USPS Standard Blue Presentation

1
What Are Bad Addresses What Do You Do With
Them Xactly? National Postal Forum Anaheim,
CA May 18th 21th, 2008
Kevin Conti, Group 1 Software Charles B. Hunt,
Address Management, USPS
2
QUALITY ADDRESSING PROFESSIONAL CERTIFICATE
This session qualifies as one of the four
Addressing sessions, in addition to the Tuesday,
May 20th General Session needed for the Address
Quality Specialist Certificate!
3
Announcing 2 New Symposiums
15 Presentations focusing on Intelligent
Mail See Page 20 of the Catalog
7 Presentations focusing on Direct Mail and the
Environment See Page 21 of the Catalog
4
Agenda

• What are Some Examples of Bad Addresses
• What is a Standardized Address?
• What are the Root Causes of Bad Addresses
• How Do You Fix Them?
• AEC / AEC II
• DPV
• LACSLINK
• Summary

5
Can You Recognize A Bad Address?
6
Can You Recognize A Bad Address?
Barbara L. Wilson 612 King Ridge Cv. Collierville
TN 38017-1714
NIXIE
4910 1 02 04/20/04 RETURN
TO SENDER NO SUCH NUMBER UNABLE TO FORWARD
7
USPS INTERNET ADDRESS MATCHING SYSTEM
8
An Address Quality Foundation
ACS
Update
ANKLink
NCOALink
AEC / AEC II
Validate
DPV
LACSLink
Standardize
CASS Certified Software
9
Defining A Quality Address

• A quality address is defined by USPS as
• A quality address contains complete and correct
  elements that comply with USPS Address
  Management System standards and allows automated
  sortation to the intended delivery point for
  delivery to the specified recipient (current)
  without requiring the use of Delivery Force
  Knowledge to complete.

10
What Is A Standardized Address?

• A standardized address is defined as
• All necessary elements correct and complete

• Pre-directional
• Primary address number
• Street name
• Street suffix
• Post-directional

• Secondary identifier
• Secondary number
• City
• State
• ZIP 4 code

11
What Is A Standardized Address?

• A standardized address can have elements that
  are
• Fully spelled out
• Abbreviated using USPS standard abbreviations
• As shown in USPS ZIP 4 file

OR
12
Defining The Term

• What Does the Term Validate My Standardized
  Address Mean?
• Is the Address Standardized to USPS Data?
• Is the Address a Valid USPS Delivery Point?
• Has the Address Information Recently Changed?
• Are All Elements Complete and Correct?

13
America is on the Move and Growing!
45 million Americans move
1.8 million new addresses
147 million total addresses
14
2004 Christensen UAA Report
Old Address
Return 51.3 / pc. 1.60 Billion pieces 822.5
Million
9.724 Billion pieces 1.856 Billion
x
Forward 21.3 / pc. 1.985 Billion pieces 421.9
Million
Waste 4.4 / pc. 6.136 Billion pieces 269.8
Million
New Address
15
2004 Christensen UAA Report
Root Causes of Undeliverable As Addressed (UAA)
Mail
Directly Attributable Cost Only
16
Average Mailing List Address Quality
Data Derived From Analysis of Mailer Files in FY
2006
17
Address Quality Study of a National Mailing
Overall Address Quality and UAA Results
18
Address Quality Study of a National Mailing
Apartment-Specific Address Quality and UAA Results
19
Address Quality Study of a National Mailing
20
Address Quality Cost Impact to USPS
Volume / Cost Estimate Potentially Understated
by as Much as 50 Based on Mail Volume Analysis
21
Todays Address Quality Validation Tools
Available Today
AEC / AEC II Service
DPV Product
LACSLink Product
22
AEC SERVICE

• What is AEC and How Can It Help Me?
• Address Element Correction (AEC) is a service
  offered by USPS that attempts to assign a ZIP
  4 code to addresses that fail standardization
  using traditional CASS Certified address
  matching software
• AEC uses sophisticated address hygiene algorithms
  developed by USPS that go beyond typical
  capability of commercial address-matching
  software
• Processing with AEC logic typically improves the
  ZIP 4 coding of uncoded addresses by an average
  of 35

23
AEC II SERVICE

• AEC II is an Enhancement to the AEC Program
• Records are first processed through AEC logic
• Addresses that remain uncoded after AEC
  processing are compared against the AEC II
  historical file that looks for previous
  resolutions of the same name and address
• Addresses that remain uncoded after AEC and AEC
  historical file comparison are sent to the
  responsible delivery unit for resolution

24
AEC II SERVICE

• How Does the Local Delivery Unit Fix the
  Address?
• AEC II leverages Delivery Force Knowledge to
  correct bad addresses in mailer files
• Carriers typically know their customers address
  and can identify correction necessary
• Address corrected to a valid delivery point with
  ZIP 4 code appended
• Indicator provided to identify when the address
  cannot be corrected

25
AEC II SERVICE
26
AEC II SERVICE

• What if the Address I Have is Actually a Correct
  Address but It Still Doesnt Match the USPS
  Data?
• Address will be returned marked
  correct-as-shown without charge
• Where the mailing address is a PO Box instead of
  a street address, record returned marked with PO
  Box Indicator without charge
• PO Box address not provided due to privacy

27
AEC II SERVICE

• What is the Typical Performance of the AEC II
  Service?
• AEC II processing provides an average 95
  resolution rate
• 80 Address Corrected
• 13 Address Does Not Exist
• 5 Historical File Correction
• 1.8 Correct as Shown
• 0.2 Other

28
AEC II SERVICE

• What are the Costs for AEC and AEC II
  Processing?
• AEC processing costs 15 per thousand records
  (required for AEC II processing)
• AEC II processing costs 25 per resolution
• Nothing if resolved using historical file
• Nothing if submitted address is correct
• Nothing if address is returned indicated as PO
  Box mailing address

29
AEC II SERVICE

• How Can I Estimate My Return on Investment Using
  USPS AEC / AEC II Services?
• AEC Calculator
• ( AEC Calculator Available at http//ribbs.usps.go
  v )

30
DPV Addressing Tool
147
Million USPS Delivery Point Serviced
Addresses Condensed to 600 MB
30
31
Can You Recognize A Bad Address?
BARBARA WILSON 612 KING RIDGE CV COLLIERVILLE TN
38017-1714
32
USPS INTERNET ADDRESS MATCHING SYSTEM
33
DPV PRODUCT

• DPV allows a user to confirm the validity of
  address information - right down to apartment and
  suite number
• DPV provides a YES / NO response to an inquiry
  such as
• Is 612 King Ridge CV in ZIP Code 38017 a
  Valid Address?

34
DPV PRODUCT

• DPV works in conjunction with existing CASS
  Certified address matching products to validate
  accuracy of Street and Apt/Ste numbers
• DPV use required effective August 1st 2007
• Must validate accuracy of primary street address
  to obtain a ZIP 4 code assignment
• DPV cannot correct missing or incorrect
  components
• Use DPV to collect complete addresses at
  point-of-capture or to identify inaccurate or
  incomplete addresses in your mailing list

35
LACSLINK PRODUCT
Can You Recognize A Bad Address?
DONALD BLAKE RR 1 BOX 557 STRATFORD NH  03590-9719
36
Can You Recognize A Bad Address?
37
LACSLINK PRODUCT

• LACSLink is an address-quality tool to update
  addresses changed due to local community 9-1-1
  address conversions
• Approximately 400,000 addresses changed each year
  since 1994
• Nearly 40 of rural route/box addresses used by
  mailers cannot be DPV confirmed!

38
LACSLINK PRODUCT

• LACSLink provides mailers an automated method of
  obtaining updated addresses following a
  communitys addressing conversions
• USPS provides delivery to outdated addresses for
  only one year following address conversion
• After one year, mail may be returned
  undeliverable-as-addressed
• LACSLink now required for mailer use as part of
  routine address hygiene processing
• CASS requirement (8/01/07)

39
LACSLINK PRODUCT

• LACSLink Benefits Include
• Reduces undeliverable mail by validating your
  address
• Represents the most current address information
  available
• Corrects outdated addresses prior to mailing
• Reduces postage costs by elimination of duplicate
  mailpieces
• Improves marketing efforts by improving
  effectiveness of mail delivery to current address

40
SUMMARY

• The quality of your address data directly affects
  the deliverability of your mail!
• Its important to continuously monitor and
  validate the quality and accuracy of your
  address information
• USPS provides an extensive suite of existing
  address quality products and services
• The USPS is committed to ongoing address hygiene
  improvements to enhance the value of mail

41
Knowledge Validation

Question 1 Physical addressing errors account
for 5 to total UAA Mail Volume.
Answer 1 False Physical addressing errors
account for over 12 of UAA Mail volume.
Question 2 The USPS delivers mail to over 147
million addresses everyday.
Answer 2 True
Question 3 AEC II uses Delivery Force
Knowledge to correct bad addresses.
Answer 3 True
42
For More Information
ribbs.usps.gov
www.usps.com/ncsc
Customer Support
1-800-238-3150
43
Monday Tools Techniques that Make the Case for
Address Quality Ruth Jones/Gary Seitz - Period 5,
1000 - 1100am - Room 212AB What are Bad
Addresses What to do With Them Charles
Hunt/Kevin Conti - Period 6, 1115am - 1215pm -
Room 212AB Tuesday Move Update How to Keep in
Touch With Moving Customers Audrey Conley/Adam
Collinson - Period 10, 1000 - 1100am - Room
212AB Intelligent Addressing to Achieve 100 Mail
Integrity Jim Wilson/Eric Houger - Period 11,
1115am - 1215pm - Room 210AB How Government
Agencies use Address Quality to Better Serve the
Community Gail
Milton/Mike Sexson - Period 13, 315 - 415pm -
Room 212AB Wednesday The ROI of Address
Quality Charles Hunt/Chris Lien - Period 16, 215
- 315pm - Room 212AB Stump the Experts with Your
Un-codable UAA Mail Jim Wilson/Alice VanGorder -
Period 17, 330 - 430pm - Room 212AB