Seven Tips to Stem Losses from Unaccounted Movers

Each year, direct mailers lose millions of dollars due to a seemingly uncontrollable problem: unaccounted for movers. The U.S. Postal Service reports that 14.2 percent of Americans move to a new address each year. Of these movers, approximately 10 percent to 20 percent never report their new address to the USPS.

The losses add up quickly, even from one mailing. There’s the expense of printing and mailing an undeliverable piece as well as the lost sales from the relocated buyer. For a mailing of 1 million pieces that costs $0.55 each and nets $2.50 in revenue per piece, the losses can total more than $365,000.

Here are seven ways to keep up with new movers.

1. Match customer files against the National Change of Address (NCOA) database. The full NCOA database contains approximately 160 million customer-reported change of address records from the last 48 months. A limited version containing 60 million records for the past 18 months also is available. Using the USPS licensed NCOALink process, most mailers can expect an annualized match of 10 to 12 percent. NCOALink security dictates a strict matching process, so movers can be harder to find if the list isn’t very clean.

2. Use Address Correction Service (ACS). The USPS’ ACS involves putting special wording and coding on mailpieces that instructs the USPS to compare the mailed address to the mover database and to notify the mailer of changes. The downside is that it’s more expensive than NCOALink and involves more work for the mailer to apply the new information. But it’s still a valuable tool because it provides timely information and the matching can be less strict than NCOALink.

3. Reach out to data service providers. Companies like Acxiom, Experian, InfoUSA Catalog Vision or Harte-Hanks compile change of address information from such sources as utility companies, publishers, retailers, continuity clubs and financial institutions into third-party change of address databases. By using these databases after NCOA matching, mailers can find movers who either don’t file changes with the USPS, or get address changes that NCOA does not accept or match.

4. Maintain source data. Customer supplied data is the most reliable, so make sure the current address is verified every time contact is made. NCOA matches are next in terms of reliability, then ACS, and finally third-party sources. Many mailers test third-party source changes through inexpensive, First class or endorsed postcard mailings in order to verify the address before applying it to their databases or using it on more expensive campaigns.

5. Check new addresses from third-party sources. On occasion, a similarity in names can link two customers who are not the same person. This can happen when family members are living in the same city and one person moves while the other stays. Compare the move date supplied by an outside source to the customer’s most recent activity date. If the company has had contact with the customer since the date of the purported move, don’t apply the address change.

6. Don’t process NCOALink or ACS too often. If your match rates start to fall, you may be processing too frequently and paying for the same information. In general, apply a change of address processing on every customer eligible for mailings once every three months and less active customers once a year. More frequent processing should be analyzed to see if it is providing enough new information to be cost-effective.

7. Make speedy changes. No matter what external tools are used, catalogers and other direct mailers should also have a process in place to apply the corrected information quickly and consistently. If you don’t, you end up paying for move information that may show benefits for one or two mailings, but doesn’t improve your list in the long run, leading to duplications and more wasted mailings.

For a copy of the “Keep Up With Movers” white paper produced by Decision Intelligence, contact Sharon Neuenfeldt at (952) 653-0960 or Sharon.Neuenfeldt@dii-online.com .