If you live in the United States, then chances are you have gotten a hard mailer in your postal mailbox about a stock.
So, What Are Hard Mailers?
Hard mailers, also known as direct mail stock promotions, is a form of stock promotion that arrives in the mail as a form as a brochure or letter.
These printed promotional campaigns are typically sent in the mail to potential investors. These type of publications typically feature small unknown company that trades over-the-counter.
Direct mail hard mailers is one of the oldest methods of stock promotion, however, with the rise of the internet, hard mailers are sent out less often nowadays.
The publication will come in the form as some type of “investment report” and will contain a variety of statements such as the company is the “next big thing” and has the next breakthrough technology. It also urges investors to buy shares in the company immediately.
Of course none of the information is usually accurate, but if a large enough of these reports are sent to unsuspecting retail investors through the mail, then a certain amount will buy the stock and ultimately bringing more liquidity in the stock.
These type of publications are normally paid for by a promoter or by large shareholders of the company to be sent out. The SEC requires a disclosure statement be included in paid mailers. In most cases the disclaimer will be at the end of the publication and will disclose the amounts paid to promote the stock.
Hard mailers are often associated with a ‘pump and dump’. The mailer is the pump. The stock often rises at first as more and more people buy it. Over the next few months the stock price falls as insiders and promoter who paid for the mailer repays himself several times over by selling stock into the buying precipitated by the mailer.

The new generation of Hard Mailer Stock Promotion

While hard mailers still do exist today, the most effective way of promoting stocks nowadays is through internet newsletters.
The internet has made promoting stocks cheaper and easier to do. Many unsuspecting investors often signup for e-newsletters from websites offering the next big stock pick.
With a simple click of a button, stock promoters can send out thousands of emails through their e-newsletter to promote stocks. Also, financial message boards or stock investor forums are another popular way at touting stocks.
Because the internet makes stock promotion cheaper and easier, the business of stock promotion has brought many newcomers in trying to get in on it.
Today, you can find hundreds of websites out there that are setup to promote stocks, both of which are very elite groups paid thousands of dollars to promote stocks and others are just imitators hoping to get in on the action.