Local civic publishing & SaaS

Common Sense Quarterly

A 9×12 civic-education postcard, distributed through chambers of commerce, with lawyer-curated copy on every sponsor spot.

commonsensequarterly.com$549 per sponsor spot. Operator program for chambers.

What it is

Common Sense Quarterly is a quarterly 9×12 civic-education postcard delivered via USPS EDDM to as many as 5,000 households per ZIP per day. The civic side of the postcard carries community spotlights, principle-of-the-quarter features, local government updates, a Know Your Rights amendment feature, and a collectible character card. The reverse holds twenty sponsor spots — and unlike any other direct-mail product on the market, every sponsor spot ships with lawyer-curated civic copy that connects the sponsor’s industry to a founding principle.

The platform is a multi-tenant SaaS. Chambers of commerce or qualified entrepreneurs operate editions in their own ZIP code, recruit sponsors, and earn roughly $24,000–$28,000 net per year. The platform handles content generation, design, payments, print logistics, and analytics.

Who it’s for

Chambers of commerce looking for a high-margin recurring program tied to America’s 250th. Entrepreneurs in markets where no chamber has yet stepped forward. Local sponsors — legal, dental, real estate, HVAC, accounting, insurance, twenty categories in all — who want their advertising to carry civic weight rather than coupon-flyer noise.

The problem it addresses

Direct-mail postcards have an attention problem; they get glanced at and tossed. Civic education has a distribution problem; the people who would benefit most rarely opt in. CSQ solves both by turning the postcard into a household-delivered civic publication that carries its own sponsorship economics. Households read it because it’s interesting; sponsors fund it because their copy reads like an editorial, not an ad.

Operator economics

Twenty spots at $549 = $10,980 gross per edition. Platform share of 15% (10% for enterprise). Production costs of roughly $2,200–$3,300 per edition (print, postage, mailing services). Net to operator: approximately $6,000–$7,100 per edition, around $24,000–$28,000 annually at four editions per year.

“Direct mail with civics in the marrow. Every spot earns its space because the copy actually teaches something.”
— Christopher J. Bradley, on the CSQ thesis

Press & partnership

Chamber operator program inquiries should be routed through the partnerships page. Press inquiries about the CSQ thesis, the US Chamber Foundation 250th Business Playbook alignment, or operator economics should be routed through the press desk.

Press kit Partner inquiry