Writing copy for a promotional postcard is an art. But it’s an art like making good chocolate chip cookies is an art: after you follow the directions a couple times, you get comfortable and start to tweak things here and there.
You discover how to adjust the recipe to your tastes and how to make room for the desires of others. If your dad needs walnuts in his batch (blech!) you can make that happen. There are a myriad of chocolate chip cookie variations out there but they are all from the same basic recipe. There is no sense in messing with a proven winner.
Here’s the basic recipe (and proven winner) for a promotional message on a postcard:
- Attention grabbing headline
- What you are promoting
- Call to action
That’s it. Simple, direct, intriguing. Here. Have a taste:
- Healthy, Economical and You Don’t Have to Wrap It!
- Gift certificate packages for the holidays.
- Call or visit my website before October 31st, 2009, for
 more information.
Or …
- More Time. More Money. More Sanity.
- Gift certificate packages available now.
- Call or visit my website for more information.
Or …
- We Can Take Care of This Right Now.
- One call or email from you gives your friends and family a healthy, luxurious experience.
- Call or visit my website for more on gift certificate packages.
See? Variations on a recipe. They all promote gift certificate packages and all provide a solution for time and convenience.
But not every message is suitable for every client. Adjusting the recipe to fit your clients’ taste is where your knowledge, intuition and care — your art — comes in.
Diana and I have written a slew of articles on simple ways to reach out to specific clients. When you visit our site, slide on over to the right side and click on our smiling faces. You’ll find lots of other ways to sweeten your practice and keep things cooking.
All my best,
Eileen
This article also runs in our Winter flyer. Keep an eye peeled on your mailbox for it. If you’re not on our mailing list, you can request a sample.
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14 users commented in " Tips for Copy on Promotional Postcards: “Look to the cookie!” "
Eileen,
Great post! It really can be as simple as that. I am one to talk though. Every time I sit down to create a new mailing, I always have a tendency to over analyze and over complicate things. I am getting better, however.
My one conundrum is finding contact information for my target market in my community. I am still growing my practice in my community, but don’t want to do a “Postal Patron” or “Resident” mailing. I want to target a certain group, say for instance, stay at home moms. Do you know of a good mailing list company that allows you to really get specific on your demographics/psychographics that doesn’t make you buy a zillion names?? (which, of course, makes it totally unaffordable for me.)
Thanks for any advice you can give.
Simple is hard. Determining what your clients *want* to know/hear takes some doing … and practice. And, yes, practice helps a lot. One day, it will just click. Or so I hear. It’s still a struggle for me.
Yeah, let’s avoid the zillion names thing. I don’t know of any mailing list services off hand. I guess the first place I would look would be at your local printers. Seems like they would have a decent connection or two. Also any local marketing companies … ?
I would consider seeing what you can do to be included in any related service mailings. To keep your example of Stay at Home Moms, I’d work to make connections with child development teachers or pre-natal yoga instructors. See if you can get them to mention you in one/some of their mailings/emailings.
It also would be a great opportunity to share your philosophies and goals of your work with these teachers. If they believe in you, they will recommend you more enthusiastically.
BTW, I would consider having the 2nd sentence of your opening paragraphs be the focus “headline” of your home page. OR the last part of the last sentence starting at “… massage can help you feel … ” Those are strong sentences that speak directly to your target clients.
Please, keep me posted on your doings and thoughts.
Eileen
Great post Eileen. You are such a great copy writer! In response to thebodymechanic, if she is keen to reach ‘stay at home moms’, then I suggest go and mingle with them! You can always give them the postcard personally….and that personal connection will really pay off. Hang out wherever they do, and if you see a mom pushing a pram, give her a warm hello and offer her a card! Why not? People buy from people they know and like and that brings you one step closer.
All the best!
Krishna
Hey Krishna! Long time no hear!
Yes, absolutely be prepared to mingle. It can be awkward putting yourself out there. But if you chose the appropriate time and person (NOT a frazzled mom with two frazzled kids getting into a car in the pouring rain) you’ll get encouraging results.
As I always say, getting to introduce yourself face-to-face is the best thing you can possibly do to get new clients.
I like that some people occasionally use postcards like hyped-up business cards. Depending on your marketing plans and personality, postcards can allow you to be more flexible AND immediate.
Check out this entry and substitute “postcards” for “business cards” if the spirit moves you: http://www.naturaltouchmarketing.com/blog/marketing-matters/2009/05/business-card-specifics/
Nice post!
Too bad you are stealing bandwidth and graphics. That cookie was custom-designed on another site–cookbookpeople.com–and you are just linking to the image hosted there.
Welp, Ted, I’ll tell you; when I was looking for cookie graphics I entered “cookie image” in Google and this was the most fun one. I figured that since it was on Google images at the time with no proprietary language I could use it.
I did attribute the graphic to http://www.cookbookpeople.com/blog (hold cursor over the image — I couldn’t figure out how to link the image directly to the blog) since the blog was the only location I could find to give credit to, and giving credit is polite.
So, my bad on the image. Just assumed the blog got it the same way I did; from somewhere on the internet. My apologies there.
I’m not sure where “stealing bandwidth” comes in.
I will change the picture today. Thank you for letting me know my error. Email me directly at marketingmatters@comcast.net if you have further concerns.
Writing effectively in general is an art form, but writing effective promotional copy is like solving a Rubik’s cube. This process takes a special person with wit and concise thinking.
This is true.
Most MTs/bodyworkers are one person businesses. Most of them have not had much, if any, business-building training. Most have trouble deciding who they are talking to, never mind what their message is. Most are reluctant to “bother” their clients in any way.
Because bodyworking is a highly personalized profession Natural Touch Marketing encourages bodyworkers to continue the conversation and the care as “naturally” as possible. Meaning: whatever message they send out to their clients should be in the bodyworker’s voice and focused on what they know their clients’ needs to be.
Baby steps. Baby steps.
It’s ALWAYS a good idea to KISS–keep it simple! Also, whenever writing, put it down for awhile – till tomorrow? and then read with your clients’ eyes. Does it say enough to inform AND pique their interest …..in a concise way? I’ve read that to include a finite date/time to the call-to-action may instill immediacy. Thanks for the blog, this is cool, Eileen
Good reminders, Nanette.
Deadlines are good for some things. Okay, many things, really.
In an effort to keep this article simple, I didn’t touch on that. The factors involved in gift certificates and Christmas are:
1. Men buy most of the certificates (as a rule),
2. Most certificates are purchased 10-7 days before Christmas,
3. People need about three “contacts,” — preferably in three different formats (email, snail mail, letter, newsletter, ad, flyer, phone call, etc.) — to actually register the fact that you have gift certificates for sale.
I, personally, like to prompt people a little after Halloween (“Gift certificates make great hostess gifts”), RIGHT after Thanksgiving (“Give something meaningful for Christmas”) and then the last contact around 12/10 (“Remember how you scrambled to find a thoughtful gift last year?” or “Are you still in the doghouse for last year’s present?”)
In THIS situation, the last two contacts are when I emphasize a deadline.
But when there is an immediacy issue — like there being not very much time between Christmas and Valentine’s —Â or when you are offering a special, go right for the deadline.
Aren’t you glad you brought that up? ;D
Eileen
Postcards achieve almost a 100% readership and have an impressive ROI, while being inexpensive and simple to use. But its design is an essential factor in making it work for your business promotion.
Oversized postcards pack a punch. Try visiting Mommy stores and schools. Look in the phone book for men stores and ask owner if you may place postcards in their store marketing gift certificates.
Diamond
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