How to Improve the Timing of Direct Mail

When you have spent hours planning a direct mail campaign, it's disappointing to think that any of your pieces might arrived late. Timing can be a critical element of direct mail marketing and often it's unclear if there have been delays, even with the best of planning.

Fortunately, direct mail marketers can learn about late deliveries and can use this information to plan future campaigns or even to avoid missed opportunities. To do this, they need to know about the Intelligent Mail® Barcode, or IMb'.

The IMb helps improve the information about a direct mail timing by tracking a mailing's progress through the entire USPS delivery network, from entry point to the last post office before delivery. Combined with tracking software, the IMb provides a powerful view of how long your direct mail campaign takes to reach various target markets ' where the bottlenecks occur in process ' and, most importantly, how you might adjust your resources to align with delivery ' so you are prepared to react. Use of the IMb can help get your campaign out and into the mail quickly ' and can even help in the speed of mail processing along the way. In addition, it provides essential insights to help you establish the timing of future campaigns.

If you are receiving postal discounts now you'll need to use the IMb in order to continue receiving those discounts (as of January 27, 2013). Not sure about how to get started or how to move forward? Learn more about the IMb here.

With the recent restructuring of its delivery network, the USPS is using more automation to improve its delivery service levels. Now you can track just what is going on with direct mail delivery times and take matters into your own hands! Find out when ALL your mail is arriving at its final destinations.

WHAT'S NEXT:

For more detail on these strategies for improving direct mail delivery, read the full article, Improving Direct Mail Campaign Effectiveness.

For more information on how barcoding can improve your mail operations, download our guide to the Top 5 Ways Barcoding Benefits Your Business.