Page 29 - 100 Great Copywriting Ideas: From Leading Companies Around the World (100 Great Ideas)

8 WISH YOU WERE HERE

Have you ever got a postcard in your morning’s post and not read
it? Me neither. There’s something compelling about that small, stiff
piece of card that says “Read me.” So why not consider putting that
factor to work for you in your marketing campaigns?

Postcards have a number of advantages over traditional mailpacks.
They’re cheaper, there’s no need for an envelope, they have instant
visual appeal, they only need one hand to read, they have a “fun
factor,” and they look less daunting. As a series, you can also
use them to communicate a complex idea in stages, drip-feeding
information to your target without overtaxing them.

The idea

From a computer services company
I once wrote an eight-card series for this client, promoting a new IT
maintenance contract. The idea was to stimulate awareness among
corporate IT managers and build their database.

We announced on the first card that there would be a quiz on the
final one with a prize of a day’s tank driving. The hook was that
the questions would relate to the information provided on the first
seven cards—a big incentive to look out for them and keep reading.
They achieved maximum exposure for minimum outlay and gained
lots of new names for their database, too.

Because you don’t need an envelope, you can also throw away the
rule book about acceptable sizes. Yes, you can have an A5 or an A6
postcard. But why not try a half-page A4 vertical format? Or a 100mm

20 • 100 GREAT COPYWRITING IDEAS