There are many factors to be considered when doing this, these are important in obtaining the best results from your campaign.

You need to consider where you are going to target your material and the coverage and penetration that you want to achieve. If you are just thinking of a small distribution in the local area, it may be provident to choose a small local company who just handle the smaller distributions in one area. They are quite likely to be cost effective, and have shorter lead times. Accountability may be a problem if things do not go according to plan, so this needs to be weighed against the amount of financial outlay. Using a smaller company you are more likely to get hands on approach.

You may for example get the person in charge of the company out delivering the leaflets, this may be acceptable to you, but will prove difficult if you are trying to get hold of someone with some last minute changes to your distribution area or you want to put distribution on hold for a short while.

Most advertising campaigns are fairly substantial in nature with multiple thousand or million copies to be delivered. This is when you need to choose on of the larger companies with a truly nationwide coverage. If you are starting from scratch, and have no recommendations to rely on from other advertisers this can be a minefield. Using your search engine could be a good way to start. Searching for leaflet distribution will bring up a host of companies for you to choose from.

Its is probably a good idea to speak with a range of these, this way you will get a feel for the nature of the company. Can you speak with a member of staff that gives you the information that you need quickly and professionally? Is the planned campaign cost effective at the price quoted?

Using a larger company will allow you to tap into the resources such a socio demographic targeting; this is a must when planning a large campaign and will pay dividends with your results. You will also have access to a large network of distributors who will cover the whole country quickly and effectively. This will allow you to run different campaigns in different areas concurrently, allowing you to assess your results more efficiently.

Whichever type of company you use you need to talk about things such a penetration rates. Any company that offers you one hundred percent is being less than truthful; in the real world this is simply not achievable. You need to think about accountability if things go wrong, all companies must be able to demonstrate due diligence when effecting your campaign. You also need to consider who is delivering your material, will they be adult and presentable, even the best product can be eclipsed if the person delivering the leaflet walks over the grass!! Finally find out if there is a clear defined customer service policy, this will help allay any problems that may occur in the future. Finally GOOD LUCK!