Succeed with help from an Every Door Direct Mail Printer

 

How your business can be successful with help from an Every Door Direct Mail Printer.

We love challenges at the Connecticut Business Link.   One of those challenges is helping marketers understand the benefits in the flexibility of the Every Door Direct Mail Program. The Problem is that Postal regulations and commercial printing standards are not 100% aligned with each other yet!
But for now, it isn't straightforward to find a cost-effective solution. Here are a few problems your local print shop can help navigate through.

Problem 1: Qualifying size requirements for EDDM do not match most standard paper sizes." The Every Door Direct Mail program currently is for "Flat Mail Class" only; Which means the shortest of any side of a mailpiece must be greater than or equal to 6.125 inches.
A larger mail piece will work; however, if the postcard is smaller on any side, it will not qualify for the Every Door Direct Mail program. This size would be fine if commercial printers could buy paper that size or divisible by that size. Unfortunately, 12.25 inches square paper stock is hard to come by, and even if it was more common, which is certainly possible, the maximum sheet size still needs to fit the press. See our post on eligible EDDM postcard sizes here.

Problem 2: Minimum quantities: There is no particular minimum quantity for the Every Door Direct Mail service."

The number 250 has been suggested as a minimum order quantity, but that is not true. The real minimum amount depends on the routes that you choose. For Instance, a tree service company may want to target an area with recent storm damage; And only wants to send a marketing flyer to one route. That route only has 73 homes on it. It would be perfectly acceptable to send an Every Door Direct Mailing with only 73 flyers. A mailing route will rarely exist with an even number of homes on it. Most online printing services offer preset quantities, and usually, the most cost-effective solutions start at a 2,500-minimum order. Of course, smaller quantities are available but not at the best price. So, a small quantity could be cost-prohibitive.

To find out an exact quantity for your Every Door Direct Mail campaign, use the Post offices route Search tool; it can be found here.

Problem 3: Balancing distribution with printing cost."

As far as determining the proper quantity for your Every Door Direct Mailing; Knowing your target area is vital, and it may not always be one static town or region. Partnering with a printing company skilled in using the Post Offices online route searching tool can help determine the correct quantity to print. And the best way to distribute it as well.

For Instance:

A Restaurant in Connecticut wants to attract more lunch traffic and catering jobs from several surrounding towns. So we can tell instantly there are 19,853 Houses.

So, we can easily make enough menus to get into all those homes. But like most restaurants, they probably can't feed that many people at one time. In this case, it makes sense to print what you need and then pay as you go. Based on the most current marketing needs, we can easily track previous mailings and schedule or redirect future mailings to a previously unanticipated area.

The right partnership with a local commercial printer is the key to success." Unfortunately, in many cases, the EDDM program can seem like fitting a square peg into a round hole. In a perfect world, every block would have the same amount of homes on it; And the United States Post Office would budge 1 inch on postal regulations to match printing standards. But, unfortunately, there are no perfectly square neighborhoods popping up anywhere, and the Post Office will not change their rules any time soon, trust me, I asked.

But with the proper planning and right strategic partner, you can find a cost-effective printing solution for an Every Door Direct Mail campaign. Setting appropriate goals and defining targets is an excellent first step.

Finding the right partnership with a local commercial printer is the key to success with the Every Door Direct Mail Program. They can advise and develop an acceptable size that fits the Postal requirements for EDDM; And is cost-effective to print. Our favorite is a simple 8.5 by 11-inch flyer. It provides a lot of space for your message, fits within the Flat Mail class, and is standard amongst any print shop.

Having a good relationship with a capable local printer that has a good relationship with both Postal Service Personal and their regulations is instrumental to a successful direct mail campaign using EDDM. At Connecticut Business Link, we respect the complexities and uniqueness of a Business. Let us know what your business would like to achieve, and we will find a way to get you there.

 

Have more questions?

EVERY DOOR DIRECT MAIL BUSINESS GUIDE