Direct-mail postcard printing is a powerful marketing strategy for small businesses. In fact, direct-mail boasts the best household response rate of all marketing channels, with more than $2,000 in goods sold for every $167 invested. With a return on investment (ROI) like that, there’s no doubt postcard marketing is a fantastic strategy, but you need a strong call to action to achieve those kinds of results. The following details how you can develop a call to action that motivates response and presents examples of the best postcard calls to action.
The role of a great postcard call to action
A successful postcard depends on delivering a quality offer to a well-targeted audience, plus other elements such as your postcard headline, benefits list, design and paper stock. These elements work together to command attention and create desire, and your postcard call to action — or CTA — is the bridge between that desire and direct communication with interested prospects.
In short, your postcard CTA spurs customers to take the next step in the purchasing process. That might be visiting your physical store (such as with EDDM postcards), going online to make a purchase, calling a phone number or some other action in your sales funnel.
So, how do you get customers to go from “I’m interested” to “Sign me up?” By incorporating the following three principles into your call to action.
1. Reiterate your offer
As stated, your offer plays a major role in direct-mail marketing success. A great postcard call to action will work to remind customers about the amazing benefits they’re getting when they take that next step.
You don’t need to repeat your offer verbatim. For example, your headline might read “Get $200 off” while your CTA reads “Call now to save hundreds.” If you don’t have a discount, you can restate your unique selling proposition (USP) or your primary benefit; for example: “Get the greenest yard on the block today.”
The point is, a good CTA doesn’t just tell customers what to do next; it also reinforces the reason why they should want to take that action.
2. Instill a sense of urgency
A good offer shouldn’t last forever, so creating a sense of urgency and applying it to your CTA can be the difference between customers who act now and those who set your postcard aside for a later date (that never comes).
If you have a special discount or buy-one-get-one offer, make it time-limited. If you’re selling event tickets, set an early bird discount deadline. If you have special pricing, limit it to the first 100 people who respond.
You can create a sense of urgency with your postcard copy, but your CTA should remind customers why it’s important to act now before it’s too late.
3. Be specific
Your CTA should tell customers exactly what they need to do next. Do not leave any room for uncertainty, and if there are multiple ways to respond be sure to list them.
Think through your sales process: what should customers do next that’s easy for them and will help you close a sale? Is it visiting your website with a discount coupon code? Calling your number to set up an appointment? Walking into your physical location to shop? Whatever it is, make it crystal clear in your CTA.
Best postcard calls to action (examples)
The following examples satisfy all three elements of a great postcard call to action. They reiterate the offer, they instill a sense of urgency and they are specific. Use them as templates to craft your own winning postcard CTAs.
- Save 20% when you visit YOURSITE by June 1!
- Save $200 on Beautiful Lawn Treatment when you join by June 1 – call 555-555-5555 today!
- Hurry! June 1 is the deadline to get a free 30-day gym membership – sign up at YOURSITE now
- Stop overpaying for tax preparation: Get 50% off when you call by April 1
- Get 3 months of OUR SOFTWARE 100% FREE when you join within the next 7 days at OUR SITE
- Look your best & feel amazing, starting today at YOURSITE
- Register by June 1 to get special early bird pricing & save 50% on this year’s hottest concert!
- Wait! This offer is only available to the first 100 people who respond. Stop what you’re doing and visit YOURSITE now to lock in your incredible rate!
In addition to your copy, your CTA should visually stand out from the rest of your postcard. Use contrasting colors, bold fonts, white space and other postcard design tools to ensure your call to action is loud and clear.
Ready to launch a successful direct-mail postcard marketing campaign with a powerful CTA that yields strong response rates? Maximize your ROI with discount postcard printing today!
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