Every week businesses get duped into using leaflet distribution companies that quite literally fail to deliver. Below are 10 leaflet distribution scams to be aware of when selecting your advertising door to door leaflet campaign company.
Don’t forget that if you do your research properly and investigate a company thoroughly you should be able to avoid some of the more obvious pitfalls. However, here are 10 known scams to avoid.
The non-delivery leaflet distribution scams: Some unethical companies unfortunately have absolutely no intention of delivering your leaflets. They get away with it because in law you have to prove that they haven’t delivered them to get any recompense. Make sure you use a reputable company who has good code of practice terms and check their references prior to using them.
The postcode sector scam: It is critical to check how the distribution company has calculated the number of homes within a postcode sector. Many companies may sometimes overcharge as they use unadjusted generic Royal Mail postal code data which includes rural properties that are too costly for them to deliver to.
The low price scam: If it looks too good to be true it is too good to be true. If it takes a full day of walking to deliver 1000 leaflets and you are being offered a price of £20 per 1000 to have yours go out on their own then do the maths! Either the company is making a big loss, not delivering your leaflets or employing people well below the minimum wage (who will probably throw the leaflets away). Ultimately, you get what you pay for and any reputable company will charge you a fair price for a fair job.
The backchecking scam: Make sure the company you use has a genuine and reliable way of checking that the distribution has been carried out properly. We recommend you use a company who has invested in GPS tracking. It’s not necessarily cheap but it’s the best way of watching the distributors walk up and down the long driveways so you know they have delivered to specific addresses. The backchecking some less ethical companies say they will carry out can be in reality completely worthless… if it doesn’t seem convincing to you then stay well clear!
The targeting leaflet distribution scams: You may wish to target affluent areas or other demographic communities but how can you be sure that the distribution company will pick out the areas that will work for you? Some less ethical companies will promise demographic targeting of your leaflets but will have no means of doing so. Ask them what software they use to target areas and precisely how their targeting works.
The terms & conditions scam: Always read the terms and conditions of any leaflet distribution company. Some unethical companies will spend more money and time writing very one-sided terms and conditions to make it very difficult for you to proceed with action against them should they not deliver your leaflets. It’s sometimes a sign that something is perhaps not quite right so ask questions as to what their terms and conditions really mean.
The timescale leaflet distribution scams: Do you need your leaflets out really quick? If so, be wary of companies who offer unrealistic timescales to get leaflets out. If you need to get 20,000 leaflets out in one day then do they really have 20 willing distributors in that area available to carry the work out? Some companies may have but many will not. Some unethical companies may promise a speedy delivery service just to take your money so it is worth investigating what their true capacity really is and ask them what guarantees they give on any promised timescale.
The multi-drop scam: So you may have got a great price for your leaflet delivery going out on its own without any other items (referred to as solus delivery) but all may not be as it seems. Many less ethical companies often promise “solus” delivery but if given an opportunity will put the item out with other businesses without you knowing. That might be quicker and cheaper for them but not great for the visibility of your leaflets… We recommend that you always thoroughly check the references of your distribution company, we really can’t stress this enough!
The fake testimonial scam: With many review sites popping up all over the Internet watch out for companies that post their own reviews online. It can sometimes be quite easy to spot if the review site highlights the fact that the IP address of the company is the same as the person who submitted the review. Worth checking if the reviewer also gave a business name so that the review could be independently verified. Always corroborate the references of the distribution company you are using.
The Google complaint scam: There are disreputable companies out there who have so many catastrophic reviews online that it is amazing that they manage to stay in business. How do they do it? They create scores and scores of blog pages that rank highly for their company name combined with a word such as “complaint” or “review” so that genuine web forum reviews get pushed on to the second or third page of Google! Check for unusually irrelevant or contrived blog pages that rank for these keywords such as “Insert Company Name Here Reviews” it will be a sure sign that something is not right.
