The postcard business checklist for card #1: every setup step from payments and EDDM routes to your mockup, print, mailing day, and renewals, in order.
Most people who stall on their first card aren't lazy. They just don't know what the next move is, so they spend three weeks getting ready to get ready. That's why I wrote this postcard business checklist. It's everything to set up before and during card #1, in the order you need it, with a one-line reason for each item.
Nothing on this list needs your own money for printing. Advertisers pay before anything prints, which is how this model runs on literally $0 of upfront capital. Work it top to bottom.
Want the interactive version you can check off as you go? Grab it free here.
Here's the big picture. Nine phases, some overlapping, in the order that keeps you from doing anything twice. If you've been wondering how to start a postcard business without getting lost, this is it.
Set up the business basics and one way to get paid.
Pick your town, your EDDM routes, and your card size.
Lock your pricing and build a mockup card.
Build your prospect list and outreach plan.
Put the pieces in place that make you look legit.
Sell slots and collect every dollar up front.
Collect ads, get written approval, and submit to print.
Handle mailing day and keep advertisers in the loop.
Report results and lock in renewals for card #2.
Every phase of the 9x12 Method checklist below uses the same format: an action, then why it matters. No fluff.
Know what you're working toward before you check a single box. These numbers are fixed through 9x12 Method Printing, postage included.
$8,000
9x12 revenue (16 slots x $500)
$2,999
9x12 All Inclusive (5,000 homes)
$5,001
9x12 profit per card
$4,000
Community card revenue (16 x $250)
$1,449
Community card cost (2,500 homes)
$2,551
Community card profit
Here's the part that calms people down. Slot six pays for the print on either card. Six 9x12 slots at $500 is $3,000, which covers the $2,999. Six community card slots at $250 is $1,500, which covers the $1,449. Every slot after that is profit. Keep that in mind as you work through your first postcard checklist.
Your town decides who you sell to and who sees the card. Don't overthink it.
Pick one town of about 15,000 to 100,000 people. Plenty of businesses, but the card still feels local. Skip tourist towns.
Map your routes. Use the USPS EDDM tool and lean toward higher-income, single-family neighborhoods, because that's who advertisers want. My EDDM route selection guide walks through it.
Choose your card size. A 9x12 goes to 5,000 homes at $500 a slot. A 6x11 community card goes to 2,500 homes at $250 a slot and usually fills in about two weeks. If you're nervous, a community card is the faster first win.
Draw your prospect radius. Target businesses within about 15 miles. They already serve those homes, so the pitch clicks instantly.
Set your print deadline. A card with no deadline never mails.
Prospects don't buy an idea. They buy something they can see.
Set your prices before your first conversation. $500 a slot on a 9x12, $250 on a community card. Decide your double slot price now too, so you're not guessing on the phone.
Run your numbers once. Plug your card into the profit calculator so you know exactly where break-even sits.
Start from a template, not a blank canvas. Grab the free 9x12 postcard template and build on a plain 9x12 file (or 6x11 for a community card). 9x12 Method Printing adds trim and bleed in pre-print.
Add 2 or 3 sample ads. An empty grid looks like a gamble. A filled one looks like a real product. The AI Ad Designer (free for members) builds a print-ready ad in about 30 seconds.
Make a one-page price sheet. Slot sizes, prices, homes reached, one business per industry. Paste it into DMs or leave it on counters.
This is where card #1 actually gets sold. A good list and a simple daily plan beat talent every time.
Build a list of around 100 local businesses. Name, owner, email, phone, Facebook page. If you can't find their email in 30 seconds, move on.
Start with industries that spend. Roofers, HVAC, painters, landscapers, window cleaners, dentists, chiropractors, auto shops, realtors, local franchises. Bigger jobs, bigger marketing budgets.
Write down your warm list. Your easiest yes usually comes from someone who already trusts you. Here's how to land your first sale from your warm network.
Pick two outreach channels. Facebook groups plus cold email, calls, or walking in. If one goes quiet, you switch. You don't quit.
Save your scripts before you need them. A first email (subject line: "Question"), a Facebook group post, and a call opener.
Set your follow-up rhythm. 24 hours, 48 hours, one week. Sales close on the second, third, or fourth touch. Robert emailed 20 HVAC companies, followed up, and one paid $450. His advice: "Don't ignore the follow up."
Full transparency. I teach all of this inside the community, with the exact scripts and a room full of people who've filled cards. You don't need to join to work this checklist, though.
When a business owner gets your email, they look you up. Give them something to find.
Claim your free Our Local Spotlight pin. It's free for members and puts you on a map with 400+ operators. Here's how Our Local Spotlight works.
Set up a Facebook page for your card. They get your email and think spam. Then they see you on Facebook, and now they know you're real.
Get physical samples in your hands. A real card on a counter sells itself. Logan closed 2 advertisers with nothing but physical samples. No website, no social media.
Nail your intro line. You're a local business owner bringing businesses together to split the cost of a big mailer. Not an agency. That sentence lowers everybody's guard.
Okay so here's where the money shows up. Simple pitch, tight payment rules.
Lead with three points, and only three. Every home on the route, a fraction of the cost of mailing alone, and the only business in their industry on the card.
Sell the exclusivity. One roofer, one dentist, one HVAC company. If they don't take the spot, their competitor will.
Send the invoice the same day they say yes. Verbal yeses go cold fast. No roses until it closes.
Collect 100% before anything prints. The slot is officially claimed when it's paid.
Put your terms in writing. Paid up front, refunds only before print, they approve their final ad, and you guarantee the homes, not the results.
Collect ad details with the payment. Logo, offer, phone, address, colors. Chasing a logo three days before print is miserable.
The card has to be clean, readable, and correct. That's it.
Build every ad to its slot size on the plain card file. Same rule as your mockup. The print team handles trim and bleed.
Make every phone number huge. If a neighbor has to squint, the ad already lost.
Add a tracked QR code with ScanLab. It's free for members and gives you real scan numbers to show advertisers later.
Get "APPROVED" in writing on every ad. Michael's policy: every advertiser signs off with the word APPROVED before anything prints. It kills the "I thought you were going to fix that" conversation.
Ask for a Google review when you send the final proof. That's when they're happiest with you.
Proof the whole card one last time. Every phone number, address, and spelling. Leave the template's mailing block alone.
Submit to print. All Inclusive through 9x12 Method Printing is $2,999 for a 9x12 to 5,000 homes or $1,449 for a community card to 2,500 homes, postage included. Figure 4 to 6 days of printing plus 2 to 3 days of shipping.
Your advertisers paid weeks ago. Mailing day is when you prove they made a good call.
Confirm the drop and save your tracking. All Inclusive includes tracking info and photos of your prints.
Message every advertiser. "Your card is out," plus a photo. This is what earns you card #2.
Set expectations on timing. First calls usually show up 7 to 14 days after mailing, and the card keeps working for weeks. Say it now so nobody panics on day three.
Keep your extra samples. All Inclusive sends extras. They're your door-openers for card #2.
Check in about two weeks after it lands. Ask each advertiser what they're hearing. Calls, walk-ins, "saw you on the postcard."
Pull your ScanLab numbers. Real scans beat guesses.
Send a short results recap. A few lines each: what they told you, what the scans say, and a thank-you.
Pitch the renewal early. Michael locks renewals roughly six weeks before his next print deadline, and he got 75% of his advertisers to renew. My guide to advertiser renewals has the full playbook.
Start card #2's list before card #1 lands. Renewals plus a fresh list means card #2 fills way faster.
Less than you think. A way to collect payments, a town with solid EDDM routes, a mockup card, a list of around 100 local businesses, and a print partner.
Literally $0 of your own money for print. Advertisers pay up front, and slot six covers the $2,999 on a 9x12 (or the $1,449 on a community card). The setup items cost little or nothing, plus a state filing fee if you form an LLC.
Phases 1 through 5 take a few evenings. Selling is the long part: about 30 days to fill a first 9x12, or about two weeks for a community card. Then add 4 to 6 days of printing and 2 to 3 days of shipping.
No. You can sell card #1 as a sole proprietor, and plenty of people form an LLC once they know the business works. Either way, open a separate bank account and ask an accountant about your state if you're unsure.
For the fastest first win, go community card: 2,500 homes, $250 a slot, about two weeks to fill, $2,551 profit. For the bigger check, go 9x12: 5,000 homes, $500 a slot, $5,001 profit. Same checklist either way.
Collecting payment up front. You can fix almost anything else on the fly. Printing on promises is the one mistake that turns a profitable card into a loss.
It's not easy, but it's extremely simple if you keep it simple. One box at a time.
As always, I'm rooting for you. Peace.
Ready to run your own card?
Get the course, scripts, tools, and weekly coaching inside the 9x12 Method community.
Mitchell Tebo
