Direct Mail Takes a Stab at Going Green

As annoying as direct mail can be, it actually works pretty well. According to the United States Postal Service Web site, for every dollar invested in DM, $12 are earned. So making any changes to the platform in the name of the environment will be slow to come. But a group of like-minded businesses have formed the Green Marketing Coalition. The group aims to reduce waste created by DM through simple guidelines, like employing chlorine-free recycled paper, checking proofs via PDF rather than comps and tax breaks. From The New York Times: "The guidelines suggest adhering to higher waste disposal standards and choosing vendors that are committed to recycling. There is also support for 'list hygiene' — that is, cleaning out direct-mail lists to remove the names of dead people and others unlikely to respond." More after the... [read full story]