Marketing plan · National City

Landscaping direct mail in National City:
a neighborhood-by-neighborhood plan

By Best Direct Mail, San Marcos · Numbers from USPS and the US Census Bureau

National City is one of the oldest cities in San Diego County, and its yards show it. Lots are small, many front lawns date back decades, and much of the housing is rented. That makes it a different market from the big-yard suburbs to the east: fewer large installs, and more steady, affordable work like mowing, clean-ups and front yard makeovers, plus a lot of rental and commercial property that needs regular care.

The whole city shares one ZIP Code, 91950, so the real choice is which streets to mail and whether to reach the resident or the owner. Below is what we'd mail where, starting with the public numbers for National City.

National City by ZIP Code

ZIP Code	Single-family houses	Owner-occupied	Median home value	New movers a month (average)
91950 All of National City, plus Lincoln Acres	42%	36%	$612,200	about 135

What the columns tell you:

Single-family houses: the share of homes that are detached houses, most with a yard to care for. The higher it is, the fewer EDDM® cards go to apartments and condos, where the HOA or the landlord hires the landscaper.
Owner-occupied: owners decide on clean-ups, new plants and turf replacement. Renters usually don't.
Median home value: higher values point to design, installation and full-service maintenance. Elsewhere, clear flat prices for mowing and clean-ups work best.

These figures cover whole ZIP Codes, and single routes inside them can be quite different. Our EDDM® route planner shows homes, income and homeownership for every route before you choose.

Single-family houses, homeownership and home value are US Census Bureau American Community Survey 5-year estimates for the ZIP Code area. New movers are a US Census Bureau American Community Survey 5-year estimate: residents who moved into a different home in the past year, turned into households and divided by 12.

New movers: on average about 130 households move to a new home in these ZIP Codes every month. A new owner often wants to make the yard their own and doesn't have a gardener yet.

What a mailing costs: $2,721 for 5,000 homes with our recommended 8.5 × 11 EDDM® postcard, including printing and postage. See our EDDM® prices for other quantities.

What to mail in each neighborhood

Historic National City (91950)

Around downtown, Heritage Square and Kimball Park, Victorian homes and bungalows from the 1920s through the 40s sit on small lots next to apartments and shops. The yards are small, but on the older homes they matter: a tidy front yard and a trimmed hedge are part of what makes these houses look right.

Front yard makeovers that suit an older house: low hedges, cottage-style planting and paths, using water-wise plants.
Flat-price clean-ups and hedge trimming, with the price printed on the card.
Mail the owners, not the routes. Houses and apartments share these blocks, so a homeowner list keeps your cards with the people who decide.

West National City (91950)

On the west side, toward I-5, the Navy base and the bay, homes are mixed in with duplexes, apartments and businesses, and most are rented. Tenants rarely hire a landscaper, but the owners, many of whom live somewhere else, need someone they can count on.

Mail landlords with a homeowner list that goes to the owner's mailing address, and offer what a rental needs: a monthly visit so the yard stays presentable, a clean-up between tenants, and weed and debris hauling. One reliable crew for several rentals is an easy sell.

Central National City, Las Palmas and El Toyon (91950)

In the middle of the city, around Las Palmas Park and El Toyon Park, most homes are single-family houses from the 1920s through the 1950s on small, flat lots, with duplexes and small apartment buildings along the busier streets. Many still have the lawn they were built with.

Flat-price mowing. A clear weekly or every-other-week price works well where yards are small and similar.
Turf replacement. Swapping a tired front lawn for water-wise plants and mulch, with the rebate from the SoCal WaterSmart program on the card.
Pick the house routes. EDDM® works on the streets that are mostly houses; skip the routes along the busy corridors.

East National City and Lincoln Acres (91950)

On the east side, toward Paradise Valley, Plaza Bonita and the unincorporated Lincoln Acres area, most homes are single-family houses from the 1940s through the 60s, with more owners than the rest of the city and some sloping lots on the hillier streets.

Monthly maintenance plans. Quieter owner-occupied streets are the best place in the city to build a tight route.
Irrigation repair and drip conversion for old sprinkler systems that waste water.
Slope clean-up and erosion control on the streets that climb toward Paradise Hills.

Businesses and apartment communities (91950)

National City has a large business community, from the auto dealers on the Mile of Cars to shops, restaurants and industrial sites near the waterfront, plus many apartment complexes. If you do commercial maintenance, EDDM® can include business addresses, so you can mail only the business routes, and a business list reaches the property managers who hire for apartment buildings.

A first National City mailing plan

Owners and landlords across the city. Mail a 6 × 11 postcard to a homeowner list, so every card goes to an owner, not a tenant. Lead with a monthly maintenance price and a between-tenant clean-up.
Maintenance and turf replacement to the house streets. Mail an 8.5 × 11 EDDM® postcard to the routes on the east side and in Las Palmas and El Toyon with the most houses. Pick them in our EDDM® route planner for 91950.
Commercial maintenance to the business routes. If you do it, a separate card to the businesses along the Mile of Cars and the waterfront.

Mail each group at least three times, a few weeks apart. Use a different offer code on each card so you can see which neighborhood and which service brings the calls.

EDDM® or a mailing list in National City?

Which one is better depends on the neighborhood. National City has more renters than most cities in the county, so a homeowner list is usually the better start for residential landscaping: it reaches landlords wherever they live and skips the apartments. On the east side, where more homes are owner-occupied houses, EDDM® reaches nearly the same people for less. Check the single-family and homeowner numbers in the table above, and tell us the areas you want and we'll recommend the right mix.

What to put on a National City postcard

Say you're local. "Serving National City and the South Bay" tells people you can keep a regular schedule here.
A clear price. On small yards, a printed price for mowing or a clean-up gets more calls than "free estimate".
Before and after photos of National City yards you have done. Real local work beats stock photos.
Your C-27 license number if you do installation work, plus "licensed and insured". Landlords and property managers ask.

For the full list of services, offers and a 12-month calendar, see our landscaping direct mail guide.

Landscaping postcard designs

Start from one of our ready-made landscaping postcards. We add your logo, offer, license number and photos, send you a proof, then print and mail it. Need a custom design, or have your own? Just let us know.

Landscaping marketing plans in other cities

National City at a glance

New movers: About 130 households a month
Best areas: Maintenance routes and irrigation: east National City and Lincoln Acres. Flat-price mowing and turf replacement: Las Palmas and El Toyon. Rental yard care: west National City, by homeowner list.
What it costs: $2,721 to mail 5,000 homes by EDDM®
Where to start: A homeowner list mailing with a monthly maintenance price, reaching owners and landlords across the city.

Frequently asked questions

How many homes are there to mail in National City?

The table above shows the homes and carrier routes in 91950, straight from the USPS EDDM® route map. That ZIP Code also includes Lincoln Acres, a small unincorporated area on the east side.

How do I reach landlords in National City?

Use a homeowner list. It sends your postcard to the owner's mailing address, even when they live somewhere else, so the person who pays for the yard gets your card instead of the tenant.

Is turf replacement a good offer in National City?

Yes, on the house streets. Many older homes still have their original front lawns, and the SoCal WaterSmart rebate helps owners pay for the change. Check the program's current terms before you print a rebate amount on the card.

Do you mail in National City?

Yes. Our print shop is in San Marcos, so we print your postcards there and take EDDM® mailings to the Post Office that delivers your National City routes.

Get a quote for your National City mailing

Tell us which neighborhoods and services you want to focus on. We'll reply with a price for printing and mailing, and the routes or list we recommend.

Landscaping direct mail in National City:a neighborhood-by-neighborhood plan