You’ve pre-processed your list through NCOA^Link, updated your addresses with the data you got back from ACS, and still get return mail? This may be due to the almost 20% of moves that aren’t reported to USPS each year. These “lost” moves can prevent your message from getting to the right target.

Why USPS NCOA^Link processing isn’t enough

Each year, 17% of the United States moves to a new address. Many of these individuals, families and businesses file their move with USPS, allowing their mail to be forwarded. This information is accessible for mailers through NCOA^Link processing, or through ACS. However, not all people file their move with the Post Office. Whether by forgetfulness or other reasons, around 20% of moves aren’t reported. Additionally, USPS databases have an expiration date. ACS and other forwarding services only return the last 18 months of moves, while NCOA^Link can return up to the last 48 months (when using a Full Service NCOA^Link vendor like Satori Software). If you are working with a list that hasn’t been updated in the last four years, some of the move data will be past its expiration. With these limitations, you may not be getting all the data you need to keep your list updated.

How to get those missing moves

Many contacts will update their addresses with their bank, magazine subscription or other entities they do business with. Some vendors keep this information in a database to keep their own lists updated. Because the data isn’t licensed by the USPS, access and use is less restrictive. No PAF forms are required, moves don’t “expire” after 18 or 48 months, and the complicated matching algorithms used by NCOA^Link are not required. This results in a more flexible, and longer lasting, database. Some vendors allow mailers to update their addresses using this service, commonly known as Enhanced Change of Address, or ECOA.

Getting the most out of ECOA

Because ECOA is not a USPS service, it does not meet the Move Update requirement for First Class and Standard Mail. You will still need to process through NCOA^Link or another approved method to satisfy the USPS requirement. It’s a good idea to use NCOA^Link in tandem with ECOA as ECOA is an entirely separate database. While some moves will exist in both systems, running your list with each service will result in the most moves found, resulting in a cleaner, more current address list. In our tests, ECOA found up to an additional 20% of moves on certain lists. Depending on the content of your list, your results may vary.

Want to learn more?

Curious whether your list is really up to date? Contact us at 800-553-6477 option 1, and get a free list assessment. We’ll analyze your list and let you know how many moves you may be missing.

address quality · data enhancement · data services · ECOA · move update · NCOALink

This post continues our series in getting the most from your address list. To learn about address correction results, read Understanding Address Correction Results.

After processing your list through CASS and DPV, what can you do with the addresses to get the most out of your mailing? Here are some steps you can take to increase the quality of your mailings.

Step 1: Process the list through additional services

Many mailers are familiar with NCOA^Link processing, which will update addresses for people who have moved in the past 48 months. This process can also identify records where the new address wasn’t available. We will cover NCOA^Link results in another blog post.

After NCOA^Link processing, additional services can help to get more information about the addresses in your database. These services are available outside the USPS data set, but can provide valuable data about the address, and even add more information to make the address deliverable. Services available from Satori include:

• Apartment append – this service is similar to Suite^Link, which adds a suite number to a business address. For individuals, Apartment append can look up the apartment number for incomplete addresses, making the address more deliverable. This service can reduce the number of addresses with DPV problems found during CASS processing. Having this data can also result in more valid moves found during move update processing.
• ECOA (Enhanced Change-of-Address) – this service is similar to NCOA^Link, but uses data from credit bureaus, magazine subscriptions and other sources to find people who have moved, but did not file their move with USPS. Depending on the list, this process can find up to an additional 20% of moves.
• Deceased person, correctional facility and Do-Not-Mail suppression – this service, called the Suppression Suite in Satori products, identifies contacts in your database who are unwilling or unable to reply to your mail piece. By eliminating these addresses from your database, you will ensure that your message gets to someone who can respond.

Step 2: Separate good addresses from questionable and undeliverables

After getting the data back from CASS/DPV, and any additional services, you can use this data to separate the clean addresses from those that need consideration. Here are some suggested groups:

• Deliverable addresses will consist mainly of addresses “matched” during Address Correction. In Satori Software products, these addresses have an error code of 90 or less. From this set of addresses, remove any addresses with NCOA^Link errors, DPV Vacant flags or any addresses that were found using the suppression service. In Bulk Mailer products, you can use the “All Deliverable Records” group to select these addresses. These addresses have a very high probability that they will be delivered properly.
• Questionable addresses contain addresses with DPV and other errors after Address Correction. In Satori Software products, these addresses have an error code of 91 or higher. Add any NCOA^Link errors to this group. These addresses were either not complete, or for another reason were not found in the USPS data set. These addresses need some additional information to make them deliverable.
• Undeliverable addresses include addresses with DPV Vacant status, records that have moved with no forwarding information (especially foreign moves), and any addresses noted during suppression. These addresses are unlikely to be deliverable.

Step 3: Triage questionable and undeliverable addresses

Depending on the type of mail you are sending, this triage process can take seconds or weeks. Here are some options to consider when running triage with your questionable and undeliverable addresses:

• For advertising mail, sometimes it makes sense to remove any potentially difficult addresses from your list, and mail only to the deliverable addresses. This process can be done quickly, and prevents any printing and mailing costs to addresses that are not likely to reach the target recipient.
• For invoices, bills and other personalized mail, use alternate contact information such as a phone number or email address to get updated address information. This process can take some time, but will get the best data back into your mailing list.
• Depending on the cost or content of the mailing, you may choose to mail to these addresses anyway. If you do, print “Address Service Requested” on the mail piece to get more information about the address if it is undeliverable. USPS will return these undeliverable pieces to you, with additional information about why it was not delivered. This process will likely cause an increase of returned mail and each piece returned to you will incur a charge.

Step 4: Send the mailing and update your source data

While many address problems can be corrected, the best practice is to get any changed data back into your primary database. Maintaining correct and current addresses can be handled automatically in some cases, but it is important to capture data from all sources. The least updated data comes from manually returned mail, as the address changes require manual processing to update. Once your source data is clean, it will be ready for you to use with your next mailing.

Step 5: Keep it going

Once you have a clean set of addresses, your work isn’t over. With over 17% of the United States reporting a move every year, over two million deaths, and constant re-naming and re-zoning of streets, addresses don’t stay correct for long. Create and maintain a process to keep your list updated, at least once per quarter.

Stay tuned for our next blog, where we’ll review the possible results from NCOA^Link processing, with some tips for how to handle the different return codes.

address correction · CASS · data enhancement · DPV · error handling · NCOALink

The first week of January is a great time to take stock, evaluate the past year, and make some goals for the year to come. Here are some suggestions to make 2011 really shine.

Start using the Intelligent Mail barcode

For any mailer still using POSTNET to get Automation discounts, this first goal should be top of the list. On May 8, just a few short months from now, USPS will retire the POSTNET and PLANET barcodes — mailers have nothing to gain by postponing the new barcode. Moving to Basic Intelligent Mail is a straightforward process and opens the door to additional services, including Full-Service. To learn more, see the Intelligent Mail section on our website.

Get educated

The mailing industry is always evolving and mailers across the country are using the mail in new and innovative ways. Learning from their successes (and failures) is an inexpensive way to get the most out of your mailing. Attend a class or mailing conference like NPF or your local PCC to learn about changes with the USPS and bone up on your mailing knowledge.

Evaluate your tools

Are you getting the most out of your mailing equipment and software investments? Check with your service providers and ask if you’re using your tools to the best of their ability.

For hardware:

Schedule regular maintenance and a good cleaning if it’s due. Retrain your staff on proper use and ensure you’re using the correct accessories. Re-evaluate your mailroom layout to see if you can make it more efficient or ergonomic.

For software:

Contact your provider and get a refresher on the features that you use most often, and get familiar with the features you don’t use. Many software vendors are constantly updating their products — see what has been added that can add value to your workflow. Ask about any additional features you’d like to see.

Get the most from your data

When did you last take a look at the data you use to create your mailings? Are you getting the best postal discounts? Is your message getting to the right person? If your response rate from your mailings isn’t where you want it to be, there are several services that can enhance the lists you already have. If you’re getting a lot of returned mail but ran your list through CASS and NCOA^Link, take a look at the result codes that are returned. Decide whether you want to mail to these addresses before including them in your mailing. Consider using non-USPS sources to obtain change-of-address and mail suppression services. Not all people report their move to USPS, but they do tend to update magazine subscriptions and notify other companies that mail to them. Also, suppressing addresses using the DMA Do-Not-Mail list and others removes the cost of mailing to addressees that may not be receptive to your message.

New design for a new year

Have you been using the same mail piece layout for more than a year? Maybe it’s time to make a change. Updating the colors, fonts and paper stock you use in your mail can make a big difference in the responses you get. If your mail looks like it belongs in the ’90s, take the time to update your look. Also, take a look at the dimensions of the mail you are sending. If you’re sending your mail at a flat-sized rate, you could get some hefty postage discounts by redesigning your mail to a letter size.

Diversify your message

If you haven’t looked at social media sites like Facebook or Twitter yet, 2011 is the year to get started. Combining your traditional mailing campaign with email reminders and a strong social media push can increase your response rate. And creating a web presence that’s bigger than your web site can increase interest in your products, and introduce you to a whole new market.

What are your mailing resolutions for 2011?

data enhancement · Intelligent Mail · mailing software · USPS