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How to Easily Use Post Cards to Boost Trade Show Results

There was a time when the primary purpose of post cards was to make the people at home jealous while you were on vacation. Now they promote Jiffy Lube franchises more often than they boost trade show results. But I’m here to suggest that should change.

As a direct mail vehicle, post cards can’t be beat, and they’re a cost effective way for companies of all sizes to make prospects aware of their participation in an upcoming show. Postage is just 34 cents, so you’re not spending a fortune to get your message into the hands of your target audience.

And because many marketers have jumped on the online bandwagon, investing in paid display advertising like banners and space ads, post cards are fewer and farther between, meaning your prospects aren’t already drowning in a sea of direct mail.

That means your message stands out—even more than a letter. Why? A letter needs to be opened in order to discover its message. A post card is like a miniature billboard, delivering your pre-show message instantly, to even the laziest mail recipient.

A post card is like a miniature billboard, delivering your pre-show message instantly. Click To Tweet

According to a recent survey, more sales are made through direct mail than through online advertising. And in the business to business market, 79% of professionals consider direct mail to be “effective” or “very effective.”

With other forms of advertising, you’re paying for eyeballs, but not necessarily the right ones. Post cards get delivered right into the hands of your prospects and customers. So they have to see your message. And it’s not likely to get tossed into a pile to be viewed “later.” Communication is instantaneous. The US Post Office found that post cards are the most likely to be read form of mail. (They may toss your post card, but most likely – they did read it!)

Now, whether those prospects and customers respond the way you hope they will is completely dependent on how well you do the job of designing the post card.

To be effective, your prospect needs to understand your message within seconds of glancing at it.

The key is to offer a visually arresting enticement, either through text or visuals (artwork or photography), or both.

And you’ve got one and a half sides of the card with which to accomplish this (roughly half the back of the card is set aside for postage and addressing).

Your message needs to make sense from either side of the card, since you have no way of knowing which way the card will be facing when the reader receives it. From the front or the back, you want to get the reader involved immediately.

To make a written message as strong as possible, think like a newspaper reporter: your focus should be on a headline that captures interest, followed by additional information in easily digestible amounts.

While a reporter does this with paragraphs following the headline, you’ve got sentences—or even better, sentence fragments. And you can only present one or two key points.

If your message requires more than the one or two points you can make on a single post card, consider sending a series of cards (imprinted “One In A Series Of Five,” “Two In A Series Of Five,” etc).

This allows you to make your points more completely, and also makes your marketing message more memorable (you’d remember receiving a series of post cards, wouldn’t you?).

Your choice of graphics will be determined by your audience and your objectives.

The ideal visual will invite interest in your text. But it’s also got to “carry its own weight” by attracting attention while still leaving room for the most important part of the mailing: your message.

Here are some key elements to be sure you include:

• Company name
• Show name
• Booth number
• Special offer

The first three are self-explanatory. The last one is important, because it creates a reason for recipients to hang onto the card, and perhaps even bring it to the show to redeem for a gift or receive your special offer.

Consider a different-sized post card for even better results.

The Online Marketing Institute reports that oversized post cards tend to get more attention, so try a large format card.

Several exhibitors report having successfully used cards as large as 8 x 10 (which require additional postage) to get their message to prospects.

There’s another factor at play here, and that’s the list. While your own in-house list will always perform best, renting a list is a good way to increase the reach of your offer.

Again, the Online Marketing Institute claims, “Direct mail list vendors have been working on their databases for decades. Email lists are improving, but they are still not at the same level of quality. This means that your direct mail list from a good vendor will be more tightly targeted on your desired customer.”

Don’t limit the value of a post card campaign to pre-show marketing efforts. This can also be an effective way to follow up on leads from the show.

Consider putting a program in place where salespeople send post cards to the leads they personally met at the show, reminding them of their visit and offering them show special pricing (if they didn’t write an order) or order details (if they did).

Costs for post card mailing campaigns vary according to format, type of printing (color vs. black and white), size and quantity. You might want to get estimates from two or three printers to make sure you’re getting the best price. There are printing services that specialize in post cards, and many of them can offer a variety of special services, such as personalizing each card.

Post cards are versatile, relatively inexpensive, effective and easy to use. For your next trade show, consider the value of the hard-working post card to boost your trade show results.

Once you’ve gotten prospects to your booth, the work of converting those prospects into customers can be helped or hindered by your exhibit.

If the display you’re using now isn’t helping you close sales, let us help you design a new booth that gives you all the tools you need to market your company effectively.  Contact Us  or call us: 1(800) 676-3976

For more ideas, see how to use direct mail at trade shows or the power of trade show giveaways.

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