Planning Your Campaign Before You Post It

Before posting a campaign on Marketize, it is worth spending a few minutes on the decisions that will shape the quality of your results. The main ones are your target area, your distribution type, your volume, and your timeline.

Target area. Think about where your likely customers actually are rather than simply choosing the area closest to your business. If you are a trades company, you want residential streets with owner-occupiers. If you are a restaurant, density matters more than demographics. Use the map tool during setup to define your area by drawing a polygon, dropping a radius, or selecting postcode sectors individually - and use the letterbox count returned by the tool as your volume baseline.

Distribution type. Solus distribution - your leaflet delivered alone - produces the highest response rates and is the right choice when your offer is strong and your budget allows. Shared distribution reduces the cost per household by splitting the delivery across up to three non-competing businesses and is a sensible starting point for first campaigns or area tests. Consultation distribution is a specialist type for planning and civic campaigns and carries stricter delivery requirements - if this applies to you, read the Consultation Distribution article before posting.

Volume. The letterbox count for your selected area gives you your baseline. Factor in the standard 5-10% wastage allowance for addresses that cannot be reached due to No Junk Mail signs or access issues. For a first campaign in a new area, 5,000 leaflets is a practical minimum for generating useful response data. 10,000 is a more reliable volume if you want measurable results and are planning to repeat the campaign.

Timeline. Build in enough time between posting and your desired start date for distributors to review your campaign, submit proposals, and arrange leaflet collection. For standard campaigns, three to five days is a reasonable minimum, although emergencies can also be accommodated. For large or time-sensitive campaigns, post earlier.