In Focus Newsletter	Summer 2009

In this issue:

New Size and Tabbing Requirements
Reduced Advertising During Recession Negatively Impacts Customer Perception
Reasons that Compel Consumers to Open their Direct Mail
Your Questions Answered

Swimming

Swimming

Swimming as an organized activity goes back as far as 2500 B.C. in ancient Egypt and later in ancient Greece, Rome, and Assyria.
In Rome and Greece, swimming was part of the education of elementary age boys and the Romans built the first swimming pools (separate from bathing pools).
The first heated swimming pool was built by Gaius Maecenas of Rome in the first century BC. Gaius Maecenas was a rich Roman lord and considered one of the first patron of arts.
However, swimming pools did not became popular until the middle of the 19th century. By 1837, six indoor pools with diving boards were built in London, England.
After the modern Olympic Games began in 1896 and swimming races were among the original events, the popularity of swimming pools began to spread.

New Size and Tabbing Requirements for Letter-Sized Booklets, Effective September 2009

The Postal Service is redefining letter-size booklets. New size and tabbing requirements will take effect September 8, 2009.

A booklet consists of multiple sheets or pages that are bound by saddle-stitching, perfect binding, pressed glue or other binding method that creates a nearly uniformly thick mailpiece. The new requirements apply only to letter-size booklets, not larger booklets or unbound folded self-mailers.

Effective September 8, 2009, the following regulations will apply to all letter-size booklets:

Size: Maximum height = 6 inches (currently 6 1/8)
Maximum length = 10 ½ inches (currently 11 ½)
Paper: Minimum paper weight for cover = 40# to 80# book depending on design
Tabs: 3 tabs required, minimum 1 ½ inch diameter, non perforated (currently 1" diameter and can be perforated)

Reduced Advertising During Recession Negatively Impacts Consumer Perception

More than 48% of U.S. adults believe that a lack of advertising by a retail store, bank or auto dealership during a recession indicates the business must be struggling. Likewise, a vast majority perceives businesses that continue to advertise as being competitive or committed to doing business.

A recent study by Ad-ology Research finds advertising appears to play a key role in consumers' view of how a business is doing, and by not advertising, businesses may be sending a warning signal to current and potential customers.

Other key findings:
TV, newspaper, direct mail, and Internet top local media from which consumers saw/heard an ad within the last 30 days that led them to take action.

40% of consumers use coupons more now than a year ago.
Most consumers are as willing or more willing to pay more for 'healthy' or 'organic' products than they were a year ago
A 'deeply discounted price' was the number-one factor that would make consumers more likely to purchase a big-ticket item (+$1,000)

Store Web sites ranked second only to search engines as the way consumers research products and shop online.

Source: Ad-ology news release, New Ad-ology Study: Reduced Advertising During Recession Negatively Impacts Consumer Perception,May 13, 2009.

Just Could Not Resist

What's the difference between normal ketchup and fancy ketchup?
When does it stop being partly cloudy and start being partly sunny?
Is there a time limit on fortune cookie predictions?
If money doesn't grow on trees then why do banks have branches?
If you soak a raisin in water, does it turn back into a grape?

Got Laughs?

The problem with the gene pool is that there is no lifeguard.
A day without sunshine is like, night.
Never test the depth of the water with both feet.
A flashlight is a case for holding dead batteries.
An escalator can never break: it can only become stairs.
I used to be a lifeguard, but some blue kid got me fired.

Reasons that Compel Consumers to Open Their Direct Mail

Vertis Communications' Customer Focus survey asked adult consumers the question, "Which one of the following makes a difference as to what direct mail you open?"

The results:

Timing of the piece arriving coinciding with need for the service/product 67%
Consumer's name on the front of the envelope 66%
The package looks interesting 60%
A special offer or discount 54%
The package looks important 52%
Feel something in the package 51%
A free gift or token inside 42%
Dated material enclosed 35%
None of these 5%

Customer Focus® is Vertis Communications' proprietary annual study tracking consumer media and buying behavior across a wide variety of industry segments and media including advertising inserts, direct marketing, and the Internet.
Source: 2008 Vertis Customer Focus ® Direct marketing 2009:Retail DM

Words to the Wise

Life is not measured by the breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away." - Anonymous
Keep smiling, it makes people wonder what you're up to. - Anonymous
USA Today has come out with a new survey. Apparently three out of every four people make up 75 percent of the population. - Dave Letterman

What Can We Do For You?
Chart

How many times can I reach out to my donors in a year without offending them? That depends on what you are contacting them about. If it is strictly a solicitation for money, no more than 2 times per year. If you are sending out information such as a newsletter or an update that also includes a donation envelope then that outreach can be more frequent to match your newsletter or update schedule.
After you NCOA my list, do I have to make the changes you send to me? It is best to correct your data file so that any mail you send them from your facility would have the correct address.
Can I mail a magnet? Yes you can as long as it is a weak magnet. You can send us samples for postal approval.