Are postcards still a good marketing tactic to sell more books?

Some people just want to hold something in their hands.

Even if it’s not yet your book.

I’m an admitted Kindle (or ebook) convert. I also used to be one of those who wanted only to read real paper, hold the book in my hands, take in the smell of the press, the whole thing.

Then I traveled and took every book I could possibly ever read with me. And increased the letter size. And highlighted and shared a passage online.

A paper postcard is similar. It’s Old School. It’s made of paper. You can hold it in your hands. You could use it as a coaster for your drink or write your phone number on it.

Maybe they’ll toss it in the nearest trash bin. Maybe they’ll frame it at home. But it’s also a whole lot harder to get rid of than, say, an email or a text or an ad on Facebook or a link to forget to click.

They have to think about what’s on it, remember that longing look in your eyes when you handed them the card and they might even remember your words (“If you buy my book, I’ll love you and remember you as long as I live.”) and that’s going to make it harder for them to put in the shredder with the Trader Joe’s regular newspaper.

They might hand it to someone. Maybe that person uses it to get a shell of a popcorn kernel out of their teeth. But maybe that person reads it and doesn’t understand it. Maybe they hand it off to another person who buys your book, reads your book, and mentions it to her neighbor who does a TV show where they regularly interview authors of books like yours.

So that’s what I’m shooting for. That and the fact that Old School friends say they want something in their hands. They’ll get a postcard from me and who knows where it will end up, but at least it might have a thrilling ride before it gets mangled in the shredder.

Here’s the backside of my postcard. The front side was the cover of the book.