Podcast Summary: The Side Hustle Show – Episode 719

Title: $1,000 per Postcard: The Every Door Direct Mail Side Hustle
Host: Nick Loper
Guests: Rachel & Dalton, Big Sky Automation
Date: January 22, 2026

Episode Overview

In this episode, Nick Loper explores a creative local side hustle with guests Rachel and Dalton from Big Sky Automation: leveraging Every Door Direct Mail (EDDM) to generate up to $1,000 profit per postcard. They break down how they aggregate ads from multiple local businesses onto a single mailer to dramatically reduce costs for advertisers and create an attractive recurring revenue stream for side hustlers. The pair share their step-by-step process, lessons learned, customer attraction strategies, and how this approach can be a powerful "foot in the door" for additional business opportunities.

Key Discussion Points and Insights

Introduction to the EDDM Side Hustle

• What is EDDM?
  The USPS allows nearly blanket local mail delivery for about $0.25 per piece.
• Business Model:
  • Revenue by aggregating ads for 10–16+ local businesses on one postcard.
  • Shared advertising dramatically reduces cost per business.
  • Rachel and Dalton report a repeatable process, running up to 20 campaigns in less than a year.

“You stack up a bunch of those [ads] on the same mailer to spread out the costs, and you got yourself a creative extra income stream.” — Nick (00:05)

Pivoting to a More Profitable Structure

• Initial Challenges:
  • Started with a large 9x12" postcard to 10,000 homes at ~$600 per participant—price too high for small businesses.
  • Shrunk the campaign size to 6.5x12" cards, targeting 2,500 homes in specific neighborhoods.
  • Effects: Lowered costs, increased affordability and retention.

“Bringing it down to that 2,500 mailing range brought the cost down...so now we were able to continue doing this on a mass scale...and it’s no longer unaffordable for them.” — Rachel (01:20)

Standing Out from Valpak & Other Direct Mailers

• Unique Selling Points:
  • Only local businesses (not national chains).
  • Exclusivity: Only one business per category—no direct competitors on the same postcard.
  • Simpler format: A single, prominent postcard, not a thick envelope of coupons.

“Valpak can be up to 75 businesses...we get them here at our house, and...there was two roofers back to back...he ended up switching to us because of that.” — Rachel (03:04)

• Types of Advertising:
  • Indirect brand awareness (like a billboard) rather than expecting instant, direct response.
  • Especially appealing when the cost of solo mailers is prohibitive.

Effective Outreach Strategies

• How To Find Customers:
  • Target businesses already spending on direct mail (e.g., advertisers in Valpak, local magazines).
  • Initial outreach via Facebook Messenger and email, not cold calls—allows owners/managers to respond in their own time.
  • Show real presence: share postcards, sample cards, and community involvement on your Facebook business page.

“Our response rate is really good, especially on Facebook because they can easily go check out our page, see that we’re real people.” — Rachel (06:16)

• Pro Tip: Include pricing upfront in your initial message; it removes friction and signals affordability.

Customer Fit and Retention

• Best Businesses to Target:
  • Dentists, HVAC, home services, salons, restaurants, coffee shops—especially those with high margins or needing repeat brand exposure.
  • Restaurants/coffee shops make the card “sticky” (recipients save the card for offers/coupons).

“One of our most consistent customers has been one of the dentists in town...he buys the biggest spot. HVAC [and] a body contouring salon...And we always recommend trying to get a restaurant or coffee shop...” — Rachel (11:05)

• Category Exclusivity:
  • Major selling point—businesses value being the sole provider in their niche on the card.
  • Creates subtle scarcity; some join to keep competitors off.

Operations, Costs, and Margins

• Designing Postcards:
  • Canva is used for design; business provides assets or Rachel/Dalton use templates.

“...we have a lot of templates that we use and just kind of switch out the information...the simpler that you can make it, the better.” — Rachel (17:14)

• Handling Fulfillment:

  • Printers can handle printing, bundling, and mailing directly via USPS EDDM—Rachel and Dalton never touch the physical postcards.
  • Fulfillment can be handled out of state (their printer is in NY, mailing to MT).

• Financial Breakdown:

  • Example: 15 spots at $150 = $2,250 revenue.
  • Full cost (print, postage, fulfillment): ~$1,300
  • Estimated profit: $1,100 per mailing.

“So you bring in about $2,400 and then it’s around $1,300 for full fulfillment...you’re left with about $1,100 in profit.” — Rachel (20:12)

Recurring Revenue & Scaling

• Retention:
  • ~60–70% of advertisers re-up for each subsequent mailing.
  • Now pre-selling 3–6 month packages or subscriptions (sometimes paid up front).
• Geographic Expansion:
  • Model works in multiple towns/regions—sometimes even without in-person sales.

“We’ve done it up to four hours away from where we live—just messaging people on Facebook and email.” — Rachel (23:52)

“Foot in the Door” for More Business

• Lead Generation:
  • Each mailing is a relationship-building opportunity with up to 16 new trusted business clients.
  • Many expand into other services (website, ads, reputation management).
  • Businesses receptive to further marketing help after initial trust is built.

“This is a really good thing to put at the forefront of our services...you offer such a really high value thing for such a low cost and they appreciate it. You build a really good relationship with them...and then it does lead to those conversations of what else do you do?” — Rachel (25:25)

Key Mistakes & Lessons Learned

• Setting Expectations:
  • Don’t overpromise direct response or ROI on the first card.
  • Educate clients that this is about long-term brand building and top-of-mind awareness, not instant leads.

“Setting those clear expectations up front is what really made our retention rate hold strong and grow. Because they’re not expecting their door to be knocked down by customers on one mailing. That’s completely unrealistic.” — Rachel (33:29)

• Printer Missteps:
  • Ensure your printer’s EDDM template aligns with USPS requirements and doesn’t cover client ads.

Building Community & New Opportunities

• Building Trust and Local Community:

  • Create a business owner group (e.g., WhatsApp or Facebook) to facilitate networking, provide value and keep yourself top-of-mind as the go-to advertising resource.

• New Product Teaser:

  • Launching “community board” — placing large message boards in restaurants/gyms featuring a handful of business ads, displayed for a year, providing recurring low-touch income.

“It’s almost like again, another billboard, but on a smaller scale.” — Rachel (39:35)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “Businesses, they either get this kind of marketing or they don’t...You might have to educate them in the process, but the fact that you target owners that are already advertising...will be a lot more receptive to this idea.” — Dalton (04:22)
• “I always recommend, don’t wait to start. Motivation is just this thing...No, just get started today and your dreams are going to come true.” — Rachel (41:58)
• “You have to be consistent...your motivation will run out, so you have to be disciplined with your consistency.” — Dalton (43:24)
• “If you build it, nobody’s going to come unless they know about it.” — Nick (43:51)
• “Each postcard has 16 businesses...that could be up to 16 new leads that we’re bringing in that we’re building relationships with.” — Rachel (26:49)

Key Timestamps

• 00:01–01:20: Intro, What is the Every Door Direct Mail Side Hustle?
• 03:04–05:16: Valpak comparison, Exclusivity, Why local targeting matters
• 06:16–09:50: Outreach strategies: Facebook, email, messaging, pricing talk
• 11:05–13:25: Best types of businesses to target, “Sticky” ads
• 17:14–20:12: Designing cards, fulfillment, margins, cost breakdown
• 21:44–22:52: Recurring revenue, advertiser retention rates
• 25:25–27:24: Using postcards for lead generation into higher ticket services
• 33:29–34:48: Setting expectations, learning from early mistakes
• 36:28–38:18: Building a business owner group/community
• 39:03–41:46: Teaser: Community boards/shared advertising opportunities
• 41:58–43:51: Top actionable tips from Rachel & Dalton

Actionable Takeaways

• Niche down, start small: Target specific neighborhoods for affordability and effectiveness.
• Leverage exclusivity: Category exclusivity is a strong selling point.
• Start with warm leads: Local businesses already using direct mail are your best prospects.
• Build community: Creating a trusted local network multiplies opportunities.
• Set expectations: Emphasize the value of brand visibility and repetition rather than instant results.

Resources Mentioned

• Bigsky Automation
• Community Card Playbook
• USPS EDDM Tool
• Canva (for postcard design)
• WhatsApp/Facebook for local community building

Summary by: Podcast Summarizer Pro | Language and tone reflect the episode's engaging, straightforward, and highly practical style.