Direct mail basics
EDDM, Mail the Neighbors or your own list: which should you use?
There are three ways to put your postcard in the right mailboxes. Here is what each one does, what it costs today, and how to choose.
The short version
- Use EDDM to cover whole neighborhoods at the lowest price per home
- Use Mail the Neighbors to reach the homes around a job you just finished
- Use your own list to stay in front of past customers
Every mailing starts with one question: who gets the card? We print and mail postcards three ways, and each one answers that question differently. Pick the wrong one and you pay to reach people who will never call. Pick the right one and every card lands where it can do some good.
The short answer
| EDDM | Mail the Neighbors | Your own list | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Who gets it | Every address on the carrier routes you pick | The homes closest to a job address | The people on your list |
| Best for | Covering a whole town or neighborhood | Turning one finished job into the next one | Past customers and people who asked for a quote |
| Smallest order | Priced from 1,000 homes | 200 postcards | 500 postcards |
| Price today | $0.71 a home at 1,000, down to $0.55 at 100,000 | 200 postcards for $190 | 1,000 postcards for $784.83 |
| Postcard size | 11 x 8.5 in | 6 x 9 or 6 x 11 in | 12 sizes, 4 x 6 to 6 x 11 in |
| Mailing list needed | No | No | Yes, Excel or CSV |
Every price above includes printing and postage. Design and sales tax are extra.
Choose by who you want to reach. The price follows from that.
Use EDDM when you want the whole neighborhood
EDDM is short for Every Door Direct Mail. You pick USPS carrier routes on a map, and every address on those routes gets your card. It is the lowest price per home we offer, because nobody has to build a list and the post office delivers the card with the regular mail.
EDDM fits when:
- Almost any homeowner in the area could hire you, such as lawn care, plumbing or heating service.
- You are new to a town and want your name seen on every street.
- You want the lowest cost per home and can mail 1,000 or more.
It does not fit when only some houses are right for you. A route is all or nothing. You cannot skip a house.
Use Mail the Neighbors when you just finished a job
The people most likely to hire you next live beside your last customer. They watched the work happen and they have the same kind of house. Mail the Neighbors lets you type the job address, choose how many nearby homes to reach, and see the price before you order.
Mail the Neighbors fits when:
- You finish jobs that neighbors can see, such as roofs, siding, driveways, landscaping or solar.
- You want to start small. The minimum is 200 postcards.
- You want to narrow the mailing by the house itself: its age, value or lot size.
Use your own list for people who already know you
A past customer already trusts you. So does someone who asked for a quote last year and never booked. Put their addresses in an Excel or CSV file, upload it on the Direct Mail Postcards page, and we address and mail a card to each one. The minimum is 500 postcards.
Using more than one
The three methods do different jobs, so they work well together:
- EDDM introduces you to a new town or keeps your name in front of your whole service area.
- Mail the Neighbors follows every finished job.
- Your own list brings past customers back for the next service.
