What Is Address Hygiene?

When was the last time you received something in the mail addressed to someone who no longer lives there? I’ll bet it happened at least once in the last month—in the last week, if you live in an apartment building or have moved recently.

Every year, the United States Postal Service (USPS) processes over 5 billion pieces of mail[1] that are mis-addressed—or Undeliverable as Addressed (UAA). At first blush, this might seem like a mildly interesting fact or, at most, a minor concern. But when you stop to consider the realities of that situation, it becomes clear that it’s a massive problem.

Just think how much time, money, and resources your company expends each month on mail. Each letter or direct marketing mailer has to be written, designed, edited, printed, addressed, sorted, stamped (or metered) and sent. How much are you paying for those materials? What about for your employees’ time? Or for third-party fees?

Now consider how many of those letters and mailers end up being returned or simply trashed because they were delivered to the wrong address.

Needless to say, UAA mail can cost you a great deal—not just in money spent to send that mis-addressed mail, but also in missed loan payments, missed business opportunities and poor customer relations (because customers are angry that they weren’t notified about changes to their account).

Taking the time to “clean up” poor addresses is known in the postal industry (yes, that’s a thing) as “address hygiene.” Good address hygiene can save you time and money—not to mention reducing government waste. Here are three simple things you can do today to improve address hygiene at your institution.

#1: Regularly ask customers to update their address.

Most of the UAA mail processed by the USPS is due to people moving and not updating their address. Nearly 10% of the US population moves every year,[2] and if they forgot to change the address on file with your institution, you may well end up sending their mail to the wrong place. Make sure you remind your customers regularly to review and update their information. Often, people just need a gentle reminder.

Tip: Don’t ask too often. If your customer sees a notice about changing their address every single time they log in to their account or get a piece of mail from you, they may simply develop a habit of ignoring it. (Remember the Boy Who Cried “Wolf”?) Worse, they may become annoyed with your institution.

#2: Use the +4 ZIP code extension.

The +4 ZIP code extension was introduced in 1983, twenty years after the ZIP code was rolled out. The four-digit add-on code helps the local post office direct mail to a much smaller geographic region (such as a specific building, block, or post office box), meaning that mail arrives much more quickly at its intended destination. Fun fact: You can even get discounts on bulk mailings if you are using the +4 ZIP code extension.

#3: Validate addresses.

Over the past few decades, the USPS has standardized all postal addresses in the United States—and they’ve provided a handy API that businesses can connect to in order to make sure an address matches the USPS standard. Mail sent with a standardized address is easier for the USPS to sort, which makes it more likely to get to the right address and to get there more quickly.

Fortunately, GOLDPoint Systems has already connected to this API in GOLDTrak PC, making it super easy for you to validate mailing addresses before shoving those letters in the mail. Here’s how to do it:

1. In GTPC, open the Consumer Application tab. Click on the button labeled <USPS>.
2. In the new window, you will see the resident address at the top and the mailing address on the bottom; the address you have on file is on the left, and the standardized USPS address is on the right.

Note: If there is no USPS address provided on the right, that means the USPS can’t find the address. You’ll need to contact the customer to verify the address—and in the meantime, you probably don’t want to try sending mail there, since the postal carrier won’t be able to find it.

3. To use the USPS version of the address, click the green arrow. The software will enter that information into the GTPC address on the left. In the example in the image, the +4 ZIP code extension will be added, and part of the street address will be moved to the second line (this is usually the number of an apartment, suite, etc.).

Note: Your institution must have a specific GTPC institution option turned on in order to use the <USPS> button. If you don’t see the button on your Consumer Application screen but would like to use it, please contact your GOLDPoint Systems account manager.

The best thing about the <USPS> button in GTPC is how customizable it is. You can make it mandatory for every new application, add it to a special checklist screen, or integrate it in any number of other ways into your origination process. Just tell your account manager what you want to do with it when you set up the institution option.

Just like other things in your life (hand washing, tooth brushing), address hygiene should be performed often. Small things, done regularly, make a big difference.

Next time, we’ll talk about a few more things you can do using GOLDPoint Systems software to improve your address hygiene. Until then, happy flossing!

[1] “UAA Still Refuses to Go Away,” Mailing Systems Technology, 19 August 2022, https://mailingsystemstechnology.com/article-4957-UAA-Still-Refuses-to-Go-Away.html

[2] “Moving Statistics: Industry Trends & Data (2023),” RubyHome.com, 28 July 2022, https://www.rubyhome.com/blog/moving-stats/