| Many self publishers, book publishers, | | | | mailing, they may want the labels to be |
| entrepreneurs, and home-based and small | | | | merged if there is more than one list, or |
| business owners are in the dark about mailing | | | | bar-coded, which will save considerably on |
| list rentals -- how to order targeted, direct | | | | postage. If you can't answer their technical |
| mailing lists - say for a direct marketing | | | | questions, have your mailing house call your |
| campaign, what to look for, and what to | | | | mailing list rental company to work out the |
| beware of. And they often make a few | | | | final details. |
| expensive mistakes. The following tips and | | | | |
| trade secrets will help you avoid some of | | | | Consider the cost to mail out your mailing |
| these mistakes and help you make better | | | | piece. You might want to test a small number |
| decisions when you seek out quality mailing | | | | on the list first if you have an expensive or |
| list services. | | | | heavy package. |
| | | | |
| First of all, generally, you rent, not buy | | | | When you do mailings First Class, you'll get |
| mailing lists. They remain in the ownership | | | | returns from the post office at no additional |
| of the mailing list company and are usually | | | | charge. If you mail Third Class (bulk mail), |
| not for sale. | | | | you won't get returns. They will be tossed |
| | | | out at the post office, UNLESS you've printed |
| Many business owners rent lists but don't use | | | | 'Return Service Requested' on the envelope. |
| them right away, which is a mistake. Most | | | | Then each return (nixie) will cost additional |
| lists change considerably in 30 days or less. | | | | postage (based on first class), or 'Change |
| Some lists, like mailing lists of public | | | | Service Requested' (cost based on piece |
| libraries, prisons, hospitals, hospital gift | | | | regardless of weight.) Make sure to check |
| shops, elementary schools, high schools, | | | | current costs with the post office because |
| colleges, universities, daily newspapers, TV | | | | they change their rates AND rules |
| stations and radio stations will have very | | | | periodically. |
| few changes. They are fairly stationary so | | | | |
| not as likely to move. Bookstore lists, new | | | | Always send any nixies back to your mailing |
| age bookstores lists, organization lists, | | | | list company, even if there aren't enough for |
| specialty lists, MLM lists and business | | | | a credit, which is almost always offered. |
| mailing lists may have a high rate of return. | | | | This is a good practice especially if you |
| To avoid a lot of returns, rent the selected | | | | plan to mail again to the same list soon. |
| lists just prior to making your mailing. | | | | They usually have a time limit as to when |
| | | | they can accept the nixies for credit because |
| Be careful about renting any mailing list | | | | the lists you rented will become outdated |
| that goes to individuals: consumer mailing | | | | fairly soon. |
| lists, seniors mailing lists, residential | | | | |
| mailing lists, homeowners mailing lists and | | | | When you contract to rent a list, some |
| opportunity seekers mailing lists, for | | | | mailing list companies may require a sample |
| example. With 20% of the population moving | | | | mailing piece. This is so the company can |
| every year you may get significant returns. | | | | determine if you're mailing a competitive or |
| | | | objectionable piece. |
| But do expect some returns. As often as we | | | | |
| mail using lists, we always get returns | | | | The business of mailing list rentals is based |
| (called 'nixies' in the trade) from the post | | | | on the honor system to a degree, but this |
| office. People move, forwarding orders | | | | honor system also has a built-in alarm: |
| expire, people expire, post office boxes | | | | owners protect their data by planting decoy |
| close, and businesses close their doors. | | | | names (seeds) in the mailing lists they rent. |
| | | | If a renter contracts to use a list on a |
| Mailing list management and upkeep is | | | | one-time basis and uses it a second time, the |
| expensive. It takes a lot of time and labor | | | | decoy will receive the unauthorized mailing |
| for companies to compile, add to, clean and | | | | and report the misuse to the list owner. The |
| mail to their lists and other necessary | | | | decoys are often friends or relatives of the |
| maintenance. They also use expensive mailing | | | | staff of the companies. Also, many mailing |
| list software programs which can have costly | | | | list companies employ companies that |
| bugs of their own. | | | | specialize in tracking or monitoring mailings |
| | | | to detect any misuse. Since decoys are |
| To help you plan ahead, before you order your | | | | different for each list order, the renter who |
| mailing lists, ask when you can expect the | | | | abuses a contract is easy to trace. |
| order to arrive. This can vary considerably | | | | |
| from company to company. Some companies can | | | | Mailing lists are protected by copyright and |
| take up to two weeks or more. | | | | trade secret law. Any violation of a list |
| | | | agreement is strictly upheld by the courts. |
| Mailing lists can usually be ordered in at | | | | Once a list rental contract has been broken, |
| least three formats - peel and stick | | | | the list owner has legal recourse to sue for |
| (pressure-sensitive) labels or Cheshire (18 | | | | compensatory and punitive damages. Punitive |
| pound, spreadsheet-size computer paper--less | | | | damages could amount to as much as three |
| common these days) or on a floppy disk (used | | | | times the value of the list and more. |
| less often these days) or CD. You order peel | | | | |
| and stick labels if they're going to be | | | | All list owners have good reason to be so |
| affixed to your mailing piece by hand. Or if | | | | protective of their data. List rental is a |
| you know how to import the lists you can | | | | multibillion-dollar business. There are |
| order them on CD. If your mailing house is | | | | literally thousands of lists available for |
| going to do your mailing they'll probably | | | | rental in the United States alone. |
| prefer the floppy disk or CD - check with | | | | |
| them on this before you order. | | | | If all else fails, you can enlist the help of |
| | | | a mail list broker. Brokers usually collect |
| Mailing houses used to require the Cheshire | | | | their fees from the mailing list company. |
| format instead of peel and stick labels | | | | Check this out first. |
| before the advent of computer technology and | | | | |
| CD ROM. They have machines that cut the | | | | In any case caveat emptor! In any case you |
| printed Cheshire sheets into labels and glue | | | | can reap rewards handsomely from sending out |
| them to the envelopes. When ordering lists | | | | fliers, press releases, press kits, review |
| on CD, specify the format you want to use for | | | | copies of books and other materials via the |
| conversion, usually ASCII comma-delimited. | | | | direct mailing lists you choose. |
| You must know how to import it when you get | | | | |
| the disk though. The mailing lists will | | | | These tips and trade secrets should help self |
| always be for one-time use only even if | | | | publishers, book publishers, entrepreneurs, |
| they're on a CD or disk. And some mailing | | | | home based or work-at-home and small business |
| list companies offer instant downloads of | | | | owners make better decisions when working |
| lists. | | | | with mailing lists, mailing list rentals and |
| | | | mailing list companies. |
| Also if a mailing house is going to do your | | | | |