Acquisition Mail Basics

Acquisition Mail BasicsBusiness Letter Services

IntroductionAcquisition Mail is an Australia Post service for the delivery of addressed (non - personalised) bulk mail. It allows customers to geographically target addressed mail campaigns to residential addresses in specific postcodes, suburbs (localities) or Census Collection Districts (CCDs) for the purpose of acquiring them as customers.

In this module

This module introduces you to Acquisition Mail and provides an overview of Australia Post’s requirements for Acquisition Mail preparation, sorting and lodgement.

Learning outcomesAt the end of this module you will be able to:

• list the features and benefits of Acquisition Mail

• identify Australia Post’s requirements for Acquisition Mail

Acquisition Mail at a glance What is Acquisition Mail?

Acquisition Mail is an Australia Post service for the delivery of addressed (non personalised) bulk mail. It allows you to geographically target an addressed mail campaign to residential address points in specific postcodes, suburbs (localities) or Census Collection Districts (CCDs).

You can use Acquisition Mail to reach more prospects and acquire them as new customers. Through Acquisition Mail, Australia Post supplies residential street addresses for nominated geographic regions. You can ensure your mail campaign only reaches prospective customers by removing existing customer addresses from your mailing.

Acquisition Mail at a glance

Features and benefits

With Acquisition Mail you can:

• achieve better reach, higher readership

• maximise the space available for creative artwork

• target prospective customers within a defined geographic catchment area

• exclude existing customers from the mailing

• access lower prices and reduce print costs by only mailing prospects in the target area

• associate your brand with an addressed mailing

• have the option to include specific address points (eg households with ‘No Advertising Material’ stickers, the ADMA ‘Do Not Mail’ file.

Acquisition Mail at a glanceIn addition, the Acquisition Mail service also:

• allows a postage meter to be used as a payment method

• has the option to arrange your own interstate transport to interconnect with Australia Post’s letters service network at designated facilities

• has delivery with daily normal mail by the same professional delivery officers

• offers a postage rebate for any returned mail in excess of 10% of the total lodgement volume

• provides a free return mail recycling service.

Acquisition Mail at a glanceWhat qualifies for Acquisition Mail?

To qualify:

• a minimum of 30,000 articles must be lodged in total

• a minimum saturation of 60% is required (ie at least 60% of the addresses supplied for your target area must be mailed to)

• the maximum number of progressive lodgements is three (3). These can be made over a maximum period of six (6) weeks, and must be made within 3 months of data supply date.

• the content of the article must be acquisition in nature, and more specifically meet the conditions of the Acquisition Mail service. Please refer to the “Acquisition Mail – preparation” module.

• Australia Post’s return address must be used on all articles.

• a PDF or physical sample of the intended article must be provided to Australia Post for approval prior to lodgement.

Acquisition Mail at a glanceThe diagram below provides an overview process of the steps involved in conducting an Acquisition Mail campaign. All of these steps are elaborated on in the following pages.

Register your campaign Confirmation Address Supply

Content Check Prepare mailingExclude existing customer database

Lodge mailing Terms & Conditions check Return Mail

1. Complete the online registration via the Acquisition Mail website. This involves providing campaign details, advising address selection criteria and providing target regions.

2. You will be supplied with an Acquisition Mail Job ID Number upon submitting the registration

3.Within 2 business days Australia Post will email you your address file, pre-populated lodgement document/s and instructions for preparing your Acquisition Mail campaign

4. You may exclude addresses you don’t want to be mailed (eg existing customers) by washing your database against the address file provided

5.Prepare your mail items according to the ‘Preparation’ section of the Acquisition Mail service guide

6.Prior to lodgement, you must submit a copy (PDF or physical) of your intended mail piece to the Acquisition Mail administrator for a content compliance check

7. Using the pre-populated lodgement document/s, or by transferring this information into the Electronic Lodgement Mailing Statement (eLMS), your campaign needs to be lodged according to the ‘Lodgement’ section of the Acquisition Mail service guide

8.After your final lodgement Australia Post will check the details of your lodgement/s to ensure your campaign has met the terms & conditions of the service

9.All Acquisition Mail articles must use the mandatory Australia Post return to address. Returned mail received within 2 weeks of the final lodgement date will be counted and a postage rebate provided for all articles in excess of 10% of the total lodgement volume

Acquisition Mail at a glance

More information

More detailed information is available in the Acquisition Mail fact sheet and Acquisition Mail service guide (8839559).

Prices for Acquisition Mail can be found in the Post Charges booklet both and at the Australia Post website (auspost.com.au).

These guides are also available at any Australia Post outlet.

Acquisition Mail basics

Overview

To qualify for Acquisition Mail prices, you need to meet Australia Post’s bulk mail requirements in the following areas:

• registration and data use

• size, weight and type

• barcodes and correct addressing

• sorting

• minimum volumes

These requirements are covered on the following pages.


Registration requirements

You need to register to use the Acquisition Mail service before Australia Post can provide the addresses for their nominated target regions.

Registration is online via: auspost.com.au/acquisitionmail

Within two business days of completing the registration, Australia Post will email your Acquisition Mail address file to you with all information needed to prepare and lodge your articles.


The Acquisition Mail Data file

Once you have registered to use the Acquisition Mail service, Australia Post provides an address file for your nominated target region/s. You must use the addresses for your mailing.

There are approximately 8 million residential address points in the Acquisition Mail Data file. The file does not hold any personal or business names, or industry classification information.

Conditions apply to the use of Acquisition Mail data. These are covered in detail in the Acquisition Mail Preparation module.


Size, weight and type requirements• Acquisition Mail is available for Small and Small Plus size categories.

• Acquisition Mail articles can weigh up to 125 grams.

Articles can be either envelopes or postcards. and they can also be plastic wrapped. Plastic wrapping is acceptable for articles lodged in Direct trays only.

• All articles in a lodgement must be the same size category and weight.

Oblong: deviating from a square by being elongated in one direction. It is preferred that the length is at least 1.2 times the width.

Acquisition Mail basics Barcodes and correct addressing requirements

You need to pay particular attention to addressing and barcoding.

Articles need the addressed side to be printed with:

the Postage Paid Imprint (unless a postage meter is used)

the mandatory return address “GPO Box 1638 MELBOURNE VIC 3001”

a barcode, and a delivery address that adhere to the correct addressing conditions

the Off Peak Indicator

the Acquisition Mail Job ID Number above the delivery address block or above the return address.

Acquisition Mail basics Barcodes and correct addressing requirementsThe delivery address is a mandatory inscription and correct addressing conditions apply.

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The Address lines (excluding barcode placement) must be aligned left.

AM Job ID number. The number provided upon registration of an Acquisition Mail campaign can be directly above the barcode or above the return address, and aligned left

BarcodeIf a salutation is being used, such as “To the Householder”, it must be placed above the last two lines of the address and not below, alongside or within these lines.

Second last line – Must contain the delivery address information

Bottom line – Must contain the locality and the postcode. Australia Post recommends that the state abbreviation is printed on the same line after the locality. Australia Post strongly recommends that this line is printed in CAPITALS. (Any application for variations or additions to this format must be submitted and approved prior to lodgement)

Acquisition Mail basicsBarcodes and correct addressing requirements

AMAS certified barcode software

Australia Post certifies barcode software through its Address Matching Approval System (AMAS) program. The certified software contains a copy of Australia Post’s Postal Address File (PAF). A list of the companies that have developed AMAS approved software, and been granted a licence to supply address-matching and correction software can be located at auspost.com.au/amas

The PAF is one of the most comprehensive address reference databases in Australia. It contains Australian addresses in a correct address format, along with their corresponding DPIDs (Delivery Point Identifiers). Each DPID is a randomly generated, unique 8-digit number, which is associated with an address.


The Acquisition Mail data file does not include DPIDs, therefore it is a condition of the service that current AMAS certified software is used to match:

each delivery address

to its correct DPID

and print this on the article as a correctly formatted barcode.


Adding logos, advertising and other printingIn order to access the Acquisition Mail service, articles must follow the requirements for clear zones.

Barcode and delivery address clear zones are areas on the article that must not

contain either an Australia Post barcode or a delivery address, but can contain logos, advertising or other printing

The barcode clear zone must be kept clear of all printing.


Sort requirements

You have the choice to sort articles into three sort categories. Regardless of the category, all articles must be placed into correctly labelled Australia Post letter trays. Both trays and labels can be supplied by Australia Post.

The three sort categories are:

Sort Category Description

Barcode Direct Trays Barcoded articles in separate trays according to the Barcode Sort Plan of postcode ranges which can be found at auspost.com.au

The minimum quantity is 300 articles (or 4kg of article weight including the tray) per postcode range. Remaining articles become ‘Residue’.

Barcode Residue Trays

Where there are insufficient barcoded articles to make a Barcode Direct Tray

Unbarcoded Residue Trays

For articles that cannot be barcoded


Minimum volumes

To qualify:

• a minimum of 30,000 barcoded articles must be lodged in total

• a minimum saturation of 60% is required

Delivery times

Acquisition Mail is delivered Monday to Friday with letters and other mail. Acquisition Mail uses Off Peak Delivery, which allows Australia Post to deliver letters up to an additional three business days beyond regular mail.

Minimum saturation: At least 60% of the addresses supplied for the customer’s nominated region must be mailed to.


Documentation requirements

Customers need to provide the correct documentation when lodging Acquisition Mail articles, as follows:

• Acquisition Mail Lodgement document (this is supplied following registration, with the Acquisition Mail address file),

• an Acquisition Mail Supporting Document, which details the number of articles for each sort plan, is required.

Acquisition Mail basics Other considerations

Conditions for Acquisition Mail prices

In order to qualify for Acquisition Mail prices, all Acquisition Mail articles must be prepared and lodged in accordance with the terms and conditions of the service. If any of the articles do not meet the terms and conditions of the service, Australia Post has the right to increase the charges so that the applicable delivery service postage rate is paid and charge for the address data provided.

Return mail rebate

A postage rebate will be paid, at Same State prices, for articles received at the return address in excess of 10 per cent of the lodgement total. This is covered in detail in the Acquisition Mail Lodgement module.

Acquisition Mail basics Other considerations

Do design restrictions apply?

There are no restrictions on the article colour provided the background against which the barcode is printed meets minimum requirements.

But this doesn’t limit creative, it actually gives more creative freedom. With barcoding, the envelope is a canvas. By taking advantage of barcoding, customers can bring creative ideas to life and benefit from maximum postage savings.

How can I be sure an article is acceptable?

Australia Post staff inspect each lodgement to ensure that it satisfies correct addressing conditions, and that barcodes are valid. Customers who are concerned that their articles may not satisfy all service requirements can request a preliminary test prior to lodgement:

Australia PostBusiness Letter ServicesGPO BOX 1777MELBOURNE VIC 3001


Cost• Prices for Acquisition Mail are available in the Acquisition Mail service guide and the Post Charges Guide (MS11) both of which are available on the Australia Post website (auspost.com.au).

• Acquisition Mail items are charged as “Same State” when they are to be delivered in the same state as they were lodged.

• Acquisition Mail items are charged as “Other State” when they are to be delivered to a different state to where they were lodged.

• Customers may only use an Australia Post Business Credit Account or a postage meter, for payment.

• Where a customer is having their mailing registered by a representative, (ie: mail house or agency) and does not have their own Australia Post Business Credit Account, they may organise to use the representative’s Business Credit Account number.

Note: For payment using an Australia Post Business Credit Account customers will need to lodge their Acquisition Mail at the office at which they hold the account. Otherwise they will need to arrange with their account manager or Australia Post credit management for their account to be made available at the selected lodgement office.

Acquisition Mail basicsSummary The key points covered were:• Acquisition Mail allows you to send an addressed (non-personalised) mailing to residential address points in specific postcodes, suburbs or CCDs for the purpose of acquiring them as customers.• There must be at least 30,000 articles lodged in total. These can be made in up to three (3) separate lodgements over a maximum six (6) week period. All lodgements in a campaign must be completed within three (3) months of the supply date• At least 60% of the address points provided must be mailed to• The articles must adhere to specific content rules to ensure they are acquisition in nature, and a PDF or physical sample of the intended article must be submitted to the AM Administrator prior to lodgement• All applications must be registered online before data can be provided• Acquisition Mail is available for Small and Small Plus size category articles• Acquisition Mail uses Off Peak delivery• Articles can be either envelopes or postcards, and they can also be plastic wrapped• Correct addressing conditions need to be adhered to including mandatory use of the Australia Post return address• AMAS certified software must be used to print the correctly formatted barcode• All terms and conditions of the service must me met in order to qualify for Acquisition Mail prices.

You now need to complete a short assessment to check your understanding of the information covered in this module.

This assessment consists of 10 multiple-choice questions and should take you approximately 10 minutes to complete. To pass the assessment, you need to answer at least eight of these questions correctly.

Attempt this assessment as many times as you need to. If you do not pass, it is recommended that you review this module again.

Assessment

a. Yes, Acquisition Mail would be a good option.

b. No, Acquisition Mail allows customers to target residential addresses only.

Assessment

1

Correct answer = BAcquisition Mail allows customers to geographically target addressed mail campaigns to residential addresses in postcodes, suburbs (localities) or Census Collection Districts (CCDs). It does not include non-residential address points unless they are also residential (ie home/offices)

Sharon has opened a computer and printing supplies store. She wishes to target businesses in postcodes surrounding her store. Could she use Acquisition Mail ?

a. Yes, as long as he doesn’t use the recipient’s name he can use these addresses

b. No, addresses for his target region will be provided upon registering his Acquisition Mail campaign

c. Yes, as long as all the addresses can be barcoded

Assessment

2

Correct answer = BOnce a customer has registered to use the Acquisition Mail service Australia Post will provide them a list of addresses for their targeted regions. These addresses must be used for their nominated mailing.

David wants to do an Acquisition Mail campaign but would like to use a list of addresses he has accessed from an alternate source. Can David use the service?

a. 300 barcoded articles

b. 30,000 barcoded articles

c. There is no minimum quantity required for Acquisition Mail

Assessment

3

Correct answer = BThere must be at least 30,000 barcoded articles lodged in total. These can be made in up to 3 separate lodgements over a period up to 6 weeks

What is the minimum total lodgement quantity required to qualify for Acquisition Mail?

a. At least 60% of all addresses supplied must be mailed to

b. At least 60% of each nominated postcode, suburb or CCD must be mailed to

c. At least 60% of addresses supplied must be barcoded

Assessment

4

Correct answer = AMinimum Saturation: at least 60% of the total addresses supplied for your target area must be mailed to. eg: If you are supplied with 100,000 addresses you must mail at least 60,000. There is no condition around the dispersion of these for each postcode, suburb or CCD.

A minimum saturation of 60% is required to qualify for Acquisition Mail. “Minimum saturation” means:

a. Yes

b. No

Assessment

5

Correct answer = B

Acquisition Mail is available for Small and Small Plus size category articles only.

Steve wishes to send a Large Letter promoting his store to prospective customers. Could he send this by Acquisition Mail?

a. Yes, postcards are permitted in the Acquisition Mail service

b. No, because some people don’t like postcards

c. No, because they must be enveloped or plastic wrapped

Assessment

6

Correct answer = AAcquisition Mail articles can be either envelopes or postcards, and they can also be plastic wrapped

A Car Dealership wishes to send a postcard promoting a new model Is this a good design for Acquisition Mail?

a. Yes, as long as the lodgements are made within a six week period

b. Yes, there is no restriction on the amount of individual lodgements per campaign

c. No, a maximum of three lodgements can be made within a six week period.

Assessment

7

Correct answer = CA maximum of three lodgements can be made within a six week period and all lodgements must be completed within three months of receiving the address data.

Rachel is conducting an Acquisition Mail campaign of 60,000 articles. She would like to lodge the campaign in four separate lodgements of 15,000 each. Can she do this?

a. Yes

b. No

Assessment

8

Correct answer = B The Acquisition Mail data provided must be used within 3 months of supply date.

Lee is planning his Christmas promotions in July, and wishes to register his Acquisition Mail campaign immediately for mailing at the end of November. Can he do so?

a. Yes

b. No

Assessment

9

Correct answer = BAcquisition Mail articles must have a core communication objective of obtaining customers or generating donations and/or sales of products, services and/or memberships. The service is not available for articles designed to provide broad band knowledge, community information or announcements including government or business notices with an informative/educational objective.

A Councils wants to use Acquisition Mail to advise residents of changes to their parking permit regulations. Can they do this?

a. Yes. Acquisition Mail has ‘Off Peak’ delivery, meaning it may take up to three additional days beyond Regular mail to deliver

b. No. Acquisition Mail has Regular delivery, meaning the mail will be delivered within two days (on the Wednesday)

c. No. The Off Peak delivery standards say 2 - 5 days, so all the mail would be delivered by Friday

Assessment

10

Correct answer = ABetween metropolitan areas of capital cities Off Peak will take between 2 – 5 days to deliver. Days are counted from the day after lodgement, meaning some articles may be delivered on the following Monday.

Grant wants to promote a used car sale this weekend in Sydney, NSW. He will be lodging his mail in Melbourne, VIC on Monday and needs it to arrive by Friday. Should he be concerned that the articles may not arrive on time?

Acquisition Mail Basics

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