3 Reasons Cheap Leaflet Distribution Doesn’t Work

On the hunt for cheap leaflet distribution? Read this article first. It uncovers what to expect, what compromises will be made and where your flyers could potentially end up.

Print marketing, and more specifically, residential/door-to-door distribution, is still surprisingly popular with certain business sectors. However, if you’re new to residential marketing, where do you start? Especially when prices range from £30 to well over £100 per thousand.

Let’s take a quick look at what to watch out for and why certain companies charge what they do.

Cheap Leaflet Distribution; What to Look Out For

There are three reasons why a leaflet printing and delivery campaign might be cheaper than it should be. Before we get into that, let’s talk about time.

If you’ve ever delivered a cheeky thousand leaflets yourself, you’ll know what I’m talking about, right? This work is looooooooooong (and usually quite boring).

Although we’ve perfected our routes and whittled down our times here in Nottingham, the average can still be anywhere between six and eight hours. Yikes!

At the time of writing this article, the national living wage is £10.42 per hour. Furthermore, this rises to a whopping £11.44 from the first of April 2024.

Based on the £10.42 rate, if a distributor took six hours to deliver a thousand leaflets, they should earn no less than £62.52. I can tell you first-hand that most companies don’t pay this to their staff.

Admittedly, we work in thousands and some areas are quicker than others, however, if what you’re being charged doesn’t even cover the wages, what’s happening?

Related → How long does it take to deliver 1000 leaflets

1. Shared Distribution

Firstly, a fully genuine reason for lower-priced leaflet distribution is including it with a shared drop. The company will usually charge from £25 to £60 per thousand. They make their money up by including other flyers and leaflets.

Pros: Much lower cost

Cons: Lowest response rate. Delivered with a mountain of other flyers. Additionally, your material can sometimes be hidden away inside another leaflet or pizza menu.

2. Corners Will be Cut

Secondly, it’s extremely common for distribution firms to charge around £70 for a solus drop. This means that’s all they earn as the flyer or leaflet is delivered on its own.

As mentioned above, the staff should be receiving between £60 and £70 per thousand. Therefore, something doesn’t quite add up, does it? Underpaid staff results in corners being cut. Simple.

3. They Won’t go Out at All

Lastly, the worst-case scenario is something I hear of far too often. You’ve paid your money, and then it goes quiet, with zero responses and zero communication. Maybe you get a quick email to say it’s done (minus any GPS tracking).

This is a thing! It happens more than you’d imagine. One of our clients recently came to us in Nottingham after an unacceptable service with another company. No tracking was provided, no offer of a refund and, of course, no responses.

We all know where those leaflets ended up.

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Cheap Leaflet Distribution – Conclusion

Cheap leaflet distribution is rife with fraudsters who won’t have your best interests at heart. Always conduct thorough research. Check out the company reviews, reputation and the overall vibe you’re getting from them.

If the pricing seems too good to be true (remembering the hours it takes and the national living wage), it usually is.

Here at Leaflet Lion, we’ve spent the last ten years building a reputable distribution team that cares about your success. Ready to plan your next campaign? Let’s talk!