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Mailing Lists Glossary
/EDT - Electronic Data Transfer. This is the cost of e-mailing your postal mailing lists and telephone mailing lists to you or your agent. This cost is generally based upon the cost from the computer service bureau.
/F - Flat Fee. A one time charge. An example is the cost of diskette or eMail transmission of mailing lists.
/M - Per Thousand. Mailing lists are priced this way. The base price of the mailing lists is shown in the upper middle part of the data card. Additional charges, such as Job Title and Job Function, SIC Code, Company Employee Size, Sales Revenue, Geography (state, SCF, county, FIPS Code, or country) , telephone numbers or other special selection charges will be shown in the right-hand column. The price to send the mailing lists to you (EDT) will be shown here as well.
Addressing - This tells how you will receive your mailing lists. Generally, most mailing lists are eMailed. Other methods include Cheshire labels, pressure sensitive labels (PS Labels), diskette, CD and magnetic tape.
Base Cost - This is what a random number of names, with no selections would cost. Most list renters find that mailing lists work better if specific selections are made. Selections would include: geography, job title (if a business list) or Male/Female.
Basic Information - Mailing Lists have list owner or list manager provided details. This many include source, general orientation of the list - is it heavy with financial executives- and other details.
CAN-SPAM - The Act that regulates the sending of commercial eMail in the United States. This Act has several key provisions: all eMails must have a physical address (not PO Box) for the sender, the sender must keep a list of individuals and their eMail addresses who do not wish to receive eMail solicitations, this list is supplied with all eMail orders for suppression. List owners also send the eMail themselves, or engage a trusted third party to do so, thus keeping their relationship with the addressee secure.
Delivery Point Bar Code - This is a by -product of the NCOA (National Change of Address) that adds the Zip+4 (Zip Code + 4 digit addition) to the record. This permits automated sorting down to the carrier route level and within the route as well.
e-Mail Lists - These are mailing lists where the recipient has agreed to accept third party eMail. Due to CAN-SPAM legislation, all mailings are done by third party service bureaus and list renters supply the copy in text and HTML format to the list owner for testing and transmission. Landing pages can help list renters customize their offer for the specific list. Within 24-48 hours, most list owners will provide a report showing the number of mailing lists recipients who opened the email, how many clicked and what not.
Format - This is how you receive the mailing lists. Most postal mailing lists are sent electronically as this is the fastest method of transmission. They are generally sent in ASCII, comma delimited or .xls formats. This permits them to be easily imported into Excel spreadsheets. Normally, most list owners charge a small fee for sending files electronically.
How Cleaned - Mailing Lists generally need to be kept fresh. Sometimes, this is done by constant mailing. Other methods include: total replacement after a specific time or telephone verification.
Keycode - When using multiple lists, mailing list renters want to know which list works the best. This is a way to tag each and every record mailed and identify it by mailing lists source.
Last Updated - Mailing Lists are placed at third party service bureaus for mailing lists processing. How often a new file reflecting all the adds, changes and deletes is sent is the update.
List Name - There are about 50,000 mailing lists in the United States alone. In Canada, the United Kingdom, Europe and worldwide, there are many other mailing lists - at least 10,000, if not more postal lists and eMail lists. Each mailing list is identified by a unique name. Every effort is made to ensure that this name is not duplicated by another list.
List Source - This identifies what the basis of the mailing list is - from subscribers, to buyers of a product type to records filed with a government agency.
Minimum Order - This is the minimum number of mailing lists names, or dollar amount, that a list owner will charge for any order. It is possible to get fewer names, but you will still be charged that minimum amount, plus any selections, shipping and the like.
NCOA - National Change of Address is a United States Postal Service licensed software program that can be applied to US mailing lists. This program checks to ensure that the address is within the ranges that exist on a particular street in a particular city or town. The software then checks to ensure that the name of the business is the one it has on file for that location. In consumer lists, it permits mailing lists to be checked by the name of the person on the list. This is not possible on a business list as the "name" is the business and not a particular individual.
Note: When using NCOA on mailing lists with a large number of college and university, large company and Federal government addresses you may have many records that do not qualify for the NCOA discount.
This is not uncommon as many educational institutions are going to deliver something to "512 Big Donor Hall" vs. the US Postal Service mandated "123 College Avenue," which is the main address. The same is true in large companies with internal mail codes. Many service bureaus are now working on, or have some sort of mail stop program to improve delivery in some of these addresses.
Running Charges - This is the cost incurred when mailing lists are processed and shipped and then cancelled before the mail date. This is set by the list owner.
SCF - Sectional Center Facility. This is a US Postal Service term that uses the first three digits of the Zip Code to provide a quick way to select a geographic area such as a city or region. An example is Chicago where 600-607 are the generally accepted SCFs for this area.
Selects Available - This identifies what is selectable on mailing lists. On a business list, this might be Job Title, Geography, Company Size, SIC Code and the like. Each select narrows the universe of available names. List owners charge a small premium for a more refined list, thus a select charge.
State Counts - Many mailing lists show the counts of that particular list in each of the United States. This permits many mailers to look at their target market and determine if the list has enough names to make any further selections.
Terms and Conditions - Mailing lists are sold in a recognized industry standard way. These terms spell out the mailer and the seller's responsibilities and their limitations in case of mistakes. It also spells out the terms for mailing lists cancellations, run charges and the like.
Turnaround - This is the amount of time it normally takes for mailing lists to be accepted, samples approved, orders processed and shipped to you or your agent. Most lists, especially for first-time mailing lists orders, will tend to take 3-5 days. eMail list orders will generally take the same amount of time.
Zip Code - Each and every US Postal Service Office and every address in the US has a Zip Code and, now a Zip+4 address. This permits faster delivery of the mail and permits more machine automation of the mail, keeping costs lower. Mailing lists, with very few exceptions, should have Zip Codes. If it does not, proceed cautiously.
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New and Updated - US