Select the addresses you’d like to market to. It’s easier if you choose ones in a consolidated geographic area.

Design and print postcards to mail to each address. See our example below. Note you’ll need two times the number of postcards as addresses since you’ll send the card twice. We ordered through either Moo.com or Canva.

Our card is featured below. In the future, we plan to change the wording to simply tell people to call, text, or email us and we’ll pick up the donation. This keeps us from driving around to 400 houses, it gets us a phone number or an email address to add to our database, and it gives us at least two personal conversations with anyone who donates.

Look around your area for an organization already hosting a coat drive that you can tag on to. In our area, our brokerage partners with a local dry cleaner to collect coats, have them cleaned, and then donate them to local aid organizations.

Design social media posts advertising your coat drive and include the coat drive in any email newsletters you send in the month leading up to the event.

Buy stamps, use EDDM, or ship cards through your printing service. We collect coats in mid-November, so I suggest sending one postcard by November 1st and the second round a week later.

Collect coats! Write down the addresses of anyone who donates.

Take pictures of your haul and post photos. Include the results of your coat drive in your next client emails or newsletter.

Send thank you notes to those who donated.

Deliver the goods to the appropriate aid organization.