Postcards can drive a huge amount of traffic to your web site, generate a flood of new sales leads or produce a surge in any business activity you want. And you don't have to spend a lot of time or money on them ...if you apply these four little-known postcard marketing secrets.

Postcard Marketing Secret #1: Keep Your Message Very Brief

Don't try to close sales with postcards. You don't have enough space to provide all the information needed to close sales.

Instead, briefly state the major benefit(s) you offer to attract the reader's attention. Then focus on motivating them to get more detailed information from a source where you can close sales. For example, send them to your web site or give them a phone number to call.

Postcard Marketing Secret #2: Design Your Postcard To Look Like A Message From A Friend.

Most postcards I see look like an ad in a magazine. But when a postcard looks like advertising, people react to it as advertising. They don't pay much attention to it.

Instead, set up your postcard to look like a brief personal message from a friend. This attracts attention and lures prospects into reading your postcard ...even though they realize it is advertising. It generates a lot more replies than postcards that look like an ad.

Postcard Marketing Secret #3: Don't Spend a Lot on Printing

Postcards that look like a personal message can be very inexpensive to print. For example, here are 2 ways you can do the job on any computer with a printer:

* Print postcards on plain (no printed lines) 4 x 6 inch index cards. Cost: about 1.5 cents per card.

* Print 4 postcards at a time on 8 1/2 x 11 inch sheets of standard index card stock. Then cut the sheets into quarters. Each postcard will be 4 1/4 inches high by 5 1/2 inches wide. Cost: about 1 cent per card.

Tip: In the US you can send postcards by First Class Mail for 23 cents if you make them at least 3 1/2 inches high by 5 inches wide but not over 4 1/4 inches high by 6 inches wide.

Postcard Marketing Secret #4: Don't Underestimate the Importance of Your Mailing List

You can generate a high percentage of replies by sending your postcards to prospects likely to be interested in your offer AND who have a proven record of taking action on offers that interest them.

This is why postcards produce a big response when you send them to your existing customers. But how can you find new prospects with these same 2 characteristics? Here are 2 ways:

1. Rent the customer lists of companies that are not your competitors, but who sell their products or services to the same targeted market.

2. Rent the paid subscriber lists of magazines and newsletters read by prospects in your targeted market.

You can get both lists through most mailing list brokers.

The next time you want to generate a flood of traffic to your web site or a flood of new sales leads ...send postcards. Apply these four little-known postcard marketing secrets and you'll produce a big response without spending a lot of time or money.

Copyright 2005 Bob Leduc

Bob Leduc spent 20 years helping businesses like yours find new customers and increase sales. He just released a New Edition of his manual, How To Build Your Small Business Fast With Simple Postcards ...and launched *BizTips from Bob*, a newsletter to help small businesses grow and prosper. You'll find his low-cost marketing methods at: http://BobLeduc.com or call: 702-658-1707 After 10 AM Pacific Time/Las Vegas, NV