Use this link to share with your colleagues:
NCOA: Definition & Best Practices: https://help.pm.leapevent.tech/a/829713
In this article, we'll cover NCOA, or National Change of Address with PatronManager.
Specifically, we'll cover:
First of all, what is NCOA?
NCOA stands for National Change of Address. When someone moves, they can go to the post office or go online and fill out a form that says I am moving, my family is moving, or my business is moving, give the post office their old address as well as their new address. That information goes into a database that the United States Postal Service (USPS) makes available to licensed mail houses and mail service providers. Mail houses can then compare the NCOA list to your mailing list, check for folks who’ve moved, and mail to the correct address.
Some benefits of using the NCOA list are as follows:
- Reduces undeliverable mail
- Prevents remailings
- Reduces mailer costs by reducing the number of undeliverable mail pieces
- Provides faster and more accurate mail delivery
- Patron contact information stays up-to-date
- It’s easier to match duplicate accounts and contacts on matching addresses
- You’ll get more accurate research results from tools, such as partner product WealthEngine, if you’re looking at a prospect’s current address
- You’ll cut down on phone traffic from patrons asking why they haven’t received their tickets/annual tax statement/subscription renewal
So why should you NCOA? Because it’s required if…
You have a permit to use pre-sorted nonprofit postage and/or pre-sorted first class postage. To remain eligible for a pre-sort permit, the USPS requires you meet their Move Update Standard. That means you need to do a minimum of one of four things:
- Put the mailing list through the NCOA system and apply the corrections to your data; an NCOA run-through is good for 95 days and then must be repeated to mail again.
- Use an ancillary service endorsement on the piece; these can be printed on the piece with wording such as Return Service Requested, Change Service Requested, etc. or the service endorsement can be incorporated into the Intelligent Mail Barcode if the proper registration has been done with the Post Office.
- Use Address Change Service (ACS) keylines; new addresses are electronically sent back to you once the service is set up with the post office.
- Add "Or Current Resident" as another line in the address block. This fourth option is not listed in the USPS document QSG602a (see link below) because adding the “Or Current Resident” line means that the post office does not have to do anything extra with the piece if the named recipient has moved. The piece can just be left at that address.
USPS document QSG602a: http://pe.usps.com/text/qsg300/q602a.htm
Let’s talk through each option...
1. Put the mailing list through the NCOA system:
You’d simply build and export a report for all Accounts (be sure to include the 18-digit Account ID in that report!) and send it off to your preferred NCOA processor. Most mail houses provide NCOA services as does PatronManager partner WealthEngine. When you receive the updated addresses, you can update your records in your system.
If you'd like assistance with that, we can provide that as a paid data service. Check out our Data Project Services here for more information.
For reference, the report you send off should look something like this:
2. Ancillary endorsement
Add the appropriate ancillary endorsement on your envelope (e.g. “Return Service Requested”) OR use the Intelligent Mail Barcode. You’ll get the changes back mailing by mailing. You will need to enter changes as you receive them.
3. ACS Keylines
ACS Keylines are complicated as there are a lot of options and sub-options and additional costs may or may not apply. Ask your mail house for more details or you can read the USPS documentation at http://pe.usps.com/text/dmm300/507.htm
4. Using “or current resident” is not recommended! You might not be reaching your target audience for your mailing.
Notice of Address Changes from the Patron
Of course you’ll receive notice of address changes directly from patrons on occasion. But, more often than not, you won’t find out about an address change until their tickets come back in the mail with a sticker on the envelope that says "MOVED - FORWARDING ORDER EXPIRED."
Keep in mind:
Most routine checks look back 18 months, which is fine if you’ve been keeping up with your NCOA updates every 95 days (3 months).
If you’re behind on your NCOA updates, you can ask your mail house to look back up to 48 months, though they’ll probably charge an additional fee to do so.