EDDM vs. targeted direct mail: which one fits a local business?

Every Door Direct Mail (EDDM) is a USPS service that delivers your mailpiece to every address on the mail carrier routes you choose. You do not need a mailing list, and you cannot use one: every piece is addressed to "Postal Customer". Targeted direct mail is the opposite. You start with a list of specific people or addresses and mail only to them. EDDM suits a business that almost any nearby household could use. A targeted list suits a business whose customers have something specific in common, such as a new roof, a new license or a new company.

How does EDDM work?

USPS describes the steps on its Every Door Direct Mail page. In short:

1. Pick routes. In the EDDM Online Tool you search by address, city or ZIP Code and select carrier routes on a map. The tool shows counts for each route.
2. Design a piece that meets the EDDM size and weight rules (below).
3. Print it with the EDDM Retail postage marking (the "indicia") and the address "Postal Customer".
4. Bundle the pieces in stacks of 50 to 100 and put a facing slip, with the piece count written on it, on top of each bundle.
5. Pay online or at the counter, then take the bundles and the postage statement (PS Form 3587) to the Post Office that delivers those routes.

The detailed rules are in the Domestic Mail Manual (DMM), the USPS rulebook. Mailings must be entered at the Post Office that serves the routes, or shipped to that Post Office by Priority Mail. Pieces must be separated by route and bundled in groups of 50 to 100.

What are the USPS rules for EDDM Retail?

EDDM Retail is the version meant for small businesses. USPS says it needs no special mailing permit, only a USPS.com account. A second version, EDDM BMEU, is for large-volume mailers who pay with a bulk mailing permit and drop mail at a larger USPS facility.

The size, weight and quantity rules come from DMM section 143, and the flat maximums from DMM section 101.2. The addressing rule is in DMM section 602.3.2. It says the simplified format is for mail where complete distribution is intended to all active deliveries on a route, and that only the listed wordings may be used. "Postal Customer" is the standard one. "Residential Customer" and "PO Boxholder" are among the allowed variants.

How does targeted direct mail work?

With targeted mail you choose the people first. The list might be your own customers, or it might come from records that show a reason to buy: a building permit, a new professional license, a newly registered company. Each piece carries a real name and address, so it can go by First-Class Mail in a standard postcard size, and it can be sent in any quantity, including a few dozen at a time.

Because each card goes to one known recipient, each card can be different. It can use the person's name, mention the reason you are writing, and carry its own QR code (a square barcode a phone camera can read) so you can see which recipient responded.

EDDM vs. a targeted list, side by side

We have left postage out of the table on purpose. USPS prices change, so check the current price list. Postage is also only part of the cost: printing, the list and your time count too. Compare the total cost for each customer you win, not the cost of each piece. Our direct mail ROI calculator does that math.

When does EDDM fit?

• Nearly every household near you could buy: a restaurant, a dry cleaner, a dentist, a new store opening.
• Your offer is the same for everyone and does not depend on who the reader is.
• You want to cover whole neighborhoods at least 200 pieces at a time.
• You are comfortable printing large pieces, bundling them and taking them to the Post Office, or paying a printer to do it.

When does a targeted list fit?

• Only some households or businesses can use what you sell. A roofer needs homes with old roofs. A commercial insurance agent needs new businesses.
• Timing matters. A permit or a filing tells you something just changed.
• You are in a licensed industry and need each card to carry specific wording, or you need to honor do-not-mail requests.
• You want to know which recipients responded, not just how many.
• You want to start small and mail a steady number of cards each week.

Many businesses use both: EDDM once or twice a year for general awareness, and a targeted list every month for the people most likely to need them now. Whichever you choose, measure it. Response varies a great deal by offer, list and season, so the only response rate that matters is your own.

PostalNest is the targeted kind. Its data sources are built from public records such as city building permits, state professional license records and federal trucking registrations. You design a card, and each one is printed with its own QR code and mailed by First-Class Mail.