I saved all the postcards I received over the course of three months. I was mailed 45 postcards. They came in all shapes and quality. I noticed that very few were written directly to me. It seemed like the cards were talking to some dissociated third party. Most had too much copy. And, when you spread them all out on a table, none of them really stood out. 
Postcards are a great medium. They are especially effective for testing marketing messages and offers. The best reason to use a postcard for your marketing is that postcards have a 100% open rate.
Here are a few thoughts about postcards and postcard marketing:
- You should be able to consume a postcard in one minute or less. That means less than 300 words total.
- Headlines are critical, on both sides of the card.
- People don’t read the front of the card first. You don’t know which side people will read first, so design each side as if the other side does not exist.
- Crop in tight on faces. Let the imagination fill in the rest. You want to make eye contact with your audience.
- Bigger is better. Small, 4X6 postcards can be easily lost in a stack of mail. 6X9 or larger is preferred. But, don’t add more copy because of the larger size.
- When you mail, split your list into two and just change one variable on the card such as the offer or headline. See which card pulls better.
- Postcards are also good if you have a shortened deadline for mailing. Postcards are easy for the post office to handle if addressed and sorted properly. You can cut days off your mailing.
