solem
    Like John, I think any time you can offer a free report or cd/dvd etc... you've got a better chance of getting a response...and even better if you can get them to your website and on your email newsletter list so you can market to them over time.

    I show some postcard and business card examples of what I used to promote my web design business in the sales copy for my wso in my sig, and if you're looking for a freebie to give away, there's all kinds of plr here and Kevin Koop just ran a great WSO with some excellent seo, places and facebook reports you can use.

    Steve
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    • Profile picture of the author JJOrana
      Save your money and spend it into something else.

      Post cards are good if you're in a business to consumer.

      In B2B, business owners have gatekeepers.

      It's expensive and will take you to send multiple times to get a response.

      I had success on sending letters with hand written info in the letter.

      Even Dan Kennedy doesn't recommend post cards in B2B.
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      • Profile picture of the author rafterman
        Originally Posted by JJOrana View Post

        Save your money and spend it into something else.

        Post cards are good if you're in a business to consumer.

        In B2B, business owners have gatekeepers.

        It's expensive and will take you to send multiple times to get a response.

        I had success on sending letters with hand written info in the letter.

        Even Dan Kennedy doesn't recommend post cards in B2B.
        what if the gate keeper thinks it's worth it?
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      • Profile picture of the author iamchrisgreen
        Originally Posted by JJOrana View Post

        Even Dan Kennedy doesn't recommend post cards in B2B.
        Where does Dan Kennedy say this?
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      • Profile picture of the author Doran Peck
        Originally Posted by JJOrana View Post

        Even Dan Kennedy doesn't recommend post cards in B2B.
        Gurus aren't right about everything, every time. They are usefull guides but don't bet the farm on something they say as if it's the word of God.

        If he did say this it was probably before the advent of variable data technology used in direct mail, which has made B2B mail very potent.
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  • Profile picture of the author Tsarina
    I have to agree with JJOrana
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    • Profile picture of the author marciayudkin
      Save your money and spend it into something else.

      Post cards are good if you're in a business to consumer.

      In B2B, business owners have gatekeepers.
      I have personally seen many B2B successes with postcards.

      The two types of postcards that work best in B2B are a newsletter-style postcard and a pitch to go download a free report.

      Don't forget that in B2B, each new client can be worth thousands of dollars or even tens of thousands of dollars over time. So the idea that postcards are expensive is bunk. Spending a few hundred dollars to get one new client worth thousands is very inexpensive, actually.

      Marcia Yudkin
      (Creator of The Mighty Postcard Marketing Course)
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      • Profile picture of the author TE2
        Originally Posted by marciayudkin View Post

        I have personally seen many B2B successes with postcards.

        The two types of postcards that work best in B2B is a newsletter-style postcard and a pitch to go download a free report.

        Don't forget that in B2B, each new client can be worth thousands of dollars or even tens of thousands of dollars over time. So the idea that postcards are expensive is bunk. Spending a few hundred dollars to get one new client worth thousands is very inexpensive, actually.

        Marcia Yudkin
        (Creator of The Mighty Postcard Marketing Course)
        Ditto Marcia's comments.

        I find postcards are very effective (and low cost) with B2B.

        Heck, people send them to me and guess what? I look at every single one of them.

        Think about it in comparison to what we know about Internet marketing.

        The simpler you make the path to purchase, the more sales you will make.

        With a post card, they don't have to open an envelope to see your message. It's like saving one click in the path to purchase.

        I'm a firm believer and user of postcards to market B2B.

        Regards,

        John

        ps - For those who are cold calling, keep working your butts off and leave the easy stuff to us. :rolleyes:
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  • Profile picture of the author AnthonyR
    I found a keyword for a local business that's getting 6000 searches per month

    So, I sent out postcards which read: "6,000 people are looking for your services every month, but they can't find you so they're doing business with your competitors. I can help fix that. Call me so we can talk."

    I sent out 40 postcards with click2mail and I received 5 calls.

    Only 2 of the 5 were serious and I ended up doing business with 1.

    It's definitely a numbers game and In most cases you should mail more than once.
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    • Profile picture of the author patadeperro
      Originally Posted by AnthonyR View Post

      It's definitely a numbers game and In most cases you should mail more than once.
      I would take this idea even further, I email the same list until I don't brake even any more

      Why?

      Very simple, the first time people may not have seen the postcard, or it did arrive to the wrong person or it was the right person but did not have money in that moment, etc.... many factors can influence here, but definitely sent the postcards more than once.
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  • Profile picture of the author patadeperro
    I did this for one specific industry:

    title: "Are you using Facebook to spy on your ex or to attract customers?"

    Body: Get your free report about How to get more leads with Facebook.

    URL.

    The URL was a squeeze page with a free report about Facebook advertising and at the end my information to implement the solution.

    Hope it helps

    I am happy to see that in the forum are more people that know how to market beyond the "cold calling" mentality.
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  • Profile picture of the author rafterman
    I'm finishing up the copy for mine. I like the "x amount of people are looking line"
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  • Profile picture of the author bjallen
    I try to personalize it as much as possible. Here is an example:


    Cheers!
    BJ
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  • Profile picture of the author Steven Carl Kelly
    We dropped postcards a while ago. We developed a particular mailing that gets an enormous open/response rate. For our last campaign, that response rate was over 88%, which we believe is pretty good (229 responses out of 260 mailed).

    But if you're sticking with postcards, I like BJ's example.
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  • Profile picture of the author Transcripts
    I'm with BJ :-)
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  • Profile picture of the author Sofia378
    you need to make sure your identity system (logo, business cards, stationery) represents your business well, and reflects the kind of work you do.
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  • Profile picture of the author bjallen
    Gregg, That is an awesome idea! I hope it brings you much success!

    Let me know how it works 4 u!!!

    BJ
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  • Profile picture of the author Jimian
    It's all about personalizing it and capturing their attention...a picture of THEIR website, THEIR BUSINESS, their COMPETITORS on a postcard and then I found that by adding a link that they can go to: www yoursite com/their biz or their name for something free...free report...free website analysis, etc

    JIM
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    • Profile picture of the author Doran Peck
      Originally Posted by Jimian View Post

      It's all about personalizing it and capturing their attention...a picture of THEIR website, THEIR BUSINESS, their COMPETITORS on a postcard and then I found that by adding a link that they can go to: www yoursite com/their biz or their name for something free...free report...free website analysis, etc

      JIM
      You know...I took a look at Jimians postcard course ( from Fiverr ) and I thought it was really well done. Great info, great examples. Great use of "Familiarity"...which is one of the strongest response elements you can utilize. He demonstrates these in easy to implement ways...you don't need advanced graphic skills. There are some good resources in it as well ( although none of them as inexpensive as mine ) But you can't go wrong with anything he is recommending. It gets my thumbs up.

      If I were smart I'd make a course and sell it too ...but I'm not that smart yet
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