Mailing Systems Technology - May/June 2008 - (Page 26)

Service Requested.” With Change Service, the mailpiece will generally be destroyed, but the change of address information or reason for nondelivery will be sent electronically. The only cost incurred will be the address correction fee, generally free for First-Class Mail and two cents for Standard. A Fancy New Barcode The Intelligent Mail Barcode is the new mailing barcode available today and scheduled to replace the POSTNET and PLANET barcodes in 2009. The barcode consists of 65 bars of four diﬀerent lengths or positions that allows for coding of up to 31 digits using a USPS encoder. The ﬁrst 20 digits are the tracking number, and the last 0-11 are for routing information — ZIP+4 and delivery point, or whatever ZIP information is available. More details on this barcode are available at www.trackmymail.com. >> Standard Mail with OneCode ACS requires the endorsement “Electronic Service Requested.” In addition to the ancillary endorsement, the mailer ID for each mailing may be set to provide diﬀerent kinds of services. This combination or service type ID, mailer ID and ancillary endorsement (of lack thereof ) drive how the mail and address data are handled. As mail is identiﬁed as undeliverable as addressed (UAA), address change data is sent to the MID holder through the USPS RIBBS system. The subscriber can specify how often they wish to get data — daily, semi-weekly, weekly, semi-monthly or monthly. If a change of address is on ﬁle within the appropriate timeframe, the ﬁle will contain the old address and the new address, along with the date the move became eﬀective, the move type (family, individual or business) and the unique no tracking of its fate, and while the system will return a new ZIP or even a ZIP+4, you cannot determine the new address from this. This redirected mail information can be a powerful tool for identifying problem records in your mailing list. Combined with OneCode ACS, the Intelligent Mail Barcode is a useful address quality solution. Complex but Powerful Tools Using the Intelligent Mail Barcode for OneCode ACS is not always simple, but there are many tools that can help. Trackmymail has a solution that works with the OneCode ACS program to help you have high address quality lists AND track your mailings en route. The Postal Service also has some tools to help you use OneCode ACS at ribs.usps.gov/onecodesolution and pe.usps.gov. They make it easy to update your address lists with NCOALINK, ancillary endorsements and ACS. After taking care of the basics in address quality - CASS AND MAYBE NCOALINK using the IMB adds a number of additional address enhancements. The Service Type ID is at the heart of the IMB. These digits tell the postal sorting equipment what service the mailer is requesting from the barcode. Mailers may ask for tracking information, address correction information, or no services — just mail routing. This ability to request services is the key to “Intelligent” Mail. Expressing Your Interest to the USPS Ancillary endorsements, such as “Address Service Requested” are part of how mailers have traditionally communicated with USPS as to how to handle their mail. Ancillary endorsements are considerably diﬀerent for OneCode ACS: >> First-Class Mail with OneCode ACS does NOT require an ancillary endorsement. sequence number that was in the IMB. Using this data, mailers can match the move back to the original record and update it. If the mail is not deliverable and not forwardable, the record will also indicate why it wasn’t delivered. Mailers can use this data to decide how to handle this address in future mailings. In addition to OneCode ACS, the IMB allows mailers to identify when mail has been forwarded or returned, even without requesting ACS data. With the IMB, each piece can have its own unique sequence number that can identify to the mailer exactly which piece it is. If the mail is forwarded or returned, that sequence number will remain the same, while the delivery ZIP information will change. Mailers can use this change to identify when mail has been redirected. Of course, if the mail is discarded, there will be With the Intelligent Mail Barcode required for automation discounts in 2009, there is no reason not to start using OneCode ACS, individual mailpiece tracking and other tools that the barcode oﬀers. We highly recommend that you start using the Intelligent Mail Barcode today and reap the beneﬁts of updated address lists, automatic electronic updates, new endorsements, tracking and ACS for yourself. Dave Lewis is the co-founder of trackmymail. com, a Pitney Bowes Company, and is currently responsible for providing leadership and vision for the trackmymail.com team. Lewis is a well-known speaker and writer for the industry and currently resides in the D.C. area with his wife and two children. Contact: www. trackmymail.com, 301-924-4545 (phone) and 301-924-2373 ( fax). 26 MAY-JUNE 2008 | WWW.MAILINGSYSTEMSTECHNOLOGY.COM http://ribs.usps.gov/onecodesolution http://pe.usps.gov http://ribs.usps.gov/onecodesolution http://www.trackmymail.com http://trackmymail.com http://www.trackmymail.com http://www.trackmymail.com http://www.mailsystemstechnology.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Mailing Systems Technology - May/June 2008

Mailing Systems Technology - May/June 2008 Contents Editor’s Note Peer to Peer It’s an Inside Job Greening Your Mail Center Adopting an Automated Document Factory Intelligent Mail and Address Quality 7 Steps to Combat “Do Not Mail” A Successful Resolution Q&A with Dan G. Blair, Chairman, Postal Regulatory Commission The Intelligent Mail Barcode Developing High-Performance Teams Simple Strategies to Save You Money A Powerful Social Network With Change, Comes Opportunity Increasing the Deliverability of Mail Kate’s Slate Products & Services People of Distinction Advertiser Index Sho Time

Mailing Systems Technology - May/June 2008

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