At B Direct, we have a client who just reduced their cost per lead by 70% when we replaced an envelope mailer with a postcard. So, as you can imagine, we're big champions of postcards right now.

Actually, we've been postcard fans for quite a while.

Before the holidays, we received what appeared to be a simple 4.75" x 6.75" postcard from a local MINI dealership. The art side showed five vehicles arranged in a sophisticated (European, maybe?) urban square. A headline below the photo reads, "It's classic for a reason." And, the familiar MINI logo sits beside the words. The mail panel includes the return and recipient addresses, a presort indicia, and where you would expect to see a message, "Additional Important Disclosures." Not much else.

The postcard, however, turned out to be a double postcard (a more sophisticated spin on a format we used to use for magazine renewals). Inside, the top panel includes three detail shots of a MINI vehicle with the message "Doing more with less since 1959." The panel below is formatted like a letter with a personalized salutation, a URL "to view our offers," and some brand messaging. The letter is from the Sales Manager of the dealership and the close includes his name, title, and contact info.

The piece is succinct and lean (in fact, you could call it a "mini mailer). A good example, perhaps, of the medium matching the message. It's attractive and easy-to-read.

However, it could work harder.

The real estate on the mail panel could have a short, personalized, and "handwritten" note for the recipient. The URL, which is a little long to be considered a vanity URL, could instead be a PURL. And, as long as the faux letter is being sent by an individual person (good!), why not include a signature (better)?

The Bs, reluctantly, give the campaign a thumbs-down.

But it would be quick and easy to make a handful of "mini" adjustments to change our minds.