Reducing or even eliminating junk mail is not only easy it’s good for the environment and reduces clutter around the house. Junk mail normally ends in the garbage or recycling bin and is a huge waste of precious paper resources. Before it ends up in the garbage, it ends up on end tables, dining tables, counters, in boxes and other piles around the house. Eliminate it all together and the piles will never start in the first place.
Stop Mail Order Catalogs
Catalogs are possibly the easiest and bulkiest mail to stop. Every time a catalog arrives, call the 800 number; give them the information from the mailing label and request to be removed from the mailing list. Almost every company that offers items in a catalog has an online catalog, so there is no reason to keep receiving paper versions.
Eliminate Print Advertising
A majority of advertisement mail is sent out based on lists of names that get passed around and sold from company to company. The Direct Marketing Association offers assistance in being removed from these mailing label lists. It only takes a few minutes to register online and block unwanted mail. This is fabulous free service that can stop catalogs, magazine offers, credit card offers and more, with only a few clicks after registration.
Coupon Mail
Val-Pak and Valassis send out frequent advertisement mailings with coupons and flyers. These can be stopped by visiting each site and requesting removals. There are so many sites that offer printable coupons; it’s now unnecessary to receive bulk mailings of coupons that are unwanted and unrequested.
To get printable coupons, visit Coupons.com.
Don’t Pay to Block Junk Mail
There are a lot of services online which will provide mailing list removal service for a fee. Paying for this service is not necessary. All off the free services provide the same options and request the same amount of information. Don’t pay for something that is easily a “Do it yourself” project.
According to the New American Dream, a non-profit environmental and social justice organization, “More than 100 million trees’ worth of bulk mail arrives in American mail boxes each year – that’s the equivalent of deforesting the entire Rocky Mountain National Park every four months."
Every household can do their part to reduce this waste by following the suggestions above to eliminate the flow of unwanted paper mail. The bonus is, reducing the amount of advertisements flowing to the house, reduces the possibility of overspending on unwanted items, just because they’re a great deal or on sale.
Rhiana Jones - Rhiana Jones is a freelance writer with a business background in customer service, marketing, and copywriting. She is a former ...
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