Should I Pay The Postage on a Business Reply Card or Envelope or Let the Customer Pay for It?

When it comes to getting people to respond to your direct mail efforts, the easier we make it for them to do so, the more responses we're likely to get.

Whenever we ask someone to do something, some people aren't going to do it. For example, if we ask people to fill in a lot of information, some might not have a pen handy or just might not want to take the time to do so.

Likewise, when it comes to sending in a reply, if they have to get their own envelope or provide their own stamp, some of them aren't going to do so and your response will suffer.

That's why we recommend the use of Business Reply Mail. You obtain a permit from the Postal Service to use Business Reply Mail and then you either deposit money into an account or pay the letter carrier for the replies you receive. You only pay the postage on the actual replies...not for putting the permit onto the outgoing envelope when you send out your mail.

It is well worth the effort to pay for the postage on the replies. Your results will improve.