Best Direct Mail Service Providers?

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Best Direct Mail Service Providers?

Nicole Goss
Involved In Real Estate · Woodbridge, VA · Member since 2013 · 6 posts · 1 vote

Hello BP Community,
I'm researching my first direct mailing here in Northern Virginia. In addition to being a beginner investor I'm also a new real estate agent and want to send postcards to all the homes in my subdivision (I have the list of addresses). I'm looking for recommendations for providers where I can go online and design a post card, upload images, upload the address list and they take care of mailing it for me. I've seen that Vistaprint and PostcardMania provide these services but I wanted to know if anyone had recommendations and positive experiences with bulk mail providers.
Thanks you so much for your time!

1Reply
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Sharon Vornholt
Goshen, KY · Member since 2009 · 835 posts · 683 votes
13y

Nicole Goss - Be careful with full color. I absolutely love PostcardMania and their mail pieces. They are gorgeous. But they are just too "slick" for most or the people (and niches) we mail to. I got absolutely terrible results with those cards; the worst I have ever gotten. Sadly, I had to discontinue using them.

Sharon

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  • Seth WilliamsPro Member
    Specialist · Grand Rapids, MI · Member since 2012 · 582 posts · 353 votes
    13y

    Hi Nicole Goss

    I use Click2Mail.com for all of my mailings, and I get all of my lists from AgentPro247.com. Both services are very cost-effective and easy to work with. I've got some video tutorials on how I work with each of these services to get direct mail campaigns done. If you need more info on either, I'd be happy to share them with you.

    Podcast Guest on Show #39
    2Reply
  • Jerry PuckettPro Member
    Wholesaler · Fort Worth, TX · Member since 2010 · 1k+ posts · 1k+ votes
    13y

    Nicole Goss,

    For simple post cards you really can't beat the prices and service you'll get at yellowletters.com. I like click2mail a lot, but sometimes their interface locks up. Can't tell you the number of times I've struggled with the template editor for something as simple as changing fonts. And sometimes the text boxes don't stay where you put them.

    I'm not affiliated with Michael Quarles or yellowletter.com in any way, but I got curious after reading your post, and started doing some comparison. You'd have to click the 3 day service at click2mail to get the same price that MQ offers regularly. He doesn't seem to have a fancy template editor, but does have options for custom work, and he is very highly regarded around here.

    One last thing....if you do choose click2mail, going through the BP partner link will help support BiggerPockets -- it is just one of the ways you can help support the site. Just wanted to throw that out there.

    Hmmmmm....seems I misplaced the link, I'll have to call on Joshua Dorkin or Brandon Turner to provide that.

    1Reply
  • Blair Halver
    Real Estate Entrepreneur · Winston-Salem, NC · Member since 2008 · 101 posts · 40 votes
    13y

    Hi Nicole Goss,
    I'd recommend click2mail all the way if you're going to do it yourself. There's no minimum quantity order, you just upload your list, design your postcard, and basically click send. They print and mail for you by the next day. It's pretty slick.

    I will agree with Jerry Puckett, though, their design interface is a bit buggy. But once you get used to it and you've got your templates in there, it's easy enough to just go click to send one again.

    For black & white, small postcards, I don't think you'll beat their price with no minimum quantity order.

    Also, I've never done any full-color postcards with click2mail, so I don't know how well that does. Are you sending b&w or full color?

    Blair

    0Reply
  • David Lunsford
    Fort Worth, TX · Member since 2009 · 66 posts · 25 votes
    13y

    For what it's worth I have been using Action printing out of Lubbock Texas for all my printing and direct mail. They are cheaper than Click2mail by almost 20%, they have great customer service, they will mail any color postcard, whatver coipy ou want to use, they do mail merge, graphics. My mailings are going out at about .32 first class pre sort. That cost includes printing, addressing and postage. Send them your card, your list and tell them when you want it mailed. Call Randy. if he's is unavailable talk to Reache. Great people. They can also print yellow letters.

    3Reply
  • Joshua D.Pro Member
    BiggerPockets Founder · HI · Member since 2008 · 16k+ posts · 5k+ votes
    13y

    Thanks, Jerry Puckett. Our partner link for Click2Mail is here.

    Podcast Guest on Show #100
    0Reply
  • Nicole Goss
    OP
    Involved In Real Estate · Woodbridge, VA · Member since 2013 · 6 posts · 1 vote
    13y

    Thank you all for the recommendations! I'm looking into all your suggestions now. Blair H. I plan to send in full color.

    0Reply
  • Blair Halver
    Real Estate Entrepreneur · Winston-Salem, NC · Member since 2008 · 101 posts · 40 votes
    13y
    Originally posted by Nicole Goss:
    Thank you all for the recommendations! I'm looking into all your suggestions now. Blair H. I plan to send in full color.

    Cool, I know click2mail does full color, but I'm not sure of the pricing. Never looked into that there.

    0Reply
  • Dev HornPro Member
    Flipper/Rehabber · Arlington, TX · Member since 2013 · 1k+ posts · 2k+ votes
    13y

    I'll pile in on this. We like click2mail, but find it a little pricey on the printing/mailing. We've had excellent service from imageMEDIA - top quality product at a good price UNLESS you are in a hurry. The faster the turnaround, higher the $$... but overall I say, plan you campaigns so you are not RUSHING. No rush printing, no first class mail (for postcards), no overnight delivery - all that can easily add 20% to the cost of your campaigns. Schedule your marketing out so you can leverage the best deals.

    For our licensees, we have print portal provided by GoBig printing. The cool thing about them is they print ON-DEMAND and generally within 2 days of your order with no rush fee.

    1Reply
  • Sharon Vornholt
    Goshen, KY · Member since 2009 · 835 posts · 683 votes
    13y

    Nicole Goss - Be careful with full color. I absolutely love PostcardMania and their mail pieces. They are gorgeous. But they are just too "slick" for most or the people (and niches) we mail to. I got absolutely terrible results with those cards; the worst I have ever gotten. Sadly, I had to discontinue using them.

    Sharon

    4Reply
  • Nicole Goss
    OP
    Involved In Real Estate · Woodbridge, VA · Member since 2013 · 6 posts · 1 vote
    13y

    Dev Horn - thank you for the recommendation I'll check them out too! I'm not in a hurry so I have time on my side. I hadn't thought about the fact that all the "rush" charges could amount to such a considerable percentage of the total cost of a campaign. I'll always keep that in mind from now on and plan accordingly.

    Sharon Vornholt I absolutely loved BP Podcast 12 that you did on Wholesaling and Marketing. Your experiences with its effectiveness is actually what inspired me to try this. I would have never thought about it otherwise. I'm new real estate agent who lives in a large subdivision (still under construction) that began development in 2006. The base price for townhomes in my community is 386K, SFHs start at 414K and the next home (new construction) scheduled to close in June is closing for 699K (just to give you an idea of range). I know a lot of my neighbors (I'm on the HOA board) but I wanted to get the word out to all of them if they need help selling their homes. I'd be very interested in your, and anyone else's, opinion and recommendations on how to do so!

    0Reply
  • Dev HornPro Member
    Flipper/Rehabber · Arlington, TX · Member since 2013 · 1k+ posts · 2k+ votes
    13y

    Little known fact... the printing industry has long made a big portion of their profits from RUSH orders. imageMEDIA is really inexpensive if you allow them to take up to 9 days (I've never seen it take them that long ;-) But want it printed in 3 and you'll be amazed at the price increase! Why? Because people that failed to plan will actually pay that price!

    2Reply
  • Michael Quarles
    Flipper/Rehabber · Bakersfield, CA · Member since 2008 · 3k+ posts · 3k+ votes
    13y

    Jerry Puckett

    Thanks... I love you man.

    BTW I don't want a build your own layout tool... I would rather have a staff of proof designers who create exactly what you want over forcing you down the road of being a graphic designer.

    One thing I learned a long time ago is there is value in multiple eyes seeing a design... Something that one doesn't see someone else does... Its the little things added up that cause great results

    Heck nothing gets printed around here without a proof approval by the customer and then the designer, the printer and the production manager okays the print for printing..

    At the end of the day I don't know anyone who buys houses and helps with direct mail at the level we do and that certainly must count for something... Nothing worse then sending the wrong postcard to a prospect.

    If I didn't have my own company I would probably fight through the frustration at C2M and use them, even Action is a great company, and I do like the concept of PostcardMania.

    1Reply
  • Sharon Vornholt
    Goshen, KY · Member since 2009 · 835 posts · 683 votes
    13y

    Nicole Goss - A full color PC would work great for that. I had a condo to sell once, and they were still building in the development. But the problem was they weren't going to have anything ready for 6 months or so.

    So I went up to the office and told the ladies (there were no agents in that office) that I would pay them a referral fee of $1000 if they had someone come in that wanted to buy a condo before they could finish one out. Just like magic, I sold it 2 weeks later and paid those gals (happily). Oh, and I bought that condo as a result of a full color direct mail PC I got in the mail. They really work well in that instance.

    Sharon

    0Reply
  • David Beard
    Investor · Cincinnati, OH · Member since 2010 · 1k+ posts · 928 votes
    13y

    As an agent, you may want to check out retechulous.com for broad technology-based marketing support aimed at agents. Many agents swear by their techniques. I certainly don't have any affiliation with them, btw. I think the cost is modest. But it sounds like you need to focus on establishing your agency business on a good footing, so advice from real estate investors, while terrific for investing, may not be ideally tailored to the agency side. Mailings certainly need to be part of a targeted and thought-through campaign that plays out over time to keep you front-of-mind with the home owners in your target areas, as well as referrals through relocation companies and other channels. And we all know that almost all home buyers start looking on the web these days.

    P.S. I know you just asked about direct mail service referrals, but thought you might want to step back and evaluate what you're trying to accomplish.

    0Reply
  • Alison M.
    Real Estate Professional · Falls Church, VA · Member since 2012 · 238 posts · 83 votes
    13y

    For those wondering about Click2Mail's color postcards: I have used them for 5 years and always been happy with their service UNTIL I tried color postcards. The ones I saw from those color batches had smudged text and gouges in the background color, kind of like when nail polish gets messed up before it dries. Very disappointing.

    1Reply
  • Michael Quarles
    Flipper/Rehabber · Bakersfield, CA · Member since 2008 · 3k+ posts · 3k+ votes
    13y

    Hello Alison.

    Sounds like they're using dry ink. Not great for pictorials. Outstanding for written postcards.

    Btw. We are tracking pink postcards and surprisingly they're doing better than the standard yellow. Go figure.

    0Reply
  • Mike Osterman
    Specialist · Novato, CA · Member since 2012 · 190 posts · 57 votes
    13y

    My mom. She signs the envelopes, letter etc. I used to have her answer the phone but sellers wouldn't give her what I'm looking for.

    I get my list from the county recorders office/title co. & dataquick. . I'm trying propertyradar.com as Sean O'toole has created a pretty cool tool.

    Mike

    0Reply
  • Alison M.
    Real Estate Professional · Falls Church, VA · Member since 2012 · 238 posts · 83 votes
    13y

    Michael Quarles, interesting about the pink post cards. I will test-drive them soon. Thanks!

    1Reply
  • Yu L.
    Bay Area, CA · Member since 2008 · 55 posts · 26 votes
    13y

    I have a question on the Click2Mail service, I played with the website a little bit, looks like for 3 day service, I have to order minimum 1000 post cards and @Blair Halver mentioned on the above that no minimum is required, am I missing something here?

    Say, if I place an order of 2000 postcards, can I schedule them to go out 500 cards per week?

    0Reply
  • Blair Halver
    Real Estate Entrepreneur · Winston-Salem, NC · Member since 2008 · 101 posts · 40 votes
    13y
    Originally posted by Yu L.:
    I have a question on the Click2Mail service, I played with the website a little bit, looks like for 3 day service, I have to order minimum 1000 post cards and @Blair Halver mentioned on the above that no minimum is required, am I missing something here?

    Say, if I place an order of 2000 postcards, can I schedule them to go out 500 cards per week?

    I was referring to the "Mailing Online Classic" - which I don't believe has full color options for printing. It's just black and white. It's also the only way on click2mail that you can utilize mail merge functionality (I believe).

    Blair

    0Reply
  • Yu L.
    Bay Area, CA · Member since 2008 · 55 posts · 26 votes
    13y

    Thanks, @Blair Halver !

    0Reply
  • Paul Parker
    Bedford, TX · Member since 2014 · 1 post · 1 vote
    12y

    I used Click2Mail 2 weeks ago for a PC. I used the online design tool and found it relatively easy to use but I am a techie. My complaint with Click2Mail was that when receiving the PC(I had one mailed to myself), it was severely smudged. When I contacted support they told me the postoffice machines that are used heat and sometimes smudges occur. I appreciated the explanation but they provided no resolution for that fact that important information on the PC was unreadable. I won't use them again for PCs.

    1Reply
  • Stephen Barton
    Real Estate Consultant · Indianapolis, IN · Member since 2014 · 322 posts · 238 votes
    11y
    David Lunsford I just reached out to action printing and they said they do not print "these type of postcards". Do you know if they stopped? I am impressed by the quality and services that yellowletters.com has to offer they seem to be the cheapest and best looking. Michael Quarles I just want to say I really look up to what you do! You give me more to aspire to!
    0Reply
  • M.I. Seka
    Seminole, FL · Member since 2016 · 9 posts · 1 vote
    10y

    Delete

    Nicole...so what happened?  I'm just starting out and found you post.  Would like to know your experience.  So far i've found three services that charge 49 cents to print and mail postcards.  directmailmanager.com, yellowletterscomplete.com and amplified.com

    0Reply
  • Robert EllisBusiness Member
    Developer · Miami, FL · Member since 2014 · 3k+ posts · 1k+ votes
    9y
    Originally posted by @David Lunsford:

    For what it's worth I have been using Action printing out of Lubbock Texas for all my printing and direct mail. They are cheaper than Click2mail by almost 20%, they have great customer service, they will mail any color postcard, whatver coipy ou want to use, they do mail merge, graphics. My mailings are going out at about .32 first class pre sort. That cost includes printing, addressing and postage. Send them your card, your list and tell them when you want it mailed. Call Randy. if he's is unavailable talk to Reache. Great people. They can also print yellow letters.

     do you still work with them?

    [email protected]786-494-6766
    Section 8 Launch52 Reviews
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    0Reply
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