A Marketer’s Life

Postcards are a wonderful solution for giving out information. They can be used if you want to advertise your business, announce an event for your family or community, or to say hello to someone. They cost less to print than brochures or flyers, and can be mailed for less too. Here are some basics about postcard printing.

Before you begin, there are two major decisions that must be made. You need to know if the postcards will be sent through the mail and what size you want to use. Once you have made these decisions, you can start creating your postcards.

The United States Postal Service has specific dimensions for postcards. The sizes that can be sent as postcards are as follows: the height must be at least 3-1/2 inches but not more than 4-1/4 inches, and the length must be at least 5 inches but not more than 6 inches. If the item is smaller than the minimum dimensions, it cannot be mailed. If the item is larger than these dimensions, it does not qualify for postcard postage, but must pay the price of a first class letter.

If you are planning to mail your cards, remember to leave a space of the stamp and the address. This space must be on the right half of the postcard. The space in the upper right corner must be clear for a stamp and sufficient space must be included for the address.

If you decide to use the whole space of the card, you could send it in an envelope. Before you make the decision, make sure an envelope is available for the postcard size you have chosen. You do not want to come to the unfortunate realization that your postcards cannot be sent to their recipients.

Once you have made the decisions about mailing the cards and their size, this is when the design process can begin. It does not matter if you are using these postcards to advertise a business or for a personal matter, always remember to keep it simple. You have lots of options when designing a postcard. You could use full color, or all the colors you want on both sides, or just a few simple colors, or black and white only. There is also the choice of paper. You could choose to use a plain paper or one that is glossy. Be sure to select a paper choice that is heavy weight, like that of card stock. These special options will affect the price. Using full color for both sides and using a specialty paper will increase the costs.

Make sure to list the basic information required by the people who will receive the postcard. If advertising a business, describe in a few key words regarding what your business has to offer. You could always add a promotion to the card, an incentive for first time visitors or give away a free item if the customer brings the postcard to your business. These principles apply for events and for personal correspondence. Always make sure you have listed the time, date, and location for the event.

Postcards are meant to grab your attention. Make sure to list your contact information, like telephone number, website, or email address so people can get in touch with you. You may be able to do your postcard printing at home using templates from your word processing program and specialty paper. Otherwise, contact a local printer to help you with presentation folder printing.

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