A Direct Mail Success Story

Lately in my moderately-sized townhouse, my wife and I have been on a kick to "get ridda stuff". Most Americans will concur that we as a society accumulate "stuff" at a rapid pace, often for no particular reason. And most people will also concur that every now and then, stuff just needs to go.

But go where?

I prefer not to just get a big trash bag and haul it off to the dumpster. That, to me, is incredibly wasteful and a drain on our precious resources.

I also prefer not to try to sell this stuff on ebay, because, let's face it, where's the glory in photographing the item, writing copy, waiting for the auction to finish, and shipping out an old telephone for a profit of $3.74? Thanks, but I'll pass.

And driving out to Goodwill and bestowing my stuff on them isn't always convenient to me since the closest one is a 15 minute drive and has hours that conflict with my work schedule.

So just when I lost all hope and was about to leave my stuff to sit and gather dust for another year, yesterday I got a bright yellow post card in the mail from the Purple Heart Pickup organization. Sure enough, the card clearly explains that I can simply bag up my used belongings that meet their criteria, leave it in front of my house on the specified date, keep a receipt of the donation for my tax records, and bam, I'm done! Great service... veterans benefit from the donation, I get a bit of money back from a tax deduction, and my closets have more open space available. I'm glad they sent me the post card.

This is a prime example of how direct mail can be an effective marketing tactic... if you have the right timing, announce the right message, and reach the right people.