How to Write a Home Cleaning Service Direct Mail Postcard

Postcards are excellent vehicles for small business advertisement (even in this day and age of the Internet) if your business is catering to a local clientele and offering a service that cannot be outsourced overseas.

For example, lawn moving needs to be a local service, by the very definition of the term. You can’t buy lawn moving service from another state or country (not yet anyway).

But how should you write and design a postcard to market your local services if, let's say, you run a home cleaning business?

Easy. Follow these steps:

FRONT OF THE POSTCARD: Make sure you have the photo of a nice and gorgeous house.

Why? Most poor and middle-income people do not hire home cleaning services. It's the rich folks that do. So don’t waste your precious marketing dollars on people not rich enough to pay you. Thus follows the logic of a "multi-million dollar mansion" image. Besides, even when a middle-income person hires you, thanks to do image, they'll feel much better about themselves since they'll feel that they are in the same league as the mansion-dwellers.

Include the name and logo of your company (obviously) and a BIG RED TOLL-FREE phone number for them to call you. It's amazing how often the phone number is not big enough to see right away, or it's not toll-free. Lower the barriers for them to contact you as much as possible. Make the phone number BIG and the phone call FREE.

You can include your web site URL as well.

If you've been around over ten years and if you are licensed, bonded, or insured, mention that right away in the front of the postcard.

If you specialize in giving service to only certain states, cities, or counties, mention that as well. Most people feel more comfortable in doing business with a "local guy" who would in theory be "more responsible" and "accountable."

BACK OF THE POSTCARD: This is where you deliver the FEATURES and the BENEFITS.

Do you accept any or all major credit cards? Then say it, with mini-logos of the credit cards that you accept.

Do you have weekly, biweekly, monthly, bi-monthly, quarterly, or annual cleaning contracts? Say it.

Do you have "special occasions" and "post event" clean up service (parties, weddings, graduation ceremonies, Christmas parties, etc.)? Mention that as well.

Do you have gift certificates or coupons? State the terms of the deal clearly. (For example: "20% off on weekly and 10% off on monthly new contracts signed before [DATE]. New customers only and with this coupon. Not valid with other offers.")

HINT: Surround your coupon or best offer with a DOTTED-LINE frame. The research shows that -- for some weird reason – the dotted-line frames get a much higher response.

REPEAT your BIG TOLL-FREE phone number and web site URL. Your phone number should JUMP! Out of the postcard no matter which side they look at first.

SERVICES TO MENTION: