{"id":3273,"date":"2018-08-10T00:54:09","date_gmt":"2018-08-10T07:54:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.modernostrategies.com\/?p=3273"},"modified":"2022-08-05T15:43:42","modified_gmt":"2022-08-05T22:43:42","slug":"mailchimp-direct-mail-postcards-first-look","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.modernostrategies.com\/blog\/mailchimp-direct-mail-postcards-first-look\/","title":{"rendered":"Will MailChimp Direct Mail Postcards Improve Your Marketing?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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MailChimp direct mail postcards may have been inevitable. It seemed only a matter of time before integrating direct mail with email marketing programs would go mainstream. And there isn\u2019t a more mainstream email service provider than MailChimp.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Earlier this summer MailChimp launched a beta postcard direct mail service. MailChimp has been talking about marketing automation capabilities for several years now, and I wanted to see if their Postcards beta feature set allowed integrating direct mail postcards into a drip marketing program.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The convergence of my favorite email service provider and postcards, my favorite direct mail format, was something I had to try out.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Skip the postcard editing process and skip to the Mailchimp Postcards review<\/a>.<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

Creating Your MailChimp Postcard<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Firing up my MailChimp account I found it as just easy to create a postcard as it is to create a simple email.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Click the Create Campaign button and select Postcard.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"mailchimp<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

After naming the postcard you\u2019re presented with a straightforward editor.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"mailchimp<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The editor pretty much shows you everything there is to do on one simple screen. The recipient list and front and backside of the postcard are visible at a glance. You can select any list or any segment you already have created. You will, of course, need to have mailing address data in the list. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you select a list without mailing addresses MailChimp will kindly tell you there is a problem with the list in their own chimpy way.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"mailchimp<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

When you select your list MailChimp will inform you how many recipients on the list will get the postcard. It doesn\u2019t warn you if some of the list is missing address data so pay attention that number of recipients is what you expect.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"mailchimp<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Editing the postcard is straightforward. Select a single 1875px by 1350px image for the front, and type the heading, body text, and optional logo for the back.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The front preview has a print guides option that indicates the nominal trim line and safe area.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"mailchimp<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Here\u2019s what the editor looks like when the postcard is ready to send.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"mailchimp<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Click the Send button and you\u2019re done!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How Good Are MailChimp Direct Mail Postcards?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

When the postcards arrived in the mail they were pretty much what I expected.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s important that budget, timelines, and marketing goals are aligned.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

MailChimp Postcards are quick and inexpensive to use, but they aren’t ready for a premium brand that wants to create a great initial impression. But a small company that wants to create some initial awareness as the start of a demand generation program or get a transactional message out to its audience, may find the current state of postcards useful.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Good<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

1. It is easy to create a postcard<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Once you have the front image designed and copy written you can set up your postcard in about five minutes. It\u2019s really that easy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

An online-oriented designer needs to learn a little about bleeds and save zones so they keep important design elements away from the edges, but they definitely don\u2019t need to be a print expert.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

2. Inexpensive to send a small batch of postcards<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

I sent a test batch of postcards to five recipients for $2.80. Total cost to print and mail!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A small service business that wants to send out a change of address postcard to 250 active customers would spend less than $140.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

3. Digital print quality is fine<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

The print quality is what I\u2019d expect to see off a digital printing press such as an HP Indigo. Although I didn\u2019t test color reproduction or photographic reproduction, it is probably fine for most small companies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Limitations of MailChimp Postcards<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

I found many more things that I disliked about MailChimp Postcards than things I liked. These include:<\/p>\n\n\n\n