About 40 million Americans change their residence or business each year, which means, as a company, you’re likely to have outdated information for those people and places. Most businesses and individuals file a change of address with the USPS, but some don’t. Likewise, companies can take years to update all their mailing lists, which means you’re probably sending items to old addresses, which means wasting money, lost sales and more. However, the NCOALink Service can help.
What It Is
The NCOA (National Change of Address) system updates all the addresses on file with the USPS and in 2008, the Move Update Standard required all Standard Mail (including parcels, flats, and letters) and all presort- automation-rate First Class mail to be updated within 95 days to qualify for discounts.
ow How It Works
When you have an NCOALink Service and software, your mailing lists are run through the system to standardize them, meaning they will conform to all USPS requirements, including the ZIP+4. Once standardized, the address is matched against a master NCOA file that contains 115 million records of address changes. The old or outdated addresses are then replaced with accurate and current information.
Primary Benefits
The advantages of using the NCOALink Service are plentiful. You’ll likely pay less money for the preparation of mail, printing, and postage because you won’t be sending duplicates or mailing to places that are no longer serviceable. Likewise, you’ll see a reduction in undelivered and delayed mail, as well as an increase on your investment. Plus, the addresses will be updated in real-time using your Internet connection.
By not following the standards set by the USPS, you could face penalties, which can include no discounts, fines and more. It’s up to you to ensure that your business is doing everything right and according to the rules and standards provided by the United States Postal Service.
