Measuring results
How to track a postcard mailing
Most businesses never find out which mailing made the phone ring. Four simple ways to know, and what we can print on the card to help.
The short version
- Give each mailing its own QR code, phone number or offer code
- Send us the link or the number and we print it on the card
- Count calls, quotes and jobs for at least 60 days
A postcard cannot tell you it worked. Unless you set up a way to count, a good mailing and a poor one look the same from your desk. Tracking takes a few minutes before you order, and after that the results count themselves.
Four ways to track
A QR code that goes to its own page
Point the code at a page made for this mailing, not your home page. The page should repeat the offer on the card, load fast on a phone and have one thing to do: a short form or a tap-to-call button. Send us the link and we add the QR code to your card.
A phone number used only on the card
Ask your phone company or a call-tracking service for an extra number that forwards to your main line. Print it only on the postcard. Every call to that number came from the mailing. Set it up, send us the number, and we print it. Keep it active for a few months, because people hold on to cards.
An offer code
Print a short code with the offer, such as "Mention code OAK25." Whoever answers the phone asks for the code and writes it down. Use a different code for each mailing or each neighborhood.
Match your new jobs to the streets you mailed
Sixty to ninety days after a mailing, list the new jobs you booked and compare the addresses with the routes or homes you mailed. It catches the customers who called your regular number and never mentioned the card.
Give every mailing its own number, link or code, and it will tell you what it earned.
Setting up the QR code link
Add a few tracking words to the end of the link before you send it to us. Google Analytics reads them and shows you how many visits came from the card.
https://yoursite.com/fall-tuneup?utm_source=postcard&utm_medium=mail&utm_campaign=massapequa-october- utm_source says where the visit came from: the postcard.
- utm_medium says what kind of marketing it was: mail.
- utm_campaign names this mailing. Change it every time.
What the card should look like
This sample card is set up three ways. You do not need all three. Pick the ones you will check.
- QR code. It opens a page made for this mailing.
- Phone number. A number printed only on this card.
- Offer code. The caller mentions WARM79 and you know which mailing they are holding.
Keep a simple score sheet
| Mailing date | Area | Homes | Calls | Quotes | Jobs | Sales |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oct 6 | 11758, 8 routes | 2,885 | ||||
| Oct 27 | 11758, 8 routes | 2,885 |
Fill it in for every mailing. After two or three mailings you will know what a new job costs you in postcards, and which neighborhoods are worth mailing again.
Give it time
Calls from a mailing do not all arrive in the first week. Some people keep the card until they need you. Count for at least 60 days before you judge a mailing, and judge a series, not a single card.