What is Direct Mail Marketing? Direct mail is one of the most dynamic communications and marketing tools available. It is utilized by small and large businesses, nonprofit organizations, political campaigns, and many others. Direct mail can be intended for specific individuals or markets with greater control than any other medium. Direct mail can be personalized to the point of absolute confidentiality. It has almost no limits of space, sizes, content, materials and processes used. Can be specific, accurate and time controlled. Direct mail has enough means to introduce novelties and provoke buyer's action. Call us today to find out how Direct Mail can work for you.
Is direct mail dead? How can direct mail be dead if even Google has recently used direct mail to reach small and medium size businesses? Insurance and credit card marketers continue using direct mail as a mainstay of their media mix? It is most definitely not dead.
What are the minimum requirements for Presorted mailings? For Standard Mail is 200 and for Presorted First-Class is 500.
How much will my postage be? Postage costs are dependent upon the size, weight and thickness of your printed piece, as well as the class of service you choose (First Class Presorted, Standard, or Nonprofit). The average rates are, for: Saturation mail - 17.8¢; Standard mail - 27.5¢; First-class card rate - 24.5¢.
Will the weight of my mail piece affect the cost? The postage rates are unaffected by weight until they exceed 3.3 ounces for Standard mail or 1 ounce for First-class.
How much will a mailing cost? The mailing cost generally consists of three components: mailing (services) fee, mailing list and postage. The mailing fee depends on the services required: Data upload, NCOA, Address correction, Presorting, Addressing of the piece, Tabbing, Inserting, Preparation of USPS documents, Delivery, etc. Most of these services are included in one “mailing fee. We can use your mailing list at no cost or we can provide one per your request.
Which class of mail should I choose? Consider Standard or Nonprofit rates for most cases. But if you have a time sensitive project you may want to deem to First-class mail.
What turnaround can I expect for mailing? For small projects (under 5000 pieces) the usual time frame is one business day from receipt of data, materials and all applicable payments. For larger projects: 1-2 business day for jobs requiring only one service and 2- 3 days for jobs requiring multiple services. However, once submitted to the Post Office, delivery to the addressee can vary considerably depending on the class of mail, processing category and target area. First-class mail delivers typically within 2-3 business days. Standard mail has a general delivery timeframe of 3-7 business days and up to 14 days. Saturation and Non-profit mail can extend even to 21 business days. All of the above types of mail have no guaranteed delivery time by USPS.
Do I need my own permit to mail at discounted rates? A permit is required, but if you don't have one, you can use our permit, saving you the initial application fee and the annual renewal fee. Important: To avoid an additional fee, the permit has to be preprinted unless you are intending to use “live” stamps.
Can I mail at Non-profit rates? To mail at non-profit rates your organization has to have a non-profit authorization number from the Post Office. The IRS approval as a non-profit organization does not allow you to mail at nonprofit rates. The post office requires an application to be reviewed by USPS. We can assist you and walk you through the process of obtaining one plus Mailer and CR IDs.
How much room do I need to leave for the mailing panel? The minimum size of the mailing panel is 4” wide x 2” tall in the lower 1/3 of your mail piece. The address area must be completely unprinted and no borders are allowed on the bottom or right edge of the mailing panel. Please ask for our templates to be emailed to you.
Can I have any size postcard I want? Yes, in most cases. There are size limitations (6 1/8” x 11 1/2”) and aspect ratios (length divided by height must be 1.3-2.5) that must be met to claim the best postage rate possible for your project.
What is the qualification for a First Class Postcard Rate? To qualify for a Postcards rate the piece has be from 3.5” x 5.5” to 4.25” x 6” with a thickness of .007. Any larger card will be mailed at a standard letter size piece rate.
What extra processing is involved with folded self-mailers? Folded mailers must be closed with either tabs or glue dots/strips in order to mail. The postal requirements for closing self-mailers recently changed and become more complex and strict. Please inquire about details before you send your piece for print to avoid extra postage charge.
How to supply our own graphic design? We have in-house graphic department and can design and print your mail piece. However, please ask for our templates before you start designing your piece to avoid fixing mistakes later… The preferred format for artwork is PDF.
What format should my mailing list be in? Excel; Comma Delimited; Tab Delimited; CSV; DBF or Any database compatible format. If your file type is not database compatible, let us know and we will see if it can be converted. Additional data fees may apply.
How should my data be formatted? Ideally address formatting should comply with USPS addressing standards. An optimized list will contain the following elements:· First Name· Last Name· Company Name· Address 1 - This should be the primary address· Address 2· City· State· ZipEach of these elements needs to be in a separate field, and all of the fields must be consistent throughout the list.
What is CASS? The Coding Accuracy Support System examines each address to assure the accuracy and deliverability. ALL our database(s) are CASS certified.
What is NCOA? NCOA stands for National Change of Address. The USPS requires that a list be NCOA certified to qualify for automation discounts. Even though the NCOA is not bank breaker ($8/M) you can avoid charges by including “or Current Resident” in the addressing block. This reduces the volume of undeliverable mail.
What is Mail Merge? Mail merge is the process of merging name, address, and other variable data with a letter or other document to create a personalized mail piece.
What is Personalization? Personalization, also known as Variable Messaging or Customization, is a method of printing portions of the direct mail offer in such a way that it is unique to each recipient. By speaking directly to each recipient by name and addressing their specific needs, you can increase the response to your mailer.
Can I acquire mailing list through USPresort.com? Yes. We work with a number of list brokers/compilers and can assist you in researching and acquiring the list that is best suited to reach your target. It is important that you have a clear picture of your client. Our direct mail specialist can assist you in developing a strategy to identify your best prospects.Why should I work with you instead of a list compiler?A list compiler can only offer a solution based on the information they specifically collect. USPresort.com works with all of the nation's leading data compilers and list managers and will always recommend the solution that best solves our client's business objective.What response rate should I expect? The typical RR varies from 0.5 to 4 percent. Response rates are affected by many variables, including media selection, list segmentation, timing, offers, copy and creativity.
How can I get the best results from my mailing? Keep in mind the 40/40/20 Rule: 40% List, 40% Offer, 20% Creative.List - Do all you can to be sure the people who get your mailer are qualified candidates to purchase your product or service.Offer - What you are selling must be relevant and attractive (irresistible if possible) to the recipient of the mailer.Creative - What you are selling must be presented in an easy to understand, interesting, attractive and compelling manner.
What forms of payment do you take for the postage and service fees? Postage funds must be paid at least 24 hours in advance of the mailing date to avoid delays in the mail schedule. No mail will be delivered to the Post Office until full payment for all services is received, unless the customer has a credit account with us. Postage and fees may be paid via PayPal account, credit card, check, or Bank transfer. Postage fee payments made with a credit card or through PayPal are subject to a 3.5% convenience fee.
Direct mail was recently rated as the most effective means of marketing in a study created by “Fournaise Marketing Group”. This is true in both business-to-business and business-to-consumer marketing. What Is It About Direct Mail Marketing That Makes It So Effective? We found at least 8 reasons.
1. Direct Mail Marketing is Personal - Contrary to an ad in a newspaper or magazine, your marketing mailpiece comes as a personal communication addressed specifically to a well-qualified prospect. Not only can you call your customer by name ("Dear Mr. Smith"), but you can customize your message further by including variable merge fields with data available for your particular prospect, like their occupation, numbers, etc.
2. Direct Mail is Targetable. The industry and always evolving data space improves the ability to target more and more precise every single day. With direct mail, you can only target the person you aim your sales message at while decreasing the budget waste and improving your overall return on investment at the same time.
3. Direct Mail Breaks Throughout the Marketing Chaos. Today digital advertising creates an imperceptible cloud of noise. Internet, magazines, TV shows, Billboards - all shouting for your customers’ attention. Your message can surely get lost in this chaos. A sincere letter - addressed to your prospects by name - creates a definite possibility to get their attention.
4. Direct Mail Provides Instant Results. Basic advertising or branding that builds the product or company recognition is powerful, but it takes months, sometimes years. Direct mail demands action now by demonstrating the benefits and advantages of replying Today.
5. Direct Mail Enables You to Truly Calculate Results. You can quickly discover your cost per lead and return on investment. Testing and measuring can be achieved by using reply cards, designated phone numbers, QR or discount codes, which customers have to use when responding.
6. Direct Mail is Foreseen. One good thing about knowing the success of your previous direct mail marketing campaign is the fact that you can anticipate the success rate of future mailings. If you send the same sales message with the same offer to an identical group of potential customers, you can actually forecast the response rate and the ROI (the return on investment) of your current campaign.
7. Direct Mail Makes No Speculations. Because to measure campaign result is easy, this makes testing much simpler. You can send out the same marketing message with a slightly different offer to research which one will work the best. The testing will immediately improve your final results and will enable you to spend your marketing budget more efficiently without relying on guesswork.
8. Direct Mail is Physical. A mailpiece gives you something tangible, something you can hold in your hands. Mail offers something valuable to get excited about and keep it for much longer than any other marketing medium can. 92% of people state that a marketing message delivered through the mail is much more trustworthy than any digitally presented message.
General Rules for the process and illegibility
1. Write a cover letter on your company letterhead which includes all your logo, address, phone
Sample Letter
January 16, 2017
US Postmaster [Your City, State]
To Whom It May Concern:
Attached please find our Application for Nonprofit Standard Mail Rates at Additional Mailing office form.
I have also provided information regarding our current nonprofit status as registered in [please provide city state and zip]. We would appreciate being able to mail our literature at the nonprofit standard rates not only through the [city name] post office but also the additional mailing office located in City, State.
Thank you for your attention in this matter.
Sincerely yours,
2. Download and fill out the Application (PS 3624) Link Below
Then fill out the Request for Confirmation of Authorization (PS 3623)
1. If you are not registered with “USPS Business Gateway”, link below
2. Begin setting up your account by first creating your login
3. Complete your registration by entering your contact information and hit “Create Account”
4. Your registration will be confirmed and a CRID will be automatically generated by the USPS system and appear in a pop-up window after approximately 5 seconds.
Every door direct mail (EDDM®) has been developed by the United States Postal Service as a cost-effective method for small businesses to run direct mail campaigns in their local area. Unlike traditional direct mail advertising, it doesn’t require a list of addresses or mailing permits – making it more “affordable” option for any business. IS IT REALLY?
Please check our blog for details about EDDM® vs Saturation Mail
Lacks Targeting - Even not as high targeting as the regular direct mail, Saturation Mail has some demographic options to choose from. Please check with our specialist about demographic selection possibility, making your campaign extremely efficient.
No Personalization - EDDM® has no names or addresses. With Saturation Mail you can have both*!
Low Response - unlike Saturation Mail EDDM® pieces are delivered as bundles with all other EDDM® pieces, which make them an easy recognizable package to throw out ...
The EDDM Retail® is best for small businesses because of the 5,000 pieces limit to mail.
We can PRINT, BUNDLE, and prepare the PAPERWORK for you. The fee for preparation is $75 + 0.015/ pc
The ready for Post Office delivery pieces will be either ship to you or you can pick them up.
Please don’t forget to let us know which ZIP codes and Carrier Routes your want to target.
If you want to save on the preparation, use the links below to download the postal forms necessary for the EDDM Retail® mailing.
If you have any questions please fill the form on the right or just send us an email
The last postal rates change for first-class and standard mail took affect on August 29th 2021.
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We are outfitted with equipment and knowledge to save you time and money on your Direct mail campaigns. We prepare the mail and deliver it to the post office in accordance with USPS regulations, resulting in significant postage discounts for you. Fast turn around times, wide range of options for personalization, customization and matching solutions are just some of the advantages of using USPresort.com for your direct mail needs. All of the above make us the Direct mail experts and the right business partner for you.
