Creating and Printing Your Own Every Door Direct Mailers (EDDM)
by Chelsea Camper | Last Updated December 30, 2015If you run a business that services a specific neighborhood or region, the new Every Door Direct Mail™ (EDDM) program from the US Postal Service can prove to be a great way to spread the word on just about anything; from your company’s very existence all the way up to regular sales and coupon advertisements. This can prove to be one of the most cost-effective methods when it comes to saturating an area with your advertising message, and the minimal amount of time spent on printing and distributing most EDDM™ mailings. This makes the program a very attractive option for small and large businesses alike.
It should be noted at this point that the USPS® offers
a wonderful, easy to use tool for EDDM™ customers to use. It can effectively estimate the amount of postage you will need in order to cover your chosen areas, as well as the number of individual EDDM™ fliers that are required to saturate your chosen zip codes. Additionally, this program allows you to print all necessary forms that are required to present your EDDM™ mailers to the USPS® so they can successfully mail your mailers to the masses. It will also notify you of the codes and images that you will need to include on your fliers. Once you have had a chance to target your preferred zip codes, determine how many EDDM™ fliers you are going to need, and have budgeted for the postage, you can then focus on the finer points of creating your ad.
A great way to save even more money when it comes to EDDM™ fliers is to print your own mailers. Ensure that the EDDM™ dimensions, thickness, etc. meet the USPS® specifications for this program, and then present the finished product to the post office so that they can address and mail the fliers for you. There are a few things to keep in mind when it comes to successful EDDM? advertising if you intend to handle this task on your own, but if you can master a few basic principles, you will likely be quite pleased with the results of such a simple direct mail campaign.
For best results, your EDDM™ mailers should be on sturdy cardstock paper, which will stand out nicely against the typical mailings that the average household receives every day. Besides using this type of sturdy material, do your best to make room in your budget for colored cardstock in a particularly eye-catching hue. This will go a long way towards ensuring that the recipients of your EDDM™ fliers take a close look at what your mailer has to say, and can snag you a significantly higher number of customers in your target area than you might otherwise have had. Once you have budgeted for cardstock and postage, take a close look at what the USPS® requires EDDM™ mailings to include before designing and printing your fliers.
Make sure that your EDDM™ mailings contain a concise, snappy message that can snag the customer’s attention within a few seconds. Ideally, the reader should be able to see what your business offers and what sets your enterprise apart from the competition with a quick look at the first few lines you have written. Design the text format and any images you wish to include as attractively as possible for maximum impact. Verify one last time that your EDDM™ efforts meet the regulations set forth by the USPS® before printing.
When you have printed out your EDDM™ fliers, make sure that you bundle and label them correctly so that the post office can quickly and efficiently address and send these mailers for you once you drop them off. Check your efforts one last time, and then drop off your EDDM™ fliers at your local post office during regular business hours. With any luck, you should notice a terrific increase in business.
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