If you’re considering using the USPS EDDM® Retail (Every Door Direct Mail® Retail) program to market your auto repair shop, there are a few things you need to know. It’s important to determine if EDDM® is a viable option based on your business model and what you’re looking to accomplish.
EDDM® Retail is a DIY program created to make it easier for business owners to physically take direct mail pieces to the post office and mail them out to individual carrier routes. A carrier route is a further breakdown of a ZIP Code. To learn more about EDDM®, check out our informative article.
EDDM® Retail Is Not a Good Option for European, Asian, and Specialty Shops
EDDM® Retail mail is sent out by carrier route, which means you’re targeting every address in a specific geographic area. Therefore, EDDM® Retail is not a viable option for European, Asian, or specialty shops. These shops should be doing a targeted mailing only targeting the specific makes and models they service. However, EDDM® Retail is a viable option for general auto repair shops.
You Cannot Remove Your Current Customers with an EDDM® Retail Mailing
EDDM® mailers don’t have physical addresses on them (because you don’t have a mailing list), so your data hygiene capabilities are extremely limited. Essentially, you can’t remove specific addresses from an EDDM® mailer. You can only remove certain address types (such as PO Boxes and businesses), which are not relevant in this case.
Pro Tip: EDDM® isn’t the best option for shops that want to use direct mail for new customer acquisition but don’t want to send the same piece to their current customers. Shops that want to remove their current customers are better off doing a full-service mailing where we purchase a list of physical addresses to use on your mailers. In doing so, we can remove your current customers from your mailing.
EDDM® Cannot Be Used as a Database Mailer to Target Current or Previous Customers
If you’re looking to send a mailer to your current customer database (current or lapsed), EDDM® Retail is not a viable option.
Do You Have Time?
It’s important to keep in mind that there’s additional legwork required to meet EDDM® Retail mailing requirements. For example, you have to fill out paperwork and bundle your mail in a particular order. Many companies (like Mail Shark) offer this service at an additional cost. Regardless of whether you work with a direct mail company or do it on your own, you have to do these things.
You’ll also have to physically stand in line at the post office to deliver your EDDM® mailers. Depending on the areas you want to target, you may have to visit multiple post offices. You’ll have to determine how much time you have and what your time is worth. All too often, clients order EDDM® mailers and then get too busy to mail them out. If you feel this may happen to you, EDDM® Retail is not your best option. Instead, you should opt for a full-service mailing where your direct mail partner can handle and deliver the mail for you.
Check out our article on time-saving tips for EDDM® that will save you valuable time and get your EDDM® campaigns out faster.