The Power of Postcards and Print Mail

What if a single postcard could instantly transport you to another place, another moment, another person's adventure?

A handwritten note from a friend exploring distant mountains.

A vintage find from a local artist.

A thoughtfully designed piece that captures a moment perfectly. 

‍The best postcards don't just deliver information; they deliver connection, wonder, and a little burst of unexpected delight right to your mailbox.

Sure, they can be helpful, but generally, this type of postcard does not deliver joy.

The B2C space has leveraged postcards for decades. Over here in B2B land, we are just catching up. And it's about time.

Postcards offer guaranteed "open rates" and tangible brand retention in an increasingly digital world, one suffering from DMF.

So as not to bury the lede ... Sendoso now offers custom/dynamic postcards as part of expanded print mail capabilities.

See this product page for details on how to use this feature.

This article will explore why postcards are having their "B2B moment" and how to leverage them strategically to grow your business.

But first ... DMF?

A short primer DMF

You are tired.

I am tired.

We are all tired — exhausted.

As consumers, we are constantly bombarded with ads, emails, social media promotions, and other marketing messages across multiple digital channels … which leads us to tune out, block, or actively avoid marketing content.

Welcome to DMF aka Digital Marketing Fatigue.

From the business side, DMF makes it harder for brands to capture attention and drive engagement. In fact, 89% of B2B sellers report feeling burned out from work (Gartner, 2022) — and buyers are feeling it too, with declining email open rates and increasing opt-outs across digital channels.

We have written extensively about Digital Marketing Fatigue. Here is a good place to start.

Okay, let's get back to the power of physical/direct mail & postcards.

The timeless power (and psychological impact) of print mail

Physical mail commands attention in ways digital cannot replicate. We outlined the advantages previously. Here are the big 4 takeaways:

1. Direct mail is memorable, often creating positive emotional connections and evoking emotional responses.

2. Direct mail has a better response rate, upwards of 30x higher than email, and has the power to boost ROI by 20% when part of an integrated campaign.

3. There's less competition with direct mail as far fewer companies commit budget to tactile marketing.

4. Direct mail offers many ways to be creative, limitless possibilities to delight and entertain recipients.

And science backs this up.

“Bias for Action,” a study conducted by the Canada Post Corporation, concluded that “physical mail requires 21% less cognitive effort to process than digital media ... suggesting that it is both easier to understand and more memorable.”

Receiving something in the mail, like a postcard, creates a multi-sensory engagement — visual, tactile — and takes less of a cognitive load compared to digital processing.

Bonus: A creative piece of print mail stands out in mailboxes dominated by bills and flyers, and other immediately-toss-in-the-garbage items.

If done correctly, direct mail can offer:

🎯Personalization beyond "Current Resident"

⏰ Relevant, timely messaging

🚀 Clear, compelling calls-to-action

🔗 Integration with broader digital marketing campaigns

But here's the thing: most B2B teams are not even taking advantage of direct mail in their outbound campaigns.

Take your direct mail campaigns to the next level with ... postcards

Direct mail works.

As we’ve said in the aptly named, Does Direct Mail Marketing Work?, the response rate for direct mail is more than 30 times the response rate for email.

So yeah, it works.

And sending postcards has the potential to be even more effective, more valuable unless ...

You treat them like mass-marketing, using messages like "To Current Resident" instead of role-specific targeting.

You send generic promotional offers without understanding business pain points.

You create a one-size-fits-all design that ignores industry context and lacks a clear business value proposition or ROI messaging.

You miss the power of integration with sales follow-up sequences, no CTA, and have no tracking or attribution to measure business impact.

Postcards — like other direct mail campaigns — succeed when they deliver targeted value to specific decision-makers, not when they treat business buyers like consumers shopping for deals.

Sendoso Postcards make this easy.

After all, virtually all postcards get read because they don't require opening an envelope. If executed correctly, they can create memorable, tangible moments in an increasingly homogenized digital landscape.

Even better, postcards have the highest response rate (4.25%) among different types of direct mail (DMA, 2018), outperforming letters, catalogs, and dimensional mailers.

Postcards are the cost-effective "middle ground" in sending strategy (between digital outreach and premium gifts) and can be perfect for maintaining consistent touchpoints without high per-piece costs. They serve as a bridge between initial digital engagement and higher-investment relationship building, making them ideal for prospect education and thought leadership positioning.

But that’s not all they can be used for.

A few strategic B2B postcard applications

There are several ways to execute postcards to your strategic advantage. Here are a few ideas you can implement today (with Sendoso, of course), broken down by type:

Events

Pre: Send a pre-event postcard inviting prospects to attend. Include a QR code to register (and maybe even be entered into a raffle). Consider special postcard-gift combinations for key targets.

During: Distribute QR-enabled postcards for meeting bookings with gift incentives.

Post: Thank you postcards with event summaries, relevant assets to download, and meeting CTA with "lunch on us" offer.

Cold outreach & brand awareness

Send postcards featuring relevant success stories tailored to the recipient's role/industry, as well as independent study results and industry insights, or key applications addressing the prospect's challenges.

Be sure to include clear CTAs to learn more, while tracking their engagement along the way.

Customer retention & relationship building

This type of postcard outreach could include information about industry events, company anniversaries, or partnership milestones. Postcards could be extremely personalized (think strategic QBR guidance summaries with next steps), "just because" relationship enhancers, or strategic, yet subtle "value reminders" throughout the customer lifecycle to prep for renewal conversations.

Sendoso helps create and execute it all.

Sendoso's postcard advantage: Making strategic print mail simple

The postcard landscape may seem straightforward, but executing strategic B2B campaigns requires the right platform and the right approach. Unlike traditional direct mail services that prioritize volume over value, Sendoso provides built-in advantages, making postcard campaigns both effective and scalable.

Our platform provides custom design capabilities for seamless brand integration, dynamic personalization at scale, and comprehensive integrations to measure real business impact.

BONUS: With our upcoming SmartDelivery feature, you can even send postcards without known physical addresses — removing one of the biggest barriers to direct mail execution.

Most importantly, Sendoso integrates postcards into your broader engagement strategy. Whether you're nurturing prospects with thought leadership content, following up on events, or maintaining customer relationships, Sendoso Postcards lets you merge the best of digital campaigns, low-cost print mail, and high-value gifting to create the ultimate engagement strategy. 

Ready to cut through the digital noise?

Postcards offer a proven way to break through DMF and create memorable business connections.

Launch your first postcard campaign now or request a demo to explore our full direct mail capabilities.

Ready to join the 20,000+ Sendoso users? Request a demo now

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FAQs

1. What is Digital Marketing Fatigue (DMF), and how does it affect B2B marketing?

Digital Marketing Fatigue (DMF) occurs when consumers are constantly bombarded with ads, emails, social media promotions, and other marketing messages across multiple digital channels, leading them to tune out, block, or actively avoid marketing content. DMF is physically and mentally exhausting, and from the business side, it makes it harder for brands to capture attention and drive engagement. In fact, 89% of B2B sellers report feeling burned out from work, and buyers are feeling it too, with declining email open rates and increasing opt-outs across digital channels.

2. How effective are postcards compared to email marketing in terms of response rates?

Postcards and direct mail have significantly higher response rates than email marketing. The response rate for direct mail is more than 30 times the response rate for email. Specifically, postcards have the highest response rate (4.25%) among different types of direct mail, outperforming letters, catalogs, and dimensional mailers according to DMA 2018 data.

3. Why does physical mail require less cognitive effort to process than digital media?

According to "Bias for Action," a study conducted by the Canada Post Corporation, physical mail requires 21% less cognitive effort to process than digital media, suggesting that it is both easier to understand and more memorable. Receiving something in the mail, like a postcard, creates a multi-sensory engagement — visual and tactile — and takes less of a cognitive load compared to digital processing.

4. What are the main advantages of direct mail over digital marketing channels?

Direct mail offers four key advantages: 1) Direct mail is memorable, often creating positive emotional connections and evoking emotional responses. 2) Direct mail has a better response rate, upwards of 30x higher than email, and has the power to boost ROI by 20% when part of an integrated campaign. 3) There's less competition with direct mail as far fewer companies commit budget to tactile marketing. 4) Direct mail offers many ways to be creative, limitless possibilities to delight and entertain recipients.

5. How can B2B companies use postcards for event marketing?

B2B companies can use postcards strategically for events in three phases: Pre-event postcards can invite prospects to attend and include QR codes to register with potential raffle entries, plus special postcard-gift combinations for key targets. During events, companies can distribute QR-enabled postcards for meeting bookings with gift incentives. Post-event postcards can include thank you messages with event summaries, relevant assets to download, and meeting CTAs with "lunch on us" offers.

6. What makes postcards more effective than other direct mail formats?

Postcards are particularly effective because virtually all postcards get read since they don't require opening an envelope. When executed correctly, they can create memorable, tangible moments in an increasingly homogenized digital landscape. Postcards also have the highest response rate (4.25%) among different types of direct mail, and they serve as a cost-effective "middle ground" in sending strategy between digital outreach and premium gifts.

7. How can postcards be used for cold outreach and brand awareness in B2B marketing?

For cold outreach and brand awareness, postcards can feature relevant success stories tailored to the recipient's role/industry, as well as independent study results and industry insights, or key applications addressing the prospect's challenges. These postcards should include clear CTAs to learn more, while tracking engagement along the way to measure effectiveness.

8. What are common mistakes B2B companies make with postcard campaigns?

Common mistakes include treating postcards like mass-marketing by using messages like "To Current Resident" instead of role-specific targeting, sending generic promotional offers without understanding business pain points, creating one-size-fits-all designs that ignore industry context and lack clear business value propositions, and missing the power of integration with sales follow-up sequences while having no tracking or attribution to measure business impact.

9. How can postcards be integrated into customer retention strategies?

For customer retention and relationship building, postcards can include information about industry events, company anniversaries, or partnership milestones. They can be extremely personalized with strategic QBR guidance summaries and next steps, serve as "just because" relationship enhancers, or provide strategic yet subtle "value reminders" throughout the customer lifecycle to prepare for renewal conversations.

10. What features does Sendoso offer for B2B postcard campaigns?

Sendoso provides custom design capabilities for seamless brand integration, dynamic personalization at scale, and comprehensive integrations to measure real business impact. The platform also offers an upcoming SmartDelivery feature that allows sending postcards without known physical addresses, removing one of the biggest barriers to direct mail execution. Sendoso integrates postcards into broader engagement strategies, merging digital campaigns, low-cost print mail, and high-value gifting to create comprehensive engagement strategies.

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