Postcards can drive a huge amount of traffic to your web site, generate a flood of new sales leads or produce a surge in any business activity you want. And you don't have to spend a lot of time or money on them ...if you apply these four little-known postcard marketing secrets.

Postcard Marketing Secret #1: Keep Your Message Very Brief

Don't try to close sales with postcards. You don't have enough space to provide all information needed to close sales.

Instead, briefly state major benefit(s) you offer to attract reader's attention. Then focus on motivating them to get more detailed information from a source where you can close sales. For example, send them to your web site or give them a phone number to call.

Postcard Marketing Secret #2: Design Your Postcard To Look Like A Message From A Friend.

Most postcards I see look like an ad in a magazine. But when a postcard looks like advertising, people react to it as advertising. They don't pay much attention to it.

Instead, set up your postcard to look like a brief personal message from a friend. This attracts attention and lures prospects into reading your postcard ...even though they realize it is advertising. It generates a lot more replies than postcards that look like an ad.

Postcard Marketing Secret #3: Don't Spend a Lot on Printing

Postcards that look like a personal message can be very inexpensive to print. For example, here are 2 ways you can do job on any computer with a printer:

* Print postcards on plain (no printed lines) 4 x 6 inch index cards. Cost: about 1.5 cents per card.