Postal Preparation

Pre-file Analysis

Do you know the integrity of your lists before you start processing?

Summaries of the following data elements are provided for each input list to help you evaluate the quality of your lists prior to processing. This information will help you to make decisions prior to processing that will ensure you meet your target quantities, such as adding additional records or replacing lists.How many records have...

•  A first name AND last name?
•  An invalid postal address?
•  USA Zip + 4?
•  Canada?
•  Other foreign?
•  A phone, fax and email?
•  A valid mailing address?
•  A priority?

Merge Purge

Have you mailed duplicates?

Use IMI's state of the art algorithms that have been perfected over three decades to find your duplicates. Standard matching is based on name and address. Our match process includes allowance for phonetics, nicknames, common mistyping and misspellings. For example, nickname tables are used so that a Bill and William at the “same” address with the “same” last name would be considered a match. Match criteria can be customized to meet the specified requirements. External lists usually come with the requirement that it be mailed/used only one time and must NOT be sent directly to the list user. IMI brings an established reputation with list owners and brokers to ensure a successful external campaign.

Special Matching

Have you ever wanted to deliver one mailer to one household?

IMI has several enhanced matching processes to ensure your requirements are met.

•  Site matching (company + address)
•  Household (similar last name + address)
•  Multi-location workers (similar last name + same geographic area)

ZIP Correct

Have you ever received return mail with incorrect zip code as the reason?

We correct, validate and add a +4 to USPS and Canadian postal codes to ensure timely delivery, accuracy, and decrease the amount of return mail. Add wings to your postal mail by adding the zip plus four.

NCOA

Have you ever lost track of your customers because they've moved?

NCOA (National Change of Address) is a 48-month file from the USPS with approximately 160 million changes of addresses that enables mailers to update mailing lists and databases with new addresses from individuals, families and businesses that have moved.

DMA

Why use the DMA suppression file?

Protect your reputation by removing any individuals that have registered for the Direct Marketing Association's (DMA's) (MPS), https://thedma.org/resources/compliance-resources/dma-consumer-choice-services/ to receive less advertising mail. The Mail Preference Service is available to marketers for the purpose of removing individuals who have signed up for the list from their mailing files. MPS processing is a complimentary service offered by IMI to ensure compliance with best industry practices. MPS applies only to home addresses, not business addresses.

Company Matching

Have you wasted money mailing a competitor who subscribed to the list you rented?

IMI identifies competitors, strategic accounts or a list of target companies using a complex array of rules and reference tables to ensure you are mailing exactly whom you expect.

Gender

Have you ever wanted to target your communications to a female audience?

We examine the first name to determine the gender. “Roberta” is recognized as female and can be assigned a salutation of Ms. “Pat” is recognized as either gender and would not be assigned a salutation. Use gender to identify the best target in a household for your product or service, profile past campaigns or create a personalized message.

Tracking Codes

Want to track your responders?

Coding is the key to this. IMI can assign source or individual tracking codes to ensure the results of your campaign can be measured. Use IMI's TRAC to plan, execute and automatically code your mailings for successful tracking results.

Selects

Have you ever wanted to test mailing packages

We can derive randomized subsets from your data for test marketing or statistical analysis. Select by RFF, gender, or geography.

Reporting

Do you need a final report to summarize your mailing campaign?

IMI's report includes the following counts:
•  NCOA no forwarding address
•  NCOA change of address
•  Gross merge purge input
•  Duplicates dropped
•  Address suppression drops including DMA
•  Internal list duplicate drops
•  Company suppression drops
•  Invalid name and address drops
•  Special match drops
•  Selection drops
•  Final count by list source
•  Multi-buyers by list source (individuals who appear on more than one list)

Fulfillment

Have you ever needed to fulfill an offer from your campaigns?

IMI can assist you with fulfillment of sweepstakes, tradeshow inquiries, and product license renewals. We can also manage all your return mail or Business Reply Cards (BRC) delivered to our physical location or a PO Box. We seamlessly merge your database fields into customized letters and marketing literature to deliver a personalized, effective message.

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