Mailing Lists – NCOA & PAF
When preparing your mailing list for an online printer, there are many things to consider before using our mailing list template. One thing in particular is who it’s for. The answer to this question will determine if National Change of Address (NCOA) is right for the mailing list.
The type of mailing will affect who you are trying to reach. For example, if a new Italian restaurant opens in Minnesota, it’s going to need some seriously excellent food to entice someone who moved to Montana. In this case, NCOA is not needed.
Another example might be a real estate agent trying to sell your house in their area. Again, it’s not needed for this. A donor list for a newsletter, however, would definitely need an NCOA.
What Does NCOA Mean?
When someone moves, they are supposed to fill out a National Change of Address form with their new address. Only 40% of Americans update their address after moving, which may seem like a low audience to target, but there are a plethora of benefits to performing an NCOA on your list.
Benefits of NCOA
If Smartpress runs a list for NCOA, we’re telling the post office we’re doing our best to ensure that the mail is going to where they say it’s going. You may also be eligible for postage discounts.
Ensure Your List is Run for NCOA
For Smartpress’ online printing services to run your list for NCOA, all you need to do is fill out an ePAF. The process goes like this:
1. You’ll get a message in your activity log requesting that you sign an ePAF. The message contains a link to the ePAF. Click on the link or copy and paste into your browser. The message will look something like this:
2. Once you open the ePAF, click the check box in Step 1 to acknowledge that you’ve received the ePAF.
3. Verify the information we entered in Step 2 is correct. If it is correct, go to Step 3. If it is not correct, edit the information in the form fields and click the Confirm button when done.
4. Click the check box in Step 3 confirming the accuracy of the information entered into your ePAF.
5. Click the Confirm button in Step 4 to finalize your ePAF.
Please note, your ePAF will instantly be available for us to use, but we don’t get notified that you signed it. To expedite the proofing process, follow up by creating a post in your activity log letting us know that you signed your ePAF.
It’s important to know that if we do not run NCOA, we are required to add OR CURRENT RESIDENT or OR CURRENT OCCUPANT. OR CURRENT RESIDENT means Smartpress adds that to the addressing, right below the recipient’s name. The USPS mail carrier will then deliver the piece to that address, regardless of who currently lives there.
Please note: We do what we can to set your mailing up for success by processing your mailing list with USPS standards and requiring list processing services. However, it is inevitable that some mail will be returned to the sender. Typically you can expect 5-10% of mail to be returned. We do not guarantee the response rate of your mailing. By purchasing a mailing list, you acknowledge that you do not own this data, and the data is for one-time use only, unless noted otherwise.
If you have any questions about NCOA, mailing lists or any of our online printing services, please contact us and our print experts will be happy to help.