Mailing House

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All About Mailing House: Why Do You Need One?

If yours is a business that sends out postal mail, you have already heard about mailing houses. Perhaps someone may have suggested it for your business, or maybe you came across the term randomly.

However, many of you may still not have a clear picture of what is a mailhouse or how it can help your business organisation. And many organisations that already have an idea of what a mail house does are not sure if it is a service worth buying.

Hence, we will explain what a mailing house is and why it is essential for your business. You will also find a list of advantages of employing mailing houses for your business. And then you can decide for yourself whether or not your business can benefit from it.

What is a Mailhouse?

A mailhouse or mailing house is an agency that prepares direct mail for business organisations to send to local, national, and international addresses. You may also know them by the name of the mailing agency, which is perhaps more apt for its functions.

The first and foremost reason why business organisations employ a mailing agency is because of the convenience it offers. Many assume that incorporating another agency would only increase their expenses. While the logic behind such an assumption is sound, it is not valid.

Manually processing your business’s direct mail may seem like a good idea to save money. But what you fail to account for is the scope of error in a manual process. A mailhouse not only takes over the complex direct mail process but also frees up your workforce, resources, and time.

Why Does Your Business Need a Mailhouse?

There are numerous ways your business organisation can benefit from employing a mailing agency. Below we list some of how a mailing agency can help you optimise your direct mail operations and put your resources to better use.

Save Valuable Time and Money

One of the things that businesses always wish they had more of is time. With an in-house direct mail process, you are likely to spend hours and even days on a single direct mail campaign. Hence, it is no wonder why more and more businesses find the service offered by a mailhouse more appealing.

The mailing agency takes over all aspects of your direct mail process, saving hours of manual labour. But that’s not all. Mailing agencies also let you have the benefit of lower bulk postage rates and their data management expertise. 

Several advanced solutions like PostGrid even offer full automation for your direct mail operations. Full automation means you can eliminate manual errors, which ultimately leads to a minimum return rate of mailers. 

Expert Designing and Printing 

From real estate to healthcare to insurance, every business vertical uses direct mail for marketing and communication purposes. Unlike a mail house, most business organisations have little to no experience designing and printing direct mail. 

A direct mail expert can quickly help you design and print your direct mail. PostGrid even offers a template gallery where you get ready to print templates for your direct mail. You can also use your custom designs for your mailers, and the mailing agency will print them for you.  

Advantages Of Using Mailhouse Fulfilment Services

When it comes to direct mail, hiring a mailing house has several advantages for your business. We have listed some of the significant benefits below:

Database Management

The chances are one of the most challenging things you’ve had to do when manually processing your direct mail is database management. With the help of a mailing agency, it becomes significantly easy for your business to manage a customer database.

If you are using a mail house fulfilment service like PostGrid, you can get access to an advanced address verification API. What does it do? It ensures that your address database is clean and accurate by validating your addresses. Some other ways a mailing agency can help you with database management are as follows:

Data Compilation

Mailing agencies often help businesses compile data to a single database from different sources. If you gather the data manually, there is a good chance of data corruption or error. 

Data Cleansing

Data cleansing is how the mail house can ensure your database is updated and error-free. Furthermore, it also provides the correct format of your addresses.

Data Sorting 

Data sorting enables you to mail your marketing letters in an optimised manner. For example, you can have the mailing agency sort your mailers based on postal code and ensure their fast processing.

Data Security 

Most established mailing agencies equip themselves with advanced security and certifications to protect customer data. 

Targeting 

With more reliable data, it becomes easier for a mail house to help you target your customers. The geocoding feature from PostGrid is a perfect example of this. It enables your business to identify geographical patterns and pitch relevant marketing campaigns to customers.

Easy Personalisation

Personalising your direct mail communication becomes much easier with the correct mailing agency. For example, PostGrid’s fully automated direct mail system can print personalised mailers simply by connecting with your CRM. Personalisation has a tremendous effect on the customer, and with it, your marketing campaign is likely to fail.

Bulk Mailing 

Bulk mailing is a nightmare for businesses that do not employ a mailing house. But, with an automated direct mail process, it is as easy as breathing. All you have to do is click the right buttons, and you can set up a bulk mailing campaign for your business with ease.

Direct Mail Inventory 

When printing large quantities of direct mail materials, it can be hard to store them securely. But, if you are using a mailing agency, you need not concern yourself with such details. The mailing agency is equipped with the facilities to store your printed materials securely, even if it includes sensitive materials.

What Makes PostGrid The Best Mailhouse Service For Your Business?

Several mailing houses are out there, but not many of them offer full direct mail automation. It means that PostGrid will take over your entire direct mail process so that you can focus on the more critical aspects of your business.

Apart from printing personalised direct mailers for your business, PostGrid also provides an address verification tool. As a result, you can verify the validity of your customer’s address by comparing it against Australia Post’s official address database.

Conclusion

Your business can gain a lot by employing a mailing house to manage your direct mail operations. It saves you valuable time, money, and resources. Considering all the advantages of using a mailing agency, it is worth every penny you invest.

However, choosing a mailing agency may not be easy as there are several options in the market. Your best bet is to invest in a mailing house like PostGrid, which offers full direct mail automation capability.

Furthermore, PostGrid has additional features and tools, such as its address verification API. Direct mail automation combined with address verification is the perfect tool for your direct mail operations. It ensures optimised printing and delivery of your direct mailers at all times.

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The post Mailing House appeared first on PostGrid.

source https://www.postgrid.com.au/what-is-mailing-house/

What Is Postcode

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How Can the Postcodes in Australia Help You Reduce Postage Costs and Boost Customer Satisfaction?

There are nearly 3,333 postcodes in Australia, covering all internal and external states and territories. These postcodes assist Australia Post in determining delivery routes and dropping off items at the correct destinations. But, there is much more to this concept that we will discuss in this blog.

First, you should know that an Australian postal code is the same as a ZIP code in the US. It goes by different names in every country, but its primary objectives remain the same.

They are helpful in the address verification and standardisation processes. With the help of correct postcodes, companies can process orders accurately and drive more sales. They can manage their entire logistics structure efficiently and save costs.

Address verification is gaining massive popularity these days, and businesses can employ it in their systems using postcodes of Australia. They assist in determining the number of orders per state or city—to formulate marketing and other strategies.

However, there are many more use cases of postcodes that this blog will walk you through. Also, we will talk about the significance of address validation for companies.

Let’s get started!

What are the Postcodes In Australia?

Australian postcodes are a string of four numbers that represent specific localities or neighbourhoods. It is a unique geographic identifier and offers high-quality demographic information.

Businesses use Aussie postal code lists for fraud prevention, shipping, information coordination, etc.

Primarily, they help assemble and route mail items within the Australia Post system. Mention them at the end of mailing addresses after writing the state abbreviations.

In 1967, the Postmaster-General’s Department introduced postcodes in Australia, and the entire system is under postal management. You can avail of the whole list of postcodes from the Post Office in the form of booklets. Alternatively, you can order online from Australia Post’s website if you want to store them in digital format.

Often, postcards and envelopes have four square boxes in orange to mention the postcode. They enable postal workers to sort mail pieces automatically, helping them speed up the delivery process.

History of Postcodes In Australia

The purpose of the introduction of postcodes was to replace the older postal sorting structure, like Melbourne’s numbering system. (e.g., E5, N8) Also, there was a similar organisation in New South Wales’s regional and rural parts.

The introduction of large-volume mechanical mail sorting also took place around the same time as the commencement of the postcode Australia system.

75% of mail items were using postcodes by 1968. The Post Office introduced postal preferred-size envelopes or standard envelopes the same year.

The orange-coloured postcode squares came into existence in June 1990 to help the postal services employ Optical Character Recognition (OCR). It assists Australia Post in sorting mail by postcodes more quickly.

Prescribed Mailing Address Format in Australia

The four-digit postcodes of Australia appear at the end of delivery addresses. But, you must ensure that the address is accurate and properly formatted. Australia Post has a standard address format that all individuals and companies should follow, and it is:

• The first line comprises the recipient’s full name
• The name and number. You can also write the locked bag or PO box, if applicable
• The last line has the locality or Post Office name with the territory or state abbreviation. Also, mention the postcodes in Australia on the same line at the end
• Write the country name for sending mail internationally

Here’s an example:

Phoebe Holt

18 Angelo St

NORTH SYDNEY NSW 2060

Most standard-sized envelopes already have the four boxes pre-printed on the bottom for writing the postcode in Australia Sydney.

Please note that you must write the company name on the second line while mailing to a business address. Below are some more tips to help you write your addresses precisely:

• Find the correct postcode using the Australia Post postal code finder
• Use dark inks to print your delivery addresses, like black on white paper. Refrain from using yellow, orange, or red ink
• Don’t underline anything
• Don’t stagger or indent the address lines
• Write your return address on the top left corner of the envelope to help the postal workers send your mailpiece back if the delivery fails

How Do Postcodes Work In Australia?

Now that you know what is a postal code, let us discuss its functioning in depth. Australian postcodes consist of sorting data, and the Post Office uses them to group mail pieces going to similar locations.

Population

Often, postcodes represent only one geographic area. For instance, 6160 covers the city of Fremantle only. However, it gets complicated because of the postcodes that belong to numerous towns, like 2570. The postal code- 2570 includes 22 suburbs and cities around Camden.

Also, postcode 3221 in Victoria which belongs to the Geelong Mail Centre includes twenty places with a low population. It indicates that Australia Post does the mail sorting after it reaches Geelong.

Other postcodes include larger populations (e.g., 4350 serving nearly 100,000 addresses in and around Toowoomba). But, there are also many postcodes in Australia, covering urban areas with a small population. Hence, there is no general rule regarding how many places a postcode should cover.

Towns Having Two Postcodes

The postcodes start from 0200, serving the Australian National University, and range up to 9944, covering Cannonvale in Queensland.

Plus, several suburbs and towns have two postcodes—one for PO boxes and the other for door-to-door deliveries. For instance, PO box 99 in Parramatta comes under postcode 2124. But, the same area also has another postal code- 2150 for street delivery.

Large Volume Receivers

Many large government departments, companies, and other crucial institutions that receive bulk mail have their Aussie postal code. These organisations are known as Large Volume Receivers (LVRs).

Here are some examples:

0200- Australian National University.

4029- The Royal Brisbane and Women’s Hospital, etc.

However, the Post Office has been discontinuing the LVR system since 2006.

Postcodes of Australia Covering More Than One State

Postcode 2620 includes an area in the Australia Capital Territory (Hume) and a locality in New South Wales (Gundaroo). Also, postcode 0872 serves several localities across Western Australia, Southern Australia, and the Northern Territory.

So, it is common for some postcodes to cover places in different states, even if it complicates the routing process.

The Allocation of the Postcodes In Australia

We hope you now know what is postcode in Australia so far and how they work. Now, we will move on to the allocation of Australian postcodes.

The first two postcode numbers indicate the state or territory, while the other two help locate the address. Here are the postcode ranges of the different states and territories:

State or Territory	Postcodes in Australia
New South Wales	1000 – 1999 (only PO Boxes and LVRs) 2000 – 2599 2619 – 2899 2921 – 2999
Australian Capital Territory	0200 – 0299 (only PO Boxes and LVRs) 2600 – 2618 2900 – 2920
Victoria	3000 – 3999 8000 – 8999 (only PO Boxes and LVRs)
South Australia	5000 – 5799 5800 – 5999 (only PO Boxes and LVRs)
Western Australia	6000 – 6797 6800 – 6999 (only PO Boxes and LVRs)
Tasmania	7000 – 7799 7800 – 7999 (only PO Boxes and LVRs)
Northern Territory	0800 – 0899 0900 – 0999 (only PO Boxes and LVRs)
Queensland	4000 – 4999 9000 – 9999 (only PO Boxes and LVRs)

Popular Use Cases of the Postcodes of Australia

There are several applications of postcodes, certainly more than we know. They form a significant component of several crucial operations for companies, like

Insurance

Often, insurance agencies use postal code data to determine the premium rates of a house or car. There are considerable variations in the costs, depending on the locality or city. Thus, knowing the postcodes for quoting prices is ordinary.

Also, insurance agents use this data at the time of settling claims. Hence, postcodes are an integral aspect of their day-to-day work.

Transport

The transport system in New South Wales employs postcodes of Australia to allocate specific numbers to bus stops. Usually, the stop numbers consist of five to seven digits—the first four comprise the postcodes, and the remaining represent the stop number.

Metropolitan Street Maps

These maps have all the Australian postcodes grouped according to the suburbs. They help define sales strategies and choose franchise locations.

The companies that manufacture these maps use postal code lists regularly. They enable businesses to have a spatial representation of their target localities.

Federal and State Government Institutions

These organisations publish several statistics now and then by postcodes. Hence, there are several social planning-related activities that postcodes help accomplish.

However, there is an issue with the spatial representation of the postcodes in Australia. The postal services add and remove postcodes all the time for operational purposes, which causes deviations in several plans.

Presort Mail

It is one of the most crucial use cases of postcodes. Most companies use automated direct mail solutions like PostGrid that help validate their mailing lists and presort their items according to the postcodes in Australia.

Shipping and Logistics

It doesn’t matter if you send a transactional mail item to a client in Sydney or conduct a direct mail campaign covering several cities. Postcode data can help you ship your official and marketing mail efficiently and accurately.

Identity Verification

The postcodes of Australia also help in fraud prevention for online transactions. They aid the identity verification programs that help companies avoid data breaches and fraud.

Comparison of the Postcodes Around the World

The Treaty of Bern in 1874 dictated the Universal Postal Union’s launch to enhance global mail exchange. There are hundreds of member countries, and their postcodes are available publicly.

The UPU conducts several seminars, publishes research papers, and creates solutions to promote global eCommerce. You can access their website and search for all the postcodes in Australia. Below are some details of the most popular postcode systems in the world:

ZIP Codes (USA)

At PostGrid, we get many questions, like what is ZIP code. This term may confuse people, but it is the same as postcode. Undoubtedly, the ZIP codes of the USA constitute a well-curated postal code system under the jurisdiction of the USPS.

So, what is the ZIP postal code?

ZIP stands for Zoning Improvement Plan and has several functions, including mail routing, data verification, etc. The primary objective of introducing ZIP codes was to simplify transport across the country.

Robert A. Moon, a postal service employee, created the ZIP code system decades ago to enhance mail delivery. It works the same way as the postcodes in Australia, with a few minor differences.

Typically, a ZIP postal code is five digits long. But, it is advisable to add the extra four digits that speed up mail sorting and delivery. Nowadays, you can use Intelligent Mail Barcodes (IMBs) that have encoded ZIP codes to automate most of the process. It helps you bag additional postal discounts from Australia Post.

The first digit of the ZIP code stands for a group of US states, while the second and third digits represent a Post Office or sectional centre. Then, the last two numbers stand for the delivery area.

Postal Codes (Canada)

Canada got its first postal code structure in Toronto in 1925. Later on, the Post Office divided the city into 14 delivery zones. The postal areas in Ottawa, Quebec, Vancouver, and Winnipeg also started using this system in a few years.

After knowing what is a postcode and ZIP code, you may think that Canadian postal codes are also numeric. But, they are alphanumeric, consisting of six digits. Some of the examples include M4K 1M8, T0A 0A0, M1E 1PS, etc.

Canadian codes use the A1A 1A1 format, wherein the first character is always a letter. The starting three digits state the Forward Sortation Area (FSA), and the remaining three represent Local Delivery Units (LDUs).

You can use an address verification API like PostGrid if you have difficulty finding and verifying postcodes in Australia and abroad. It helps you access validated mailing lists that you can employ for many reasons.

How Does Address Verification Help You Validate Your Postcode Data?

Address validation is the key to getting accurate postcodes and sending mail to deliverable addresses. It helps companies benefit from the use cases of the postcodes of Australia effectively.

Autocomplete

PostGrid’s autocomplete API allows your customers to autofill their delivery address and postal code. Hence, it takes them half the time they need to type the full address. Also, it ensures that the entered information is correct and valid.

You can integrate this API into your shopping app or website and boost its user experience (UX). Also, PostGrid offers address autocomplete with its validation services to help you send mail to the correct addresses.

It is also helpful in adding the missing postcodes of Australia to your mailing lists. Thus, you can update your old databases and put them to good use.

Standardise

As said earlier, following the standard Australia Post address format is crucial. Therefore, companies must mention properly-standardised addresses on their envelopes, packages, and other mail pieces.

PostGrid’s address verification API helps standardise your mailing information and postal code lists. It first parses the addresses to separate the components and employs fuzzy matching. Then, it reformats them to make them mail-ready. Hence, you can guarantee accurate and fast deliveries.

Validate

AMAS stands for Address Matching Approval System and is a certification program for address verification vendors. PostGrid is AMAS-certified and cross-checks your postal code lists against the Australia Post database.

Hence, you can rest assured that we return high-quality data that enhances your overall mailing experience.

Why Should You Always Verify the Postcodes In Australia Before Using Them?

There is more than one advantage of double-checking postcodes beforehand, including

Save Money

You can cut costs considerably by sending mail to the correct postcodes the first time itself. Reshipping, lost mail, returns, etc., can drain your budget and create inefficiencies. But, address verification for the postcodes of Australia can help you prevent such problems and mail accurately.

Also, address verification services like PostGrid help you presort your items by postcodes, allowing you to further lower costs.

Increase Operational Efficiency

It may be a routine for you to pack and mail orders. But, one incorrect postal code can lead to several issues and slowdowns. Hence, you should be prepared by validating your postcodes and maintaining a clean database.

Make Faster Decisions

Having access to an up-to-date postcode list enables you to make prompt decisions.

For example, you can use the postcodes of Australia to target the right neighbourhood if you want to promote your upcoming season sale. Hence, all marketing and planning activities involve the usage of postcodes.

Reduce Mail Returns

Mail returns can increase your workload and lead to wastage. Also, it creates backlogs as you need to reship the old orders again and divert your effort from the new ones.

But, you can skip these scenarios by using PostGrid’s address verification solutions to verify the postcodes of Australia.

Increase Customer Satisfaction

Validating postcodes in Australia and mailing items to the correct delivery addresses can help your mail items arrive at their destinations on time. This practice helps raise customer satisfaction and retention levels.

PostGrid’s Address Verification Services for Postcode Validation

After knowing about the UK ZIP code and postcode, your next step is finding a reliable address verification service. Luckily, we already have a solution to your needs and guarantee positive results. Our 99.99% deliverability rate is a sign of our efficient address validation capabilities. 

Here are some of the best features of our services:

• Geocoding: Geocoding feature helps capture the correct mailing addresses of your customers. Hence, if they provide incorrect details, you have the resources to identify the correct address and modify it accordingly
• Fuzzy matching: It is a significant feature of verifying the postcodes of Australia because there could be some minor mistakes. People tend to make errors, like swapping letters and numbers. Hence, PostGrid performs a fuzzy matching check to validate your addresses better
• Bulk address verification: You can upload your existing mailing lists on our dashboard or integrate our API into your system. Either way, you can verify any number of postal codes as our services are scalable
• International address verification: International postcodes might be hard to find for you. But, you need not worry anymore because PostGrid can validate addresses of 245+ countries. Thus, you can mail to any part of the world and still not worry about incorrect postcodes in Australia

Wrapping Up

Almost every country has a postcode system known by different names. In the US, there are ZIP codes, whereas Canada has a postal code system. They help the Post Office identify locations more closely and deliver your packages at the earliest.

We hope you got the answers to queries, like how many postcodes are in Australia and what they mean. If you need help, you can use PostGrid’s address verification API that verifies every component of your addresses and makes them deliverable.

Also, our industry-best pricing plans make the whole process much more affordable and efficient for your company.

You can sign up here to know more about how PostGrid helps you validate the postcodes of Australia within seconds!

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The post What Is Postcode appeared first on PostGrid.

source https://www.postgrid.com.au/what-is-postcode/

How to Write an International Address

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How to Write International Address the Right Way to Ensure Accurate Deliveries

Australia Post delivers 2.7 billion items a year! This figure includes all individual and commercial postcards, letters, and parcels that the Post Office shipped.

Thousands of customers send mail to international locations via Australia Post every year. But worldwide mailing needs them to learn how to write international addresses correctly.

You cannot use the same Australian mailing address format you use to send mail within the country. 

Instead, you should use a format that matches the guidelines of the destination country’s postal organisation.

Understanding how to address international mail also helps you ensure that your mail reaches the right destination. It speeds up the mailing process and allows the postal workers to send your items on time.

Keep reading this guide to learn how to address an international letter correctly. Also, we will discuss the different ways to send international mail through Australia Post.

Let’s get started!

Prime Guidelines to Know While Addressing International Mail

Australia Post has a set of guidelines for international addressing to help you send mail to global destinations effortlessly, including:

• Write all your mailing addresses in capital letters. It is advisable to also write the recipient’s name with the delivery address in all caps.
• Make sure that your addresses do not exceed five lines. 
• If they exceed this limit, try clubbing two or more lines to shorten them.
• While learning how to write an international address on an envelope or package, cross-check the location with the receiver. 
• All delivery addresses must be typewritten or printed using blue or black ink. Avoid using light colours on dark-coloured paper stock. 
• Prevent the use of pencils and pens for addressing international mail. Remember that handwritten addresses are prone to scrubbing, erasing, and other issues, making it hard to complete deliveries.
• Always write the recipient’s full legal name on the first line. A legal name is a name appearing on the person’s government ID. It includes their first and middle name or initial (if any) and last name. Here’s an example- Mona S Collins.
• When you learn to write address international, the first thing to know is that your addresses must appear legibly. Any scratches, spelling mistakes, ink blotting, etc., can lead to delivery failures.
• Use Arabic numerals and Roman letters for addressing international mail. Plus, take care that they are placed lengthwise towards one side of your envelopes or packages.
• After knowing how to write your address for international mail and using the correct format, you must fill out a separate slip enclosed with packages. 
• Mailing addresses with Greek, Hebrew, Arabic, Russian, Japanese, Chinese, or Cyrillic characters must have an interline English translation. If you don’t know this version, write the foreign language using Roman characters.
• When you understand how to write an address for international mail, you will notice that all international addresses have the country name on the last line. It tells the postal workers where to redirect their mail without checking the postal codes. Ensure to write your destination country’s name in uppercase letters (avoid using abbreviations).
• Place the foreign postal codes above the country name while addressing international mail items. Check whether your destination country’s guidelines need you to place the postal code before the city or town.

The above guidelines help you learn how to write an international address in a letter. You can also access the Universal Postal Union website to check if your destination country has additional formatting requirements. However, this step only works well if your destination country is a United Nations member.

How to Address International Mail

Different standardisation rules, alignments, and address formats exist for every destination country. However, you can use one standard, customisable format for international addressing, as written below:

Line 1: Recipient’s full name

Line 2: House number and street address/ PO box address

Line 3: City name followed by province, state, or county name and postal code

Line 4: Country

But it is not enough to only refer to this format for addressing international mail and packages. Please remember that these aspects could differ considerably from country to country.

Hence, let us learn about the above elements in detail to learn further how to write your address for international mail:

• House number: It could also be a floor or suite number.
• Street address: Your recipient’s address may or may not have a street address. Sometimes, it may have a PO box number that replaces the house number and street address.
• City name: When exploring different ways to write an international address on an envelope, you may come across towns and municipalities. Not surprisingly, some countries use these terms instead of ‘cities.’
• Postal code: Postal codes also go by various names in different countries, like ZIP codes in the US, postcodes in the UK, etc.

Find below some examples of how to write international addresses on packages and letters:

CHANDLER J GILBERT

2089 BAKER ST

LONDON W1U 6RN

ENGLAND

CLAIRE TONKIN

PO BOX 752

NEW YORK CITY NY 10011

USA

ANDREW ADAMS

1212 PARKDALE AVE

OTTAWA ON K1Y 1J2

CANADA

It may be complicated to know how to write a postcard address international, but it can help you save loads of effort and time. Some other tips that might help you are:

• The delivery address must always appear in the middle of your envelope or label.
• Affix one or more postal stamps enough to cover your delivery costs in the top right-hand corner.
• Place the return address towards the top left-hand corner on the same line as your stamps.

While addressing international mail, write the addresses and affix the stamps on the front side of your package or envelope.

How to Write a Return Address on an International Letter

Australia Post recommends writing a return address on all international mail items for security. Also, it can help you get your mail back if it does not reach your recipients for specific reasons.

Some people know how to write an international address but forget to mention their return address. Thus, postal employees have difficulty tracking the sender and returning undelivered mail. As a result, they discard such items, and the sender isn’t even informed.

Hence, you should also know how to write an international address for Australia. 

Below is an example of the Australia address format that you can use for your return address:

KATHERINE GRANGER

17 AIRPORT FWY

SYDNEY NSW 2108

There is no need to mention the country name in your return address. Some other Australia Post guidelines to keep in mind for knowing how to write an Australian address for international mail are: 

• Use abbreviations for writing state or county names.
• Leave two spaces between the abbreviation and the postcode.
• Avoid using initials instead of the recipient’s name unless it is an adopted business name.
• Write the city, state, and postcode the same way as you do when addressing international mail. 
• Refrain from using punctuation marks. 

Which Type of Stamps Do You Need to Send International Mail?

After knowing how to write an address for international mail, it is time to affix your stamps. 

You require Australia Post’s international postage stamps to send international letters and parcels.

The number of stamps you need depends on the postage rate of your item. And the cost of one stamp costs starts at $0.05. 

So you need to stick an adequate number of stamps to cover your postal fee. Luckily, these stamps never expire, and you also don’t need to pay any surcharges in case of inflation.

If you are still struggling to understand international mail- how to write addresses, and calculate postage, try PostGrid’s direct mail services. They can help you create your items, print, address, and mail them in an automated way.

Also Read: What Is Transliteration And Why You Need It For Effective Business Communication?

Why Do You Need to Know How to Address an International Letter?

Now that you know how to write an address internationally, you should also understand why it is a crucial step. 

Firstly, Australia Post cannot determine whether your international delivery address is valid and correct.

Thus, it is hard to tell if your item will be delivered to the correct address or returned to you.

Also, it may not help you access the foreign postal codes you need for addressing international mail. So, you may find it impossible to know how to write address for international packages without contacting all your recipients personally.

You can use PostGrid’s address verification API or software in such cases. They can effortlessly help you with international address transliteration, standardisation, and validation.

Some of the other features of our address verification services include:

• On-demand and bulk validation: You can validate any number of mailing addresses in one go with just a few clicks. PostGrid’s API is scalable and can accommodate your growing needs. 
• Address autocomplete: Don’t know how to write an international address? No problem! PostGrid’s address validation API can help you auto-complete addresses within a few keystrokes. This way, you can access high-quality, deliverable mailing addresses in seconds. 
• AMAS-certified: PostGrid uses Australia Post’s Address Matching Approval System (AMAS) addresses for verification. This certification helps PostGrid access authoritative databases and lets you know how to write international addresses. 
• Zero-code integration: With our zero-code integration feature, you can integrate our API into your CRM without technical expertise. The process is simple and speedy, allowing you to start instantly. 

PostGrid’s address verification solutions can help you skip the part where you need to know how to write an address on international mail. 

We understand it can be daunting and complicated to remember the postal address formats of several countries and abide by the guidelines. Thus, all you need to do is integrate our API into your system and start standardising and validating your addresses.

Wrapping Up

Sending international mail requires you to understand how to address an international letter. You must follow the guidelines of the respective postal organisation of the destination country. Most of the time, the format is almost the same, but there are some minor details that you need to take into consideration.

If you want to save time, cost, and effort, try Postgrid!

Request a demo now to see how we can help you with addressing international mail!

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The post How to Write an International Address appeared first on PostGrid.

source https://www.postgrid.com.au/how-to-write-an-international-address/

Donor Acknowledgement Letter

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How To Write An Effective Donor Acknowledgement Letter For Your Nonprofit Organisation?

Nonprofits are unlike profit-oriented organisations. They often depend on their donors’ valuable contributions to keep up their work. Every donor and their donations are of great value to nonprofit organisations. 

Generally, nonprofit organisations can’t use an attractive product or offer to rope in new donations. The best approach for nonprofits is to focus on their existing donors and ensure that they have the donor’s continued support. An ideal way to accomplish this is through a donor acknowledgement letter.

Here we explain how a donor acknowledgement letter helps nonprofits and how you can implement them effectively for your organisation.

What Is A Donor Acknowledgement Letter?

As the name suggests, the donor acknowledgement letter is a letter you send to donors acknowledging their charitable donation or gift. It is also called a donation acknowledgement letter. Its primary purpose is to document an individual’s or organisation’s philanthropic donations.

Sometimes the donor acknowledgement letter can also act as a donation receipt but only occasionally. Even though the letter’s primary purpose is to document the donations and acknowledge them, it does much more than that.

Anyone who makes an effort to contribute to society through a donation deserves a whole-hearted thank you. This logic applies regardless of the size or value of the contribution or gift. Sending a donor acknowledgement letter is the easiest and most effective way to thank your valuable donors.

Why Should You Send A Donor Acknowledgement Letter?

The primary reason for sending a donor acknowledgment letter is to let the donor know you received their donation. You can also use the letter as a thank-you note to the donor. People like getting acknowledgement for the good things they do, even if that’s not their purpose of doing good.

By sending the donor acknowledgement letter you can say thank you and explain how their contribution will help the people or animals in need. Besides thanking your donors, sending acknowledgement letters enables you to.

• Confirm the receipt for a donation.
• Keep a record of the gifts you receive. 
• Build a reputation and relationship with the donors.

As an expert in direct mail marketing, we advise you always to send a donor acknowledgement letter regardless of the value of donations. However, suppose the donation’s face value is over a specific limit. In that case, you may have a legal obligation to send the appropriate documentation to your donors.

Segmenting Your Donors

Apart from the reasons we discussed above, there is another reason for you to send the donor acknowledgement letter to your organisation. Sending acknowledgement letters to your donors often requires you to segment your donors into specific categories.

The first thing you need to do is to check whether automation is possible for sending the donor acknowledgement letter from your organisation. Check whether your nonprofit CRM solution and marketing tools can handle automation well.

You will likely already have tools and the capability to automate your emails. Nonprofits can streamline the whole process by using a donor acknowledgement letter template. The downside is that people often miss online or digital messages like emails.

Try to send your donor acknowledgement letter via mail. There is something about printed mail that grabs the attention of the recipient. And for some reason, a customised letter is more personal than an email or text message.

But the best part is that you can automate your direct-mail donor acknowledgement letter just as easily as your email. All you need is an advanced print and mail solution like PostGrid. 

You can easily send a personalised acknowledgement letter to thank your donors with the click of a button. Once you have all the tools and the system for setting up the automated letters, you can quickly segment your donors. After that, you can use the segmented list to build stronger relations with your donors. 

How To Write a Donor Acknowledgement Letter For Your Organisation?

Believe it or not, sending a donor acknowledgement letter can significantly impact your relationship with the donors. It is one of the most effective ways to show how much you value your donors. However, it is essential to correctly draft a letter to have the desired impact on the audience.

The donor acknowledgement letter could be very different from your regular business letter. Ensuring an empathetic acknowledgement letter in the correct format is essential for conveying your genuine gratitude to the donors.

Below we will discuss how you can write an effective donor acknowledgment letter for your organisation. Additionally, we will also look at the crucial elements to include in your letter to ensure that the recipient gets all the necessary information. 

Best Practices For Writing Your Donor Acknowledgment Letter

Writing a donor acknowledgment letter may seem simple enough at first glance. But, if you don’t include all the necessary details in your letter, it can cause gaps in your communication. Here are the essential elements you should include in your acknowledgement letters.

Donor’s Name 

Make sure to includedonor’s name in your donor acknowledgement letter and not use generic terms like “Dear Donor.” Personalisation is essential in your acknowledgement letters because you want to show appreciation. Addressing someone with anything other than their name could give the impression that you don’t appreciate the donor. 

Full Legal Name Of Your Organisation

The donors can use your doot acknowledgement letter as proof of donation. They can submit the letters when they file their taxes and get returns for their charitable contributions. Since your donors may use acknowledgement letters for official purposes, it is best to include your organisation’s full legal name.

Declaration Of Tax-Exempt Status

It is also advisable to include the declaration of the tax-exempt status for your organisation in the acknowledgements you send out. The reason to have this declaration in your donor acknowledgement letter is the same as the one we discussed in the above case. It enables quicker tax processing for your donors and gives them more convenience.

Australian Business Number Or ABN

Another way to reassure the donors about your tax-exempt status is to include your organisation’s Australian Business Number or ABN. The ABN is an 11-digit number you get from the Australian Business Register. Registering your charity or nonprofit organisation with the Australian Charities And Not-For-Profits Commission (ACNC) is essential.

Date Of Receiving The Donation/Gift

The date of receiving a donation or gift is another essential element to include in your donor acknowledgement letter. Adding this information also helps your donors to cross-check it with their expenses and tally it up during their tax filing process.

Description Of The Gift/Amount Received 

Ideally, your donor acknowledgment letter should also include details about the gift or donation your organisation received. We are not saying that you should go on endlessly about the contribution. Instead, you can briefly describe the gift, whether it is a gift or money. 

What Is The Best Format For A Donor Acknowledgement Letter?

There are no formal rules or formats for writing donor acknowledgement letters for your nonprofit organisation. You can send your organisation’s donation acknowledgement via letters, postcards, or email. 

It is okay to use any of these formats for sending your acknowledgements. However, it is always better to use a feasible channel like mail for sending your acknowledgement letters, as they can create an emotional impact. 

You can also try an approach where you use multiple channels to send the same donor acknowledgement letter to the same recipient.

There is also an option where you can pick channels for your campaigns depending on donation types or amounts.

Handwritten Letters

Imagine you are writing the donor acknowledgement letter to a benefactor who donated a considerable amount of money. In this case, the best way to show appreciation to the donor is to send a handwritten acknowledgement letter. 

You should print the donor acknowledgement letter and sign it personally. It shows that you are willing to go the extra mile and show how much you appreciate their contribution. 

Bulk Mailing

Similarly, you can also consider instances where the donor makes regular recurring payments to your nonprofit organisation. Most people donate smaller amounts to charities. It means you need bulk mailing capabilities for sending a donor acknowledgement letter to each recipient in your list.

Email

You can always use emails to keep your expenses to a minimum or need help to afford an extensive bulk mail campaign. It offers a quick and efficient way to send your donor acknowledgement letter with minimum investment. But suppose you wish to make an impression on the donors and forge a stronger relationship with them. In that case, you are better off with postal letters. 

Templates

One of the most effective ways to optimise how you send your donor acknowledgement letter and other communications is to use templates. By creating quality templates, you don’t have to make identical mail repeatedly when someone donates. 

You are probably already familiar with templates for your emails. But it may surprise you that you can also use a template for your mailers. By employing an advanced tool like PostGrid, you can use templates for sending mail correspondence, including your donor acknowledgement letter. 

Automation 

As we discussed above, templates are a great way to speed up your acknowledgement communications. But templates are practically useless if you have automation capability. You can use an automation solution like PostGrid to quickly send a donor acknowledgement letter to each person who’s donated to your organisation. 

Implementing an automated solution for sending your donor acknowledgement letter ensures that every donor receives an acknowledgement. Before you start print and mail automation you need to prepare acknowledgement letter templates necessary for the same.

What Are The Details You Should Include In A Donor Acknowledgement Letter?

We already talked about the essential elements to include in a donor acknowledgment letter and their role in the letter. The details you should have in an acknowledgement letter to express your gratitude to donors are discussed below.

Four crucial parts come in a donor acknowledgement letter, and you should include them. The four critical components that make up an effective acknowledgement letter are as follows.

• Subject/Preheader
• Opening
• Body 
• Closing 

Subject/Preheader

Ensure that your donor acknowledgement letter comes with a subject or preheader so that the recipient can quickly tell the subject of the letter. The issue or preheader should be even more prominent if you use email. Different from traditional mail, email messages often go unread.

So, you must ensure that does not happen to your email. A simple way to do this is to include phrases like “Thanks for your valuable donation” in your subject/preheader. It establishes that your email is a donor acknowledgement letter and increases its open rate.

Opening

An donor acknowledgment letter’s opening is always crucial, and you should be extra careful with it. Keep the opening simple and use it to welcome the recipient and thank them for all the support you receive. Use a simple opener like the one below to start your acknowledgement letter. 

“Dear Kendra, thank you for your selfless donation to the neighbourhood tree project!”  

You can continue the donor acknowledgement letter by explaining how the donor is making a difference and how significant their contribution is to your organisation.

Body Of The Letter

Once you finish with the pleasantries, you can start with the body of the donor acknowledgement letter. Use the body of the letter for your content. You can use the body of the letter to include vital information, such as your ABN number and ACNC details. 

Including these details in your donor acknowledgement letter makes it easier for the donor to use your letter for tax filing purposes. You don’t have to include these details if the contribution consists of non-cash donations that are not tax deductible. 

In that case, you can prepare a separate template for such letters. Make sure to include a gift description in the donor acknowledgement letter for non-cash donations. Similarly, you should have a different template for assistance received in goods and services.

Closing

By the time the recipient reaches the closing of your donor acknowledgement letter, they already have all the necessary information. You can use the close of the acknowledgement letter to thank them again one last time. 

Use this section to inform the recipient about your work. Consider giving them a general update on how you are using their donation. Finally, you can use a friendly sign-off but in an empathetic manner. Hence, the recipient knows how much you value everything they do.

Donor Acknowledgement Letter Sample

Regardless of how much we try to explain all the nifty details of an acknowledgment letter, you may still need a sample to fully understand it. Below, you can find a donor acknowledgment letter sample that can help you understand what your acknowledgments should look and feel like to the recipient.

Subject: Thank you, Kendra, for your valuable donation to the Neighbourhood Tree Project!

Dear Kendra,

We at Neighbourhood Tree Project would like to thank you for your generous donation! Thanks to donors like you, we can continue with our work and preserve trees, and protect the natural habitat of various birds and animals.

You donated $369 to the Neighbourhood Tree Project on November 5, 2023. The payment was processed through your credit card and made in support of the Neighbourhood Tree Project.

Our is a tax-exempt organisation registered under the Australian Charities And Not-For-Profits Commission (ACNC). Each contribution you make significantly impacts the work we do here at Neighbourhood Tree Project.

We are happy to inform you that your donation is fully tax-deductible. There were no goods or services exchanged for your charitable contribution. Please save this letter as part of your tax records.

We would like to thank you for your dedication to saving our neighbourhood trees and the habitat of the creatures they support. We are pleased to continue working closely with you to save trees for future generations.

Sincerely,
Kieran, The Neighborhood Tree Project

Do You Need To Send A Donor Acknowledgement Letter For Every Donation?

Nonprofit organisations often have regular donors who make multiple contributions throughout the year and sometimes multiple times a month. Does that mean you must send a donor acknowledgement letter for each donation?

Consider sending the donor acknowledgement letter for every single transaction or donation. It is an excellent way to boost your engagements with donors and show that you appreciate every effort the donor makes. 

You can also send the donor acknowledgement letter periodically. For the best results, you should use an automated print and mail solution like PosGrid. The tools allow you to access two critical features that can streamline your organisation’s communication, and they are 

• Scheduled Mail 
• Triggered Mail

Triggered Mail

This feature is very similar to triggered email, which you are likely already using for your online campaigns. It uses a triggering action to determine whether or not to send a message to the target audience. What if we told you that you could do the same for your printed donor acknowledgement letter?

With an advanced print and mail API like PostGrid, sending your donor acknowledgement letter is as easy as sending a text or email. You can set up your communication system to automatically send an acknowledgement letter when someone donates.

Talk to our experts to learn how to set up a triggered mail feature for your organisation. Using a triggered mail feature, you can ensure that every donation you receive is appreciated. The system automatically sends your donor acknowledgement letter after receiving each gift.

You don’t have to constantly monitor your mailing or donations to check whether you sent a donor acknowledgement letter to the donor. As a result, you get streamlined communication with your donors, making it easier to manage your engagement efforts.

Consider including a QR Code in your donor acknowledgement letter and let the recipients scan it. The QR code can lead to a page from which donors can download their donation details in PDF file format and safe-keep them.

Scheduled Mail

Scheduled mail is a feature or capability that lets you send your donor acknowledgement letter on a predetermined schedule. You can use this feature to send acknowledgements, invoices, thank you notes, Etc., automatically to your customers.

You can use templates and quickly send your bulk mail using scheduled mail. PostGrid even provides a free template gallery and a template editor to design your business letters. 

It also lets you use custom or in-house designs for the donor acknowledgement letter and other correspondence. 

A periodical donor acknowledgement letter is ideal for donors that regularly contribute to your organisation. It allows you to optimise your print and mail operations and minimise expenses or repeat mailing.  

Since nonprofits don’t have the deep pockets of corporates, it is best to use scheduled mail to optimise your expenses. Suppose you send a donor acknowledgement letter for each donation or monthly. Even in this case, sending a summary at the end of the year is still advisable.

It is because your donors could use the letters in their tax filing. Of course, they could also use the individual letters you send. However, a year-end donor acknowledgement letter is much easier. It is also possible that the donor needs help finding the previous notes and reaching out to you requesting the yearly summary.

How To Automate Your Donor Acknowledgement Letter Using Nonprofit CRM?

Above, we briefly discussed how an automated solution could help you get the most out of your donor acknowledgement letter templates. It might surprise you to know that implementing automation for your acknowledgements is easy, even via printed mail.

You can connect an automated print and mail solution like PostGrid with your CRM solution. PostGrid can access your CRM data and use the templates to create a personalised donor acknowledgement letter for each donor.

And the best part is that you can use PostGrid to print everything from a donor acknowledgement letter to marketing direct mail. Some of the other personalised printed materials you can print and mail using PostGrid include the following.

• Direct mail postcards.
• Brochures
• Catalogues 
• Invoices 
• Business letters.
• And more

Do you want to learn how PostGrid can help you create a personalised donor acknowledgement letter and other printed materials with the click of a button? Get a FREE demo to streamline your organisation’s mail communication!

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