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jamesray50
06-06-2011, 02:07 PM
Do you think a letter or postcard has a better chance of being read?

tylerhutchinson
06-06-2011, 02:13 PM
Depends on what you are trying to promote. If you have to explain something or go into details to where it will not fit effectively on a postcard then I would say a letter. I think if you can fit what you need on a postcard do that. People perceive postcards as being more personable and are more willing to at least glance at it. With letters you have to put it in an envelope and if someone sees it with a generic label they most likely will not even open it. I know I am that way. The post card is already right there I might as well glance at it. Letters that I know aren't important go straight to trash.

One thing with postcards too you can make them a little more colorful and flashy which will also catch the potential readers attention!

phanio
06-06-2011, 02:18 PM
Good advice. I would also suggest that if you do letters, hand write the address - it makes it more personal and with either choice, never use "current resident" use their name.

I think your choice comes down to your customers - your customers might not like either. Have you talked to your current customers to see what they might like seeing? Or, even where they get their information - it might not be by any type of mail.

Spider
06-06-2011, 02:35 PM
The first two replies are interesting in that neither answers the question, but both make a good job of answering questions that were not asked---

Do you think a letter or postcard has a better chance of being read?The question is which has the best chance of being read, not the best chance of being comprehended, acted upon or even being liked.

There is no doubt that a postcard is more likely to be read, because the matter to be read is right there on the surface. One has to read it to discover that you didn't want to read it - so it is read. An envelope must be opened before it can be read and can easily be thrown away unopened. That's why the big picture postacard is so effective - it is "read" and absorbed before the reader is aware of what happened.

Now, the other elements come into play, which I'll leave to the previous posts to deal with.

MostHeather
06-06-2011, 03:42 PM
I'd personally be more likely to glance at a post card over opening a piece of mail that didn't come from a known source. Not sure if that helps, but just my humble opinion. ;)

DLWindsor
06-17-2011, 08:08 PM
I agree, and believe the postcard is the better option. By providing something to your audience/consumer that captures their attention right away, without going through the hassle of opening something is key to keeping someone interested. Not to mention, the postcard option could even be the more cost effective option.

lav
06-17-2011, 10:54 PM
If a letter was addressed to me personally it would guarantee i open it. Depending on what the letter says determines on how much of it I will "read". A postcard however may be glanced at without me even thinking but if its not presenting an effective design that sparks interest within the first .25 seconds of that glance it is more likely to be discarded without me actually "reading it"

looking at it...... reading it..... 2 different things

bizmultiplier
06-21-2011, 12:46 PM
I agree. The postcard has a better chance of being read (if done properly). A handwritten envelope, also has a good chance. Good advice from the previous posts.

huggytree
06-28-2011, 09:39 PM
ive tried post cards....results???????? ZERO responses.....

the ONLY thing that works for me is a hand written envelope and a flier with bullet points....make it something that can be quickly be read in a few seconds....sure make a section inside the flier with a nice detailed paragraph or 2, but the main flier/letter should be large bold titles

ive had fantastic results from my fliers....i send them 3x a year to every potential customer....i havent done as well lately, but in years past ive gotten a 2-3 percent response every batch

the trick is to make your advertising not look like advertising(junk mail).....no way to do that w/ post cards..

I always write 'Attn. whoever' on the letter....if you address it to someone specifically its almost guaranteed to get opened

do you have a set amount of customers your trying to reach or is this a 100,000 letter idea?

if you give me a fax # i can send you a few of my fliers to show you what works for me