Any of you who subscribe to our GreenDimes service is doing so to eliminate junk mail, which includes sweepstakes mailings, pre-approved credit card mailings, invitations for life insurance, coupons and catalogs. Of course, the list goes on and on. Of all the direct mail that is most challenging for our members, catalogs remain the most pesky. Just when you (and we) think we’ve stopped the eight Pottery Barn catalogs from reaching your mailbox, you’ll buy a lovely set of pillows online and immediately see the catalogs return.
The Direct Marketing Association (DMA) recently released a report that concludes in spite of dropping readership and ad revenues from newspapers and magazines, catalogs remain strong in driving 50 percent of all sales for catalog merchants. With such strong numbers, you realize the challenge that catalog merchants have in abandoning this medium. While we want to reduce unnecessary mail to consumers, we are not anti-business. At Tonic and GreenDimes, we believe that a strong economy will drive the green movement and companies doing good things to solve our problems. So, to help you all better manage your junk mail, including catalogs, I offer the following tips to help you stay green and maintain a lower volume of junk mail. After all, the average household receives over 100 pounds of junk mail per year (eqivalent to an entire tree). Here we go:
- When you sign up for GreenDimes, be sure to come back to your account often to visit our convenient Catalog Screener — and enter new catalogs that show up and/or resubmit ones that reappear. We will take care of opting you out again.
- Patronize the online stores of your favorite merchants and buy from them. It’s a great opportunity for you to send the message that you like their products but that you prefer to shop online.
- When buying online, be sure to uncheck opt-ins to catalogs and other direct marketing materials — I know that I personally forget to do this and end up getting my LL Bean catalog all over again.
- When buying new products, be careful in completing and returning the warranty card. Often your warranty will be honored even if you don’t complete and send this card — the card is sometimes merely an opt-in for sales and marketing mailings. READ CAREFULLY!
- Be sure that the catalog you are receiving and trying to end is actually addressed to you and not another household member or former tenant. If so, you can add these additional names into your GreenDimes account home page.
As you can see, I write this post assuming that you already use GreenDimes. If you do not, you can join for free with our do-it-yourself service or pay $20 for our Premium service — where we do ALL the work for you. Do you have any junk mail horror stories or tips you’d like to share? Feel free to respond in the comments section. Happy Empty Mailbox!!!