One of the projects that I am working on right now is updating my customer list and my mailing list. It's a good idea at least once a year to clear out bad addresses and companies that have moved or gone out of business.
My company is a direct mail provider and there are also new postal regulations that affect your mailing list. As of November 24th, all bulk mailings have to have their mailing list ran through the Post Office's National Change Of Address database (or NCOA for short). It will update the addresses of businesses or individuals that have moved (as long as they are on file). This has to be done every 95 days or you could face fines from the post office. There is a way to get around it, and that is to add the words "or current occupant" or " or current resident" after the name.
The great thing about this is that anyone that can run an NCOA for you should also be able to give you back a list of changed addresses. I eliminated a number of businesses from my list that have moved out of my area, that I didn't want to market to.
You can expect to pay about $15.00 per thousand addresses for this service and most companies have a $50.00 minimum charge for processing a list. But well worth it, when you figure it costs about $260.00 for postage for 1000 8.5 x 5.5 postcards and, if you eliminate bad targets, you'll probably save at least that much over three months.
If you really stick to the Post Office's 95 day rule you will be reviewing your customers and prospects at least every 90 days or 3 months...a good idea. It's an opportunity to consider customers you haven't heard from and even add new prospects.
My company is a direct mail provider and there are also new postal regulations that affect your mailing list. As of November 24th, all bulk mailings have to have their mailing list ran through the Post Office's National Change Of Address database (or NCOA for short). It will update the addresses of businesses or individuals that have moved (as long as they are on file). This has to be done every 95 days or you could face fines from the post office. There is a way to get around it, and that is to add the words "or current occupant" or " or current resident" after the name.
The great thing about this is that anyone that can run an NCOA for you should also be able to give you back a list of changed addresses. I eliminated a number of businesses from my list that have moved out of my area, that I didn't want to market to.
You can expect to pay about $15.00 per thousand addresses for this service and most companies have a $50.00 minimum charge for processing a list. But well worth it, when you figure it costs about $260.00 for postage for 1000 8.5 x 5.5 postcards and, if you eliminate bad targets, you'll probably save at least that much over three months.
If you really stick to the Post Office's 95 day rule you will be reviewing your customers and prospects at least every 90 days or 3 months...a good idea. It's an opportunity to consider customers you haven't heard from and even add new prospects.
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