Business marketers of the world, brace yourselves. There’s a tsunami of emails coming. According to the Radicati Group, a technology market research firm, there will be over 206 billion emails sent or received every day by 2017. There were 183 billion total emails sent or received just two years ago, and 100.5 billion were business emails.
If that’s not a sign that it makes sense to send dimensional mail to help market your business, we don’t know what is.
There’s one printed product that’s just the ticket for small- and medium-size businesses to use instead of emails. It’s the note card, that old reliable marketing tactic.
Sending note cards is an effective marketing strategy that you can implement quickly and inexpensively.
Aside from that daily email onslaught, note cards work for lots of reasons. Nobody gets good mail anymore. We get tons of junk – and bills. Think of how getting a personally addressed note card or letter perks you right up. How fast do you toss aside all that other impersonal mail to open up an envelope that’s hand addressed to you?
Exactly.
A dimensional mail card puts you back on top of the recipient’s mind. It’s a personal communication that causes an immediate reaction. Most emails just can’t do that.
Check out these 9 ideas for when to send note cards to market your business:
After meeting a prospect or a customer.
Maybe you had coffee, lunch, or a meeting with a customer or someone interested in working with you. Send a note card to say thanks.
After meeting people at networking events or trade shows.
After you collect business cards at events, send note cards to people who made an impression and/or would be ideal clients. Do it within days to maximize impact.
After listening to an enlightening speaker.
If a business presentation blows you away with insights and inspiration, thank the speaker with a note card. You never know where it might lead.
After giving a presentation.
As a public speaker, you should at the very least send a note of thanks to your host/s. If the group’s small enough and you can get their contact information, send the audience members note cards, too.
To thank someone for their actions.
When someone does you a favor of any kind, send them a card even if you’ve called or emailed them. Here are great reasons: they referred you to someone else; they mentioned you by name in a webinar, article, or blog post; they gave you advice pro bono about a problem you were having; they simply took the time to meet you for coffee or lunch to catch up.
To thank someone for their purchase.
This works well for small business owners, especially solo practitioners. If you sell books, for example, thank customers with a note card.
To acknowledge an anniversary or other special occasion.
On every anniversary of a client engagement, send that client a note card. If you’re aware of key milestones for their businesses, send a card.
To congratulate a customer or colleague.
If you’re active on LinkedIn and get those emailed notices alerting you to connections’ birthdays, work anniversaries or new positions, send them note cards. This gesture is much more meaningful than the standard online LinkedIn acknowledgment.
Just because.
Send note cards every now and then to customers and prospects just because it’s personal. It says, “I’m thinking of you.” It’s a welcome gesture.
Make a Lasting Impact
Make sure your branded stationary includes some sort of personal touch, like a handwritten address or stamps you apply yourself. Over time, recipients will recognize your company name and logo. People will know you took the time to get in touch with good old-fashioned mail. Many of them will hang onto your cards. While all those billions of emails go whizzing by, your 1st class note card will stop traffic and get noticed.
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