You’re Using the WRONG Sized Postcard for Your Direct Mail Campaign

Sometimes — yes, it’s rare but true — a smaller postcard will work JUST FINE for your direct mail campaign. No, you do not ALWAYS NEED a bigger postcard.

The few lucky businesses that can get away with a smaller card are:

• Businesses that don’t have any competition
• Businesses with a NICHE product or service that requires a very specific mailing list

An example of the latter might be an intense 6-week baseball camp that only promotes to the parents of boys age 13-17.

But, if I’m being 100% honest with you, one thing that REALLY winds me up is when a client hires us to design a results-driven postcard for them, select the perfect mailing list, and then they use the wrong sized postcard!

There are three postcard sizes to choose from, and here’s how to know if you’re using the WRONG one…

The smallest postcard out there available to businesses (or anyone, really) is a 4.25” x 6” postcard — and to put it bluntly, it isn’t the best option for businesses with competition.

When I see a small business spending their marketing budget on a good design and list, and then effectively WASTING IT by refusing to go with a larger card… well, it bugs me!

I understand the idea behind it, of course:

Smaller postcards aren’t as costly!

Figuring that out isn’t rocket science. And saving money is a legitimate reason for choosing a smaller card. But may I also present a legitimate reason for NOT choosing a smaller card?

Larger cards are MUCH more likely to be seen.

If you disagree, I more than welcome the debate… (Keep reading and then you can leave a comment/email me…)

Here’s the thing:

Wanting to save money whenever you can is not only human nature, it’s SMART business — even when it comes to marketing. If you’re able to pinch a few pennies and still get good results from your postcard campaign, DO IT. Do it all day long!

BUT:

If you’re penny-pinching your way towards a low response, and it is actually going to affect your return on investment (ROI) and overall marketing success… just don’t. It really isn’t worth it.

Hopefully you aren’t using the wrong sized postcard on a current campaign (or planning to)!

To help, I’ve written up a few descriptions of the types of businesses that should be each using the industry’s most common postcard sizes.

These descriptions should help you decide if you’re using the wrong postcard for your business or not…

Regular Sized Postcards (4.25” x 6”)

I mentioned this above, but the businesses using this one (the smallest postcard option) should have fairly low competition in their market. That is to say: you should be the only business around that offers your product or service, or you are one of the few and your competitors don’t do much of their own marketing.

Additionally, your offer and product/service need to be easy to explain to prospects. A small postcard doesn’t present a lot of room to explain the finer details of your product or service, and you definitely don’t want to clutter a small card with copy. That spells T-R-A-S-H C-A-N for your postcard.

Jumbo Sized Postcards (6” x 8.5”)

If your business is in a market that is fairly cluttered, or you have only a few competitors but they market pretty aggressively (AND they do direct mail), you’ll want to opt for a jumbo sized postcard.

Other considerations for going jumbo:

Your product or service requires a little more explanation. Or you want to feature multiple deals and offers. (Or even just one big one.) The extra couple of inches the jumbo card provides over its smaller postcard counterpart are really going to make a difference.

Colossal Sized Postcards (6” x 11”)

These bad boys are ideal for quite a few different types of businesses. For the most part, if your small business is opting for a colossal card, you’re fighting for every spare inch of marketing space out there and competition in your industry is fierce. Being seen is vital! (If you’re a dentist, you should be nodding your head along.)

Businesses in the colossal marketing category tend to be the most ambitious, with high standards of quality (and a LOT of competition). When you send a postcard this size, you’re telling prospects that you’re serious about getting their attention and earning their business, and that translates well to your response.

Another type of business that would benefit most from a colossal sized postcard is the new or unusual business.

For example:

I recently worked with a client who transforms ordinary residential lawns into beautiful EDIBLE and organic gardens. Who wouldn’t want that? (Literally, I did — I have one now!)

Point being… Not only did this business face the challenge of explaining to their target audience how easy and inexpensive this service is, they need to GRAB YOUR ATTENTION. You most likely aren’t sitting around thinking about how much you wish your front lawn was a lush edible garden, so they have to use a little more real estate to make you pay attention.

So there it is! The three most common postcard sizes, and which businesses should be using each of them.

Be honest — have you been short-changing yourself with a small card?

Tell me in the comments section below! If you’d like to speak with one of our 25 professional marketing consultants about a postcard marketing campaign perfectly suited (and sized) for your business, call 1-800-628-1804. And like always, you can email me directly at Joy.Gendusa@PostcardMania.com!

Best,

Joy