For all of you businesses out there looking to find a new way to connect with your market base, here’s an idea.  It’s simple, responsible, and makes everyone a little happier: The mailer mail back program.  I can’t be the first person to think of this, and I’m sure someone out there is doing it, but whatever.

You know these things?  Do you get a ton of these, perhaps from buying stuff online?  This is one of those items (alongside cardboard record mailers) that I just cannot throw out.  I’ve always been in the habit of saving pillow mailers ever since I started using ebay awhile back.  Why wouldn’t you hold onto them?  You save money on packaging (why pay for a box or a mailer?) when you’re selling your music collection to make rent.

Maybe you’re already doing this at your job.  If you work in a corporate environment pushing papers, you may be familiar with the interoffice mail folders that have a few dozen blanks on one side for crossing out the previous destination to write yours and send it on its way containing whatever crap that you should have emailed instead.

If you’re a business selling small items, reusing mailers (I highly doubt they’re recycled) and cutting shipping costs sound good to me.  Now it’s time to return the favor.

The business idea: Mail back 5 mailers to us and we’ll take 5 dollars off your next purchase.  It’s a unique and respectful gesture, it’s the right thing to do and quite frankly, it’s fun.  If I saw a business do this, I’d be more inclined to buy through them, that’s for sure…

P.S.: For those that remember this old post, I almost have enough tyvek mailers to send back…can’t wait to pay Dupont to take them back and maybe do something with them.