Every month we produce a Door to Door Media Space Update, which is emailed to clients and any interested parties. The update contains news of current and forthcoming issues in the door-to-door industry, highlights the DMA’s door-to-door events programme and provides useful tips and hints to clients considering using the medium. You can register for this free service below.

Please find below the current edition : -


VOLUME 97 – AS AT 19th MAY 2010

ROYAL MAIL D2D -

From Monday June 7th, Royal Mail change their booking conditions in line with the recent settlement with the CWU.

The first major impact is the lifting of the 3 items per week per sector threshold which has for some years, acted as barrier to booking capacity in some "popular" areas. The immediate change is to carry four items, but there are longer term plans to increase this to 5 or 6.

Royal Mail advise that any increase past four items will only be taken if there is no proven affect on clients' response rates or distribution quality, so only time will tell.

One other positive piece of news is that the service will now be available 52 weeks a year, so the immediate weeks preceding Christmas and the week which often straddles Christmas and the New Year will now be available.

Monday May 24th is the last week to access door drops through the late sales system for w/c June 14th, 21st & 28th, whilst the standard booking system at that stage will allow access from July onwards.

If you are looking for any advice on Royal Mail drops, please contact us at any time.

Don't delay in initiating the FREE, no obligation postal sector review process we provide to determine a precise plan.

It is becoming increasingly common for clients to complete "mixed media" drops (particularly those using late sales). We are of course perfectly positioned to provide a one stop shop service and can source media plans which use any appropriate combination of Royal Mail, free newspapers and team systems to achieve clients' promotional objectives.

The Royal Mail availability chart through to June 2011 is shown below. We can also access this data by week, if your enquiry is very specific or time sensitive. -

If you are a new user, or have not used Royal Mail for at least 18 months, subject to contract conditions, we should be able to negotiate a test rate for you.

FREE NEWSPAPERS (SHARED OR SOLUS) – Free newspapers remain available every week of the year.

In recent months, the decline in coverage levels prompted by recession has slowed and newspaper publishers are now operating at more stable levels of circulation, albeit reduced on historical volumes.

Free newspapers remain one of the most distribution efficient door drop options available to clients. At our May 11th seminar, Steve Thompson, Managing Director of Stepcheck gave a presentation on validation trends and experiences, which proved that claim.

SMART-Drop, our sub sector targeting and distribution product is increasingly generating interest amongst clients and is now widely available across the UK, as more and more publishers make data available to us.

These services profile postal sectors for the density of the chosen MOSAIC target market, by analysing the free newspapers' actual coverage patterns and allow the customer to buy distribution at free newspaper round level - 150-200 households.

In collaboration with our partners LinkDirect, we have now also developed a solus proposition which has distinctly different values to the free newspaper option. More details can be made available upon request.

Sub sector targeting is particularly attractive to clients who have niche products and/or are seeking to distribute high value items such as product samples, money off coupons, or high quality, multi page brochures.

Please contact us for more details on SMART-Drop or request a one hour presentation in your own offices.

Historically, many clients have rejected free newspaper distribution because of a perceived clutter issue. Door drop volumes have fallen in recent years and the general current economic climate has seen that decline continue. It is not uncommon for newspapers now only to carry around three items per week, the same as Royal Mail - currently!

Solus distribution, on days of the week other than when the newspaper itself is dropped, is an alternative option in many areas.

The next time you are planning a Royal Mail D2D door-drop, why not allow us to create a SMART-Drop test cell for round level distribution, to compare results? At approximately two thirds of the entry costs for Royal Mail, it could prove to be a cost effective option for you?

TEAM SOLUS DISTRIBUTION – The standard solus service is available on a national basis as a standalone door drop option, or in combination with Royal Mail and/or free newspapers. Although the service is not as well equipped as free newspapers to handle large volumes in a short space of time, solus can still play an important role in your door drop mix.

SMART-Drop offers clients the opportunity to maximise coverage of their target market, reduce wastage, increase ROI and optimise their door drop carbon footprint.

We sub contract solus activity to a wide range of companies throughout the UK, often using the skills of local companies, as well as national companies. Local operators have often provided a blemish free service and can prove to be very reliable. National operators can also provide a shared distribution service, which offers costs savings, but, these may be limited by their ability to match your postal sector and timing requirements.