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Free idea for a web entrpreneur
- Thread starter RU482
- Start date
SmoochyTX
Lifer
So someone is going to pay you to make a postcard to mail to somebody for a special occasion? That person would rather do that than email, phone, IM, or personally visit then?
What kind of target audience are you thinking of?
ETA - Doesn't sound like anything I would appreciate from anybody that I know. Oh look! A postcard from Aunt Joan wishing me a Happy Birthday. I guess she lost my phone number and email address but somehow remembered my mailing address. 🙁
What kind of target audience are you thinking of?
ETA - Doesn't sound like anything I would appreciate from anybody that I know. Oh look! A postcard from Aunt Joan wishing me a Happy Birthday. I guess she lost my phone number and email address but somehow remembered my mailing address. 🙁
imported_Tick
Diamond Member
Meh. The margin would be too small. You'd have to send out 10000's per day. And then the venture capital needed would be enormous.
chibichanman
Member
Hand-written cards are still a lot more personal than something typed, even with a cursive/handwriting style font.
SmoochyTX
Lifer
Hey, I'm just trying to get you to think realistically. If you really want to sink something into this (even if not money then time) then be prepared.
If that person was so good-hearted, they would have called, visited, IMd, or emailed. I can't imagine anybody paying a third party to send a postcard (just a postcard?) that wasn't even signed by them personally to somebody they cared about on a special occasion. This isn't 1950.
But I won't say anything more. Good luck in your venture.
oh man, if I was going to sink money into this idea, I sure as hell wouldn't announce it to the world prior to launch
I was just hoping someone else with the resources and maybe a little more marketing finesse than I could run with the idea
here's a thought...where is the heart in a Hallmark greeting card...if you really cared, you would make your own damn card like I used to do in 1st grade.
just sayin ...I think this idea has a place if executed properly. I mean damn, have you bought a greeting card lately? $3 and then you have to mail it on top of that.
Automate the process and milk out what little sentiment there is in a hallmark card, and you've got my idea
I was just hoping someone else with the resources and maybe a little more marketing finesse than I could run with the idea
here's a thought...where is the heart in a Hallmark greeting card...if you really cared, you would make your own damn card like I used to do in 1st grade.
just sayin ...I think this idea has a place if executed properly. I mean damn, have you bought a greeting card lately? $3 and then you have to mail it on top of that.
Automate the process and milk out what little sentiment there is in a hallmark card, and you've got my idea
SmoochyTX
Lifer
I know I said I wouldn't reply any more but I can't help myself. This is such a bad idea and it pains me to see somebody actually putting thought into an idea like this.
Let's say the average Hallmark card is $3. The buyer purchases it in Wal-Mart, Walgreens, CVS, wherever. They sign it and hand it over or mail it to the intended party. The intended party gets a momento or at least knows that somebody thought about them and spent a few dollars and actually signed the card themself. If it was a close family member of friend then chances are you also talked to them on the phone or computer and wished them Happy Birthday again.
Now with your postcard business concept. I want to send one to my Mom across the country. I go to your website and pay $3. By doing that, I'm able to pick out a postcard, tell you what I want you to say on it, and you mail it.
OP, do you not understand that that is more work than if I was to buy a full-blown CARD myself and would be more personal? Not to mention, the only way you'd be able to make money on this is to charge your customer something around five cents. What a cheap birthday POSTCARD.
Think it through and imagine yourself either giving or receiving one of these postcards. You can't honestly say you'd rather have one of your postcards over a real card.
The majority of my aunts and uncles only use my grandmother as a bank. On every special occassion, they'll send her a card that's about as personal as handwriting "To Grandma, Mom, etc" "From Barbara, Nancy, etc"
I'm sure, especially if they could automate the process, they'd pay for a service like this.
On top of that, plenty of people just send cards to be cordial. I'm sure plenty of people would love something like this for Christmas Cards, especially if you could send a picture to the company and include it in the card (for an additional fee of course).
Honestly, I've heard of much worse ideas. There might not be a huge market for this, but depending on how well you could advertise, there is a potential for profitabilitiy, and you should be able to break even.
While this is certainly a niche, niches can be profitable, and if you read any business history book you'll find the genre riddled with Smoochy's who shoot down ideas that later turn out to have merit. Never listen to reason, as all progress depends upon the unreasonable man. At the very least it's a neat idea and considered it stored at the back of my mind even though I am not as of yet a web entrepreneur.
Now if you had exclusive North American rights to the Squid Jerky postcard, you'd be set. When I was in the market for a postcard a year or so ago, the only ones available at the bookstore were the typical local semi-famous landmarks and scenery images intended for tourists. A selection of novelty humour ones to choose from instead would would have made my day. And imagine having a touristy postcard sent from someplace you've never been or are nowhere near, like the character in Prison Break who smuggled into the prison postcards from Iraq to convince his wife that he'd was still stationed there. Perhaps an increase in the price to have the postcard handwritten, or an option to scan your own handwriting onto the back would be other ideas off the top of my head. Romantic postcards for a sweet thought to put a smile on face on Valentine's day or out-of-the-blue I love you reminders.
Postcards are cheap things too; I can't see them costing more than ten cents each when bought in bulk. $5 dollars a postcard would not be excessively unreasonable for this service, and I'd imagine the concept would be within the realm of reason of a one man operation running from the home. Like all startups, keep all initial overhead to the minimum, and it would only take a few hundred dollars to test the waters.
Now if you had exclusive North American rights to the Squid Jerky postcard, you'd be set. When I was in the market for a postcard a year or so ago, the only ones available at the bookstore were the typical local semi-famous landmarks and scenery images intended for tourists. A selection of novelty humour ones to choose from instead would would have made my day. And imagine having a touristy postcard sent from someplace you've never been or are nowhere near, like the character in Prison Break who smuggled into the prison postcards from Iraq to convince his wife that he'd was still stationed there. Perhaps an increase in the price to have the postcard handwritten, or an option to scan your own handwriting onto the back would be other ideas off the top of my head. Romantic postcards for a sweet thought to put a smile on face on Valentine's day or out-of-the-blue I love you reminders.
Postcards are cheap things too; I can't see them costing more than ten cents each when bought in bulk. $5 dollars a postcard would not be excessively unreasonable for this service, and I'd imagine the concept would be within the realm of reason of a one man operation running from the home. Like all startups, keep all initial overhead to the minimum, and it would only take a few hundred dollars to test the waters.
Rock Hydra
Diamond Member
Wow, people are too lazy to write their own postcards?
alkemyst
No Lifer
Because they usually still send a card at least.
IMHO this would make it easier for those types.
It's not about what your opinion on how the world should work, it the way it is. I have gotten cards with nothing written inside from acquaintances. We don't really talk on the phone, we don't email each other...but I know at least they remembered a date or occasion.
In all seriousness, if electronic printing is built-in...an average postcard is about .18 cents to mail....a card about .40. People pay up to $3 for just a card, postcards about $1.
You can charge an extra few bucks and post-development (which would not be rocket science...finding a variety of cards/postcards would be the hard part here) you are looking at probably a 10x return on inventment. Depending on volume, a basic server or PC would be fine with just a decent printer. Print to a bin. With the cards, set it up to print the card, then envelope back to back with envelope getting the postage pre-printed.
Stuff.
Bring bin to postoffice or dump in mailbox.
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