When you are a new paranormal group, it is difficult to find places to investigate. There are locations in distant
cities that charge fees for investigations, but we don't have the budget for that. We know there must be ghost stories
in our local area; we just don't know how to find them. Waiting for word-of-mouth recommendations takes too
long.
To speed up the process, we mailed out about 250 6x4 postcards. The front features our logo and the words: "GOT A GHOST? We would like to investigate." The back includes our mailing address, website, email address, and a QR code.
We compiled our mailing list from several different sources:
- Lists of historical sites and old buildings.
- Places with past reports of paranormal activity.
- Addresses associated with established local paranormal groups.
- Pagan or metaphysical organizations and businesses.
- Locations of famous historical murders mentioned in local newspapers. (If you received a card "out of the blue," you might fall into this category.)
- Local beauty salons and barbershops, since stylists and barbers hear plenty of spooky stories from their clients.
If you know of a group we have overlooked, please send us an email. Additionally, if you know of a haunted location but do not know the current occupant, let us know. We will do our best to find the details and mail them a postcard, especially if it is a business.
Some of our postcards were returned by the post office. I was not aware they returned postcards. In most cases, the return label stated the mail could not be forwarded. I wanted to avoid this. Many of these addresses are historical sites or places where a documented event occurred, so I expected the cards to be delivered to the physical property regardless of the name on the label.
To prevent this issue in the future, I am adding the words "Postal Customer" on a line between the name and the address. This ensures the mail goes to whoever currently occupies the building. The post office primarily uses the final lines of an address for delivery.
