[A+CleaningService]

Hiya,   Has anyone used postcards has flyers?  Instead of a standard flyer.  I was told that they are not thrown in the bin so quick, people are more likely to hang on to them. Any truth to that?

[Joe H]

Thinking about it at the moment. So interested to hear the thoughts of others who may do it.

[markpowell]

i have used postcards with great success, yes you are correct that people do hold onto them sometimes, wher as the cheaper leaflets may end up in the bin on delivery. With the leafleting it is a numbers game so be prepared to give it 100%, no point in putting 500 out then sit waiting for the phone to ring.
Mark

[JandS]

Just got my postcards, double sided shiny on one.
Put 230 out Tuesday, nothing yet but then didn't expect
much in this weather.

John

[deep-cleaningukltd]

I use double sided glossy cards. Easier to put through letter box if nothing else. Return varies at different times of year but being consistant is key. Have had people phone months after the initial drop having "just found" our card in their draw.

I would go further than markpowell and say there no point in putting 5000 out and then waiting for the phone to ring. Better to put 1000+/wk out for consistant returns; but then your costs also mount. Like Mark I will say it's just a numbers game. In general, and I'm sure some will disagree, leaflets will not give the return of a well written and well placed ad. Leaflets are about hitting the right person at the right time. Ad's are about being there for the one's who want your service but have not been lucky enough to have received your leaflet.

Also, a cheap tacky flier will give the impression of being a cheap tacky business although it depends what your market is. We often receive a flimsy bit of yellow paper from a local cleaning service offering full room clean's from £15, Suites from £30. Look's cheap and nasty and I have had the joy of recleaning some carpets just a few week's after this "Service" has been round...not that I'm bitter.

Adi

[Hilton]

Yes we use A5 post cards my advice would be............... target - target - target .

What you heard was correct people do hang on to them for longer but you must still repeat the process on a regular basis.

We obtain mailing lists from a professional company that ensures all the correct checks have been carried out such as mortascreen etc.

By target I mean ask them to provide you with a list in a particular post code or codes of all consumers in the ABC bracket aged 25 -60 (or what ever age your aiming at) then you can break it down and post out your cards on a weekly/monthly basis.

Take your time over the card content and you might want to put something on it with an offer that can be used while they have the card in their possession obviously this encourages them to hang on to it.If you send them another card with another offer on it in the course of your marketing then make sure on the new card it states, that this offer supersedes the previous one.

They work reasonably well but are just part of our marketing mix.  

[Mike Halliday]

 I've tried postcard size and the problem is its hard to get your message across, a flyer or postcard should be 'salesmanship in print'. A postcard will have enough space to sell 2 ideas ( 1 on each side of the flyer) so if you want to talk about multiple things eg;
 stain removal,
upholstery cleaning,
carpet cleaning
free estimates
100% guarantee
local company...etc...etc...etc

then you don't have enough room and you just end up listing them with bullet points, which is'nt ideal.

also the cost of postcard is double that of a flyer so taking into the account the delivery cost (which will be the same) will postcards  bring in 30% more work, I don't think so

[Shaun_Ashmore]

If I were posting them myself I would want greater return for less shoe leather so a card should be better, if I were paying for them to be delivered I would go paper every time as it is on mass, the idea of paying for delivery is that you are out cleaning and picking up the work as for personal delivery it's more of a message not an advert.

Shaun

[Hilton]

I've tried postcard size and the problem is its hard to get your message across, a flyer or postcard should be 'salesmanship in print'. A postcard will have enough space to sell 2 ideas ( 1 on each side of the flyer) so if you want to talk about multiple things eg;
 stain removal,
upholstery cleaning,
carpet cleaning
free estimates
100% guarantee
local company...etc...etc...etc

then you don't have enough room and you just end up listing them with bullet points, which is'nt ideal.

also the cost of postcard is double that of a flyer so taking into the account the delivery cost (which will be the same) will postcards  bring in 30% more work, I don't think so

Not 30% more work but over 30% more value if targeted,

there is more than enough room on a A5 post card to get your message across, we make a point of not bullet pointing, don't think this works at all at least not in our experience just wastes valuable space.

Definitely not delivered yourself posting them is much more profitable in the long run and is more likely to have the desired affect.

But hey, what works for you is what counts.

[neil55]

The quality of your leaflet and the weight of card used are two critical factors.

In a previous life stage I have been involved in producing and issuing 10s of Millions of leaflets - so my views are based on experience.

We only ever use 300gsm card - this gives the leaflet/card a good "hand feel" and it immediaty stands out.

We only ever use 4 colour - again for impact and quality.

The design/content is up to the individual - its what works for you!We take great care with the copy content - the rules are mega simple ...

Tell em Who ur

Tell em what u do

Tell em why they should choose/call u!

All this in a few seconds!

Bear in mind that this is a numbers game - deliver 1000 leaflets get 3/4 orders - the ecomomics work - they must work  or do not do it!!

hope this helps!

Neil

[Mike Halliday]

Hilton A5 is not a postcard its a leaflet, so you are using a thick leaflet not a postcard (which is A6)

so you are correct that there is plenty of room on A5  but my comments were based on a postcard being half A5 which is A6 (the normal size of a post card)

[paul moss]

Mike, this far down the line  , are you still marketing with flyers?

[Mike Halliday]

got 40,000 going out this month & Feb, doing a deal with my local Furniture clinic franchise he is on  one side me the other.

but it still brings in 8-9 new customers every week and reminds my existing customers to give me a call.

[Mike Halliday]

just to clarify I've doubled my leaflets this month and Feb to combat the normally slow start to the year. I usually only do 20,000

this week I have booked 2 big jobs that will pay my leaflet expense for the month,

I love leaflets, they always make money

[paul moss]

Mike thats amazing ive known you market like this now with leaflets alone for nearly 7 years. 9 new customers a week from that is an extra 400 per year.

You must have a megga customer data base now

It must be about 18 months now since i stopped marketing leaflets in that volume.

Whats your costs on dist these days? are you still delivering a percentage yourself or is it 100% out side dist.

[Shaun_Ashmore]

What is your average job ticket Mike?

Your distibution company realy look after you compared to ones around me they charge far less than mine and also your target area is Beverly where as i get a share of Sheffield good and bad bits, some negatives but I have tested it and that's why I don't leaflet.

BTW my annual average job ticket £140-£150 although it does change quite abit through the year.

Shaun

[Mike Halliday]

just had 40k leaflets delivered today cost me £312 from printcarrier, plus £600 to have them delivered so that's £912 for 2 months so £456 a month so £118 a week between 2 of us so I pay £55 a week to get 8-9 new customers.

it was still worth it with out the deal I did with F/C

average job price? not too sure but evened out I'd say £110ish

[Neil Williams]

Thinking about it at the moment. So interested to hear the thoughts of others who may do it.

Find out shortly, if and when they arrive.
Tried A5 glossy leaflets and what a waste of time and money that was.
I'm expecting a better responce than the 1% or less that leaflets produce and 1% is considered good isn't it?

[Shaun_Ashmore]

Not a lover of glossy leaflets I expect them to have 12" pizza meat feasts or chicken tikka meal deals on them.

Shaun

[kinder clean]

I use A4 tri-fold, put plenty of information in there and make it look professional, offers are important as well.

I designed a new one and had 10.000 printed, they have special offers with an expiry date of 31st January just to try and jump start the quiet period.

I took Marks advice and I try and put them out late afternoon, I will let you know how things go.

I would advise you get yourself a piece of software that lets you get a bit creative yourself, I spent a lot of time learning how to use mine properly ( cant teach an old dog new tricks ) but I enjoy it and you can keep it fresh, plus you never seem to get exactly what your trying for when someone else does it for you. ( and you save £75 design fee each time - thats for a tri fold A4 )

* Get software that will publish to PDF.

Paul