RIPPLE100 Micromarketing

SendOutCards (SOC) helps you send real cards via that “old school” US Postal Service, but with a new-age twist. Through their website you can select, design and personalize cards as well as get reminders on important dates (Mom’s B-day?). It’s a way to keep in touch, connect or reconnect when the moment strikes you- for personal or business. Here’s the breakdown:

• Authentic A-.  Its simple, you pick or create the card, write a note and SOC handles the rest.  That is what they are about and don’t try to be anything more, you can add a gift to your card but that’s all they sell.  A true credit to the company is its sales force; independents who are advocates for the product.  It fits a fundamental of marketing- get your customers that love you to sell you (I suppose the caveat to that is getting them to love you first).  Advocates can start their own home-based business as a distributor and earn money.  The only thing that may shy visitors away is cards are bought through a points system and to join you have to buy a package.  The numbers themselves may look a little daunting to a someone using just for personal use and would probably enjoy a pay-as-you-go account.  I’d get a much better feeling here if they laid out ]the packages and pricing with full descriptions and made it clearer what you are actually paying and for what.
• Inclusive B+.  Advocates as sales people allows people to participate in a way most companies miss out on, the customers become word-of-mouth marketers for the product.  SOC is tapping into social media through their blog and Facebook group.  However the communication mostly consists of company updates and news.  On their main site they have some testimonials to introduce you to the product but it’s a static page and who knows how old those are or what inspirational stories people may have to add.  My recommendation here would be to make submitting testimonials as easy as sending cards, provide a tool that lets people easily share their stories.  It also wouldn’t hurt to start a few discussions on their Facebook Fan Page and get their community talking whether its asking for suggestions, exchanging tips or running a contest they could really engage their loyal community members.  All while making SOC better.
• Constructive A. Plain and simple SendOut helps people grow relationships through a single tool to send cards.  They have a clear call to action: make a difference by sending a card.  The founder pops up as a video-guide to create your card and introduce you to how it works (only thing about the video is it keeps popping up every time you reload the page).  There are a lot of tutorials/videos in addition to this one loaded on the site to help you out if needed.  The site isn’t completely open for anyone to check it out, you need a sponsor ID to really check it out or contact them for one.  However if you Google SendOutCards and look at some of the lower links, it’ll get you to a distributors page where you might be able to try it out for free.  Maybe we have some friends out there that can leave a link to their page?
• Mutually Beneficial A.  The brand grows through independent distributors, people that use the product so for the brand that means some pretty loyal customers.  The service opens up a job opportunity for people to become distributors and get rewarding for helping spread the product.  On the consumer side the bulk prices breakdown into a good deal per card (as low as $0.62 for the post card) if you don’t mind a monthly fee.  The founder, Kody Batemate, lays out their mission pretty well on how much sending a card can make a difference to someone.  SOC also hosts events and training, like their Treat ‘Em Right Seminars, for their distributors and seem to put effort into foster the right, positive mindset.  Top three to me: making someone’s day, networking with a new friend/associate/mentor, and being reminded about dear old Mom and Pops’ anniversary!

SendOutCards seems to have an authentic message and mission of making a difference through a the simple act of sending a card.  There’s room for improvement on being more inclusive and there’s some simple things they can do to get the ball rolling.  What I like best about this company is they have a clear call to action that’s understandable to anyone.  They’re clear about what they do and aren’t stretching themselves in a million directions. I’ll send out a little love with an A- on the 4-way test.