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Our Direct Mail Clients Are Taking Advantage of EDDM

By: Shelby

USPS EDDM Postcards for your Direct Mail Marketing Needs

If you utilize direct mail, you should compare the advantages of using the USPS EDDM Retail service versus a compiled list. Our direct mail clients are taking advantage of our USPS EDDM Postcards for mailing services to canvas small geographic areas. Best of all, they are saving big money by doing this.

I don’t want to ignore the necessity for a mailing that uses a complied list. My objective is to show an example of how you can save money when your goal is to hit every address within a small portion of a postal carrier’s route. Let me give you an example of the various industries we work with that are taking advantage of the USPS EDDM mailing service. They include Real Estate Agents/Realtors, Restaurants, Attorneys, Gyms/Fitness Clubs, Construction Contractors, Roofers, Plumbers, Politicians, Neighborhood Councils, Doctors/Dentists, Local Retailers and Dry Cleaners.  In conclusion, any business that relies on selling to a local clientele of homes and businesses can successfully save money by using Every Door Direct Mail from the Post Office for their direct mail marketing needs.

Cost Savings Example:

Here’s a quick comparison between a small postcard, mailed at the 1st class presort rate compared to a jumbo card mailed using EDDM. (Rates based on printing & postage costs as of 1/23/23)

Service 6″ x 9″
1st class postcard
6.5″ x 12″
EDDM postcard
Quantity to mail 500 500
List Rental of “Consumer” or “Occupant” list $125.00 $0.00
Printing 2 sided on 16 pt cover $327.00 $397.95
Presort Mailing Preparation Cost $190.00 $0.00
Postage Cost Estimate $190.50 $94.50
Total $832.50 $492.45
Days to deliver 1 to 4 days 2 to 4 days
Please note that these figures are for illustrative purposes only.
Printing and mailing costs are subject to change.
Exact quotes with terms can be emailed to you once your specifications are received.

As you can see from the chart above there is a cost savings even on a small 500 piece mailing. Imagine this sample instead as a 5,000 piece mailing and the savings really begin to add up.

This is how EDDM Postcards are different from a regular postcard mailing.

First of all, size matters, right?  With USPS EDDM postcard sizes, your mail piece is larger then the letter size classification.  You can review our EDDM product page for a list of sizes we commonly produce. Anything over 6.25″ tall or 10.5″ wide that is considered a “flat” by the Post Office is what you can mail with USPS EDDM Postcard discounts. Just as long as the piece is designed properly.  This is without question a major advantage. Your large postcard stands out from the rest of the mail in your prospects mailbox.

Second is the cost of postage.  As of July 22, 2023, USPS EDDM rates are only .198 cents per piece. Compare this to the best automation rate you can achieve for a flat piece at .831 cents per piece.  This is unless you try to mail a large amount and qualify for carrier route rates. But keep in mind, with any type of presort mailing their are other mail preparation costs involved too.

Last thing to know is that you can mail up to 5,000 pieces of mail per day or as few as a single carrier route (usually about 350 to around 1,100 addresses) when you use the USPS EDDM Retail system.  You can’t mail less than 500 pieces with first class presort and on a small 350 to 500 piece mailing it’s not worth all the preparation costs you will incur for standard mail presorting.

Key Points to Consider with EDDM mail:

  1. Pick the area and the post office locations that best suit your needs. You can use the USPS EDDM tool to easily show you this.
  2. Pay for your postage on line or in person at the post office with a check or credit card.
  3. Choose when you’re going to drop your mail. You can expect it to be delivered in as little as 1 to 3 days.
  4. You are allowed to mail as little as one carrier route or as many as 5,000 pieces per day.
  5. Bigger is better!  With the larger USPS EDDM postcard sizes, you’ll stand out in the mail box.

Some other things to consider:

I would never advise using an “all in one service” to pick the USPS EDDM routes for you.  You give up too much control over picking the area you wish to mail to and the timing of your project.  The additional costs you pay to the “all in one service” could be better used to buy more addresses and postcards.  In other words, don’t be lazy, invest some time in marketing your business or service and learn about the USPS EDDM tool  It’s not that hard and you can always call us for FREE advice.

As I said before, USPS EDDM is all about mailing to small local areas. You must consider how this compares with your need to only find homes with children or singles or seniors or any other type of demographic that can only be sourced with a compiled list. Compare the USPS EDDM cost for the entire area you are mailing to with the postage costs for the compiled list.  You are looking to see how many cards may be tossed out with EDDM compared to that targeted list for the area.

What YOU Need with EDDM Mail to be Prepared to do:

You are going to have to do a little work in order to achieve your savings.  This means picking up your mail from our store, driving to your local post office and waiting in the retail line to see a clerk. It’s always helpful to assign this task to a staff member and shouldn’t be too time-consuming.

I feel that for certain types of industries and ad campaigns, mailing postcards with USPS EDDM is all well worth the effort. Your marketing dollars need to stretch as far as they can.  You also need to keep your message in front of as many people as you can.  Every Door Direct Mail from the USPS and SLB Printing can help you do this.

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