WRITTEN ON July 22nd, 2009 BY chris AND STORED IN Leaflet Distribution

Tags: cheap leaflet distribution

One effect of the current economic malaise is that more and more people are starting up their own businesses. This is to my mind a very good thing - our own business was of course a start-up once upon a time - but in a low-cost sector such as leaflet distribution, it can also be a problem.

Smaller, newer leaflet distribution operations can invariably offer cheaper rates for their services, and it’s tempting for customers to jump at a good price without fully investigating whether a company will be able to carry out the job they say they can.

In a highly complex and strategic business such as leaflet distribution, it’s true to say that a cheap leaflet distribution does not necessarily equate to a good or even adequate service. Here are three reasons why:

1 Cheap = unsophisticated

Door-to-door marketing has really upped its game in recent years - the old “see what sticks” mentality is long gone. Now you can target customers with an incredible degree of accuracy, both demographically and geographically. This relies on the use of sophisticated technology that is not employed by most of the smaller players in the market.

2 Cheap = small-scale

Even small leaflet distributions are complex operations that require thorough planning and detailed back-checking. Campaigns cannot be seriously conducted without a network of distributors in every corner of your intended distribution zone, and such a network inevitably takes time and resources to develop and maintain.

3 Cheap = limited range of services

A leaflet distribution is the only guaranteed means of reaching all your customers at the same time. Householders have letterboxes, ensuring a direct gateway from advertiser to recipient, and no other marketing channel can rival it for mass exposure. There are however many different types of leaflet distribution that make this a reality. The Newslink service uses the free newspaper network, for instance, while Solus Distribution enables the delivery of a single item on its own. Other services, such as Royal Mail Door to Door and Direct Mail, help to build up a complete and bespoke service for distributions that require more careful planning - which they regularly do.

It should also be said that cheap doesn’t always mean inexpensive. If customers are looking for good ROI, a well-planned, well-targeted and well-executed campaign by an experienced distribution company can work out to be much more cost-effective than any cheap distribution available.