Every Door Direct Mail™ (EDDM)-Retail is a new retail product using Simplified Addressing. EDDM-Retail™ makes it possible for small businesses to send Direct Mail (Standard Mail® flats only) — Note that the minimum mailpiece size is 3.5 inches high, 5 inches long, and 0.007 inch thick, but to be considered a flat, a piece must exceed at least one of the minimum dimensions noted in the accompanying illustration — without a permit and without the expense of list purchasing. The mailer must provide enough mailpieces to cover either every active residential or every active residential and business combined delivery on one or more carrier routes serviced by the retail office (up to a maximum of 5,000 pieces per mailing). And don’t forget that the entire group of Post Office™ boxes for an office counts as a separate route too!
All USPS® retail facilities are required to offer EDDM-Retail for distribution to their own Post Office box sections or associated delivery units. Standard operating procedures for acceptance are found on the Retail website at http://blue.usps.gov/retail/L1Policies.htm#SOPs.
Now being explored is an option that would allow customers to mail their EDDM-Retail mailpieces to the destinating office using Priority Mail® service, with delivery instructions, documentation, and payment enclosed. Check the EDDM website (www.usps.com/everydoordirectmail
) for further details.
EDDM-Retail Product Features
n Acceptance at all USPS retail locations.
n Only Standard Mail flats accepted (see diagram above).
n Mailing destined for the local delivery area.
n Per-piece weight limit of 3.3 oz.
n Maximum of 5,000 mailpieces, per mailer, per day, per unit.*
n No permit is required; a new universal indicia can be used for EDDM-Retail.
n No trust account payment accepted.
n New retail postage statement with carrier route documentation on the back.
As a reminder, EDDM entered through the Business Mail Entry Unit (BMEU) provides businesses and organizations the option of sending over 5,000 pieces per unit per day, as well as mail destined for multiple delivery areas. EDDM customers may conveniently use Priority Mail Open and Distribute service to send mail from an originating BMEU to a destinating delivery unit. Also, with EDDM, other types of pieces, and not just Standard Mail flats, will be accepted for city routes. This includes Bound Printed Matter flats, Periodicals flats, and Irregular Parcels. EDDM standards for rural routes have not changed.
For more information about EDDM or EDDM-Retail, go to www.usps.com/everydoordirectmail.
*Mail service providers can enter EDDM-Retail mailings for their customers as long as they submit separate documentation and limit each mailing to 5,000 pieces per customer per day.
Activities Featuring EDDM and EDDM-Retail
Every Door Direct Mail and EDDM-Retail are being featured at local Grow Your Business Days through September 2011. Sessions are free and will provide local business owners with hands-on training in how to use an online interactive tool that helps mailers research local demographics and identify the best carrier routes for their mailing. For schedule and registration information, go to www.usps.com/everydoordirectmail.
