The Office of the Inspector General of the United States Postal Service has issued a white paper report that provides background and analysis of the advertising mail industry, and its partnership with the USPS over time. In particular, the paper describes the effects and the recovery of the direct mail portion of USPS volume and revenue since the Great Recession. Effort is made to examine the effects of digital technologies, changing both print production and electronic media. Overall this is a valuable primer and update on the full spectrum of issues and opportunities (including mailing list quality) facing the direct mail industry and teh USPS. The full report is available for download.
Mailing List Ideas: The report paints a picture for direct marketers of the current state of their industry. How mailers respond may vary, but in any case advances in production, delivery coverage and mailing list data quality should be encouraging to businesses and nonprofits for whom direct mail is a key component of their omnichannel mix. The range of business mailing lists from Dun & Bradstreet is a bellwether resource for reaching B2B targets. The SIC Code directory helps both focus on specific segments and expand outward to include new markets. To learn more about these databases, please call Becky Santaniello at (914) 948-8300 Ext 129, or email santaniello@mailinglists.com.