Posts Tagged postcard

Tell someone you’re going on a trip, and what’s the usual response?  “Send me a postcard,” of course.

Now, Hazelmail makes it easy to send a custom postcard from an iPhone or any web browser.  For $1.50 each, HazelMail will use your uploaded picture to print a postcard with a personal message and mail it anywhere in the world.

Right now you may be thinking, “Why not just e-mail the picture?”  Sure, it would get there faster than snail mail and save some money.

But Hazelmail could come in handy for sending postcards to those who don’t have computers and Internet access (there are still a few.)  Even for those who do have computers, getting a postcard with a personal message looks impressive and thoughtful.  It also gives the recipient something they can save and maybe put on the side of their refrigerator.

Here’s how it works.  HazelMail is available as a free application for the iPhone and iPod Touch. It can be downloaded from the Apple App Store.

You’ll get one credit for a free postcard when you download the app.  Also, you can save money by purchasing additional credits in advance for $1 each instead of the normal price of $1.50.

Advance purchasing also speeds up the process because you won’t have to enter your credit card information each time. Hazelmail does not store account numbers, which is probably a good thing considering the number of businesses that have had major security breaches.

Uploaded pictures can be up to 3 MB in either JPG or PNG formats. You can send postcards to multiple recipients and even store addresses in your account.

Hazelmail promises postcards will be printed and mailed within two business days, with delivery typically within four to seven business days from the time the order is placed.  The company has a network of printers in different parts of the country to speed things up, but international deliveries may take longer.

The program works best with the iPhone app or a conventional web browser. The app can also run on the iPod Touch, but it gets a little more complicated since the Touch does not have a built-in camera.

Theoretically, you could send Hazelmail from a Windows Mobile or other phone through the website.  But it’s a little difficult navigating the website with most of the mobile web browsers. Maybe the company will come up with a streamlined mobile site in the future.

HazelMail’s customer service is responsive if you ever have any problems. The site was developed by Michael Lato, who worked several years in the development of Fotolog, which grew to become the biggest photo blogging service in the world. Michael says he recently discovered his mother, Hazel, for whom the service is named, kept every postcard he ever sent her from his travels.

Now, you won’t have to find a gift shop that sells postcards, scribble a message, buy stamps and look for a mailbox. Plus, there’s another advantage over those store-bought postcards—you can be in the picture.

So on your next trip, don’t forget to send those postcards to your friends.  And Hazelmail takes postcards from old-fashioned to high-tech.