NCOA Link - anyone familiar? USPS's change of address db

[mattkime]

I was listening to an NPR - http://www.npr.org/blogs/alltechconsider...hink-again - when they mentioned the USPS's database of change of address forms. I'm curious if any forumites have used this db and how it works.

Its clear that the info is for keeping mailing lists up to date but its also obvious that its also used for marketing purposes. I'm interested in the marketing aspect.

the website i work for helps create real life communities. (kind of like if forumites met up in real life *gasp!*) people are more likely to join us when they move. it would be nice to advertise through this channel.

does anyone have experience with this?

[mattkime]

a good article on it. http://www.forbes.com/sites/adamtanner/2...o-opt-out/

i'm guessing this wouldn't work out for a number of practical reasons.

i should stick to programming.

[steve...]

I wondered how some companies had my new address after a recent move. I knew I had NOT contacted them. Now I know.

[Filliam H. Muffman]

A company I used to work for complained when I moved and I had apparently not submitted a complete enough change of address form. Their mail did not get forwarded to me and they did not get a notice of the change of address. They told me they had to pay a service to research a database similar to this to find my current address, and please would I send them a COA the next time I moved.

:rant:There are at least several of these databases. I have apparently been fighting one that keeps (wrongly) telling conservative political organizations that my Mom is still alive and is a good mark for fundraising. I have told about a dozen of these places that she passed away every three months for the last year but they still keep sending mail and phoning. I started keeping track and can now tell them the last date and time they called/mailed and that I requested her name be removed. I am going to start keeping track of the name of the person calling and request to talk to a supervisor and record their name also. One of these organizations actually let me get through to the database wrangler and he promised me that the calls and letters would stop from them, but he would not tell me whose database(s) they had bought and/or which one was guilty of having her name marked as active. :villagers: /:rant: