Response rates from direct mail shots are notoriously low, that’s just a fact of business life. Sometimes the cost of design and printing makes it seem like a futile gesture and in some cases that can be true.

However, Christmas comes but once a year and it is an opportunity that businesses should not miss to touch base with their clients and customers for a number of reasons.

Sending a Christmas card to each of your clients or customers should yield a much higher response rate than other mailings you send throughout the year for the very simple reason that people EXPECT to receive mail at this time of year and, in the main, they open and read it – especially if it is clearly a Christmas card!

Cheap printing is also an option – these are not cards you will expect people to keep for any length of time, so cutting down on the cost of production is acceptable.

This, then, is a businesses opportunity to impart a message knowing it is far more likely to be read. So…what message do you want to send? There are several kinds of messages that can be put across at Christmas. Here are a few examples.

Launching A New Service / Product

Many companies like to launch or introduce a new service or product at the start of a new year. It makes sense to do so, a new year is a fresh start and a good time to kick off something original. You can give your new service or product a real boost ahead of time by informing people about it in a Christmas card.

Previewing A New Year Offer

We all know that come the New Year, come the January sales and as a business you’ll want to take advantage of that frenzy of buying, either to cash in on sales you might not usually get or to clear old stock in preparation for the New Year.

Sending a Christmas card announcing the offer, a start date and, perhaps even more importantly, an end date will generate interest early and have people waiting in anticipation to get buying from you.

Simple Brand Exposure

No new products or services? No offers to shout about? It doesn’t matter! You don’t want your clients and customers to forget who you are so send them a Christmas card emblazoned with your logo, images of your products or whatever you deem most relevant to increasing your brand exposure. Just remember to keep it Christmas-y!

Spread Some Christmas Cheer

It is the season of goodwill after all! You might just want to put a smile on the faces of your clients and customers and if that’s the case then a traditional Christmas card wishing them well in the holiday season is the way to go.

Take advantage of this opportunity and going into the New Year your business will reap the rewards. And remember, THIS direct mail shot is almost guaranteed to be read and you keep the costs down with cheap printing. It just makes sense.

Author Bio: Ian Grainger is writing on behalf of Edge Print, providers of cheap printing services.

Category: Business Management
Keywords: christmas cards, direct mail, cheap printing, brand exposure