National Change Of Address
Encyclopedia
National Change of Address (NCOA) is a registry of people who move or otherwise change their address
in the United States
. It is maintained by the United States Postal Service
and access to it is sold to firms that engage in direct mail
; use of NCOA is required in order to obtain bulk mail
rates, as it minimizes the number of misaddresses and eases the job of the postal service.
, USPS, to provide updated and accurate addresses for individuals, families, and businesses. The USPS certifies computer software for use of the postal data. The addresses in the database are specifically designed to match the USPS requirements. Each entry is matched against other entries to ensure that there are no repeated addresses. The software will update old addresses through the information provided by the postal service. Consumers use a "Change of Address" form and submit it to the Post Office when moving. This information can be accessed by companies through the software to continue marketing to their current clients. The United States Postal Service provides forms for a change of address.
New NCOA System Processes in Hours Instead of Days
NCOA Concerns Consumers
http://www.mailersmvp.com/pdf/lorton_move_update.pdf
Address (geography)
An address is a collection of information, presented in a mostly fixed format, used for describing the location of a building, apartment, or other structure or a plot of land, generally using political boundaries and street names as references, along with other identifiers such as house or...
in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. It is maintained by the United States Postal Service
United States Postal Service
The United States Postal Service is an independent agency of the United States government responsible for providing postal service in the United States...
and access to it is sold to firms that engage in direct mail
Direct mail
Advertising mail, also known as direct mail, junk mail, or admail, is the delivery of advertising material to recipients of postal mail. The delivery of advertising mail forms a large and growing service for many postal services, and direct-mail marketing forms a significant portion of the direct...
; use of NCOA is required in order to obtain bulk mail
Bulk mail
Bulk mail broadly refers to mail that is mailed and processed in bulk at reduced rates. The term does not denote any particular purpose for the mail; but in general usage is synonymous with "junk mail."...
rates, as it minimizes the number of misaddresses and eases the job of the postal service.
How it works
NCOA works directly with the United States Postal ServiceUnited States Postal Service
The United States Postal Service is an independent agency of the United States government responsible for providing postal service in the United States...
, USPS, to provide updated and accurate addresses for individuals, families, and businesses. The USPS certifies computer software for use of the postal data. The addresses in the database are specifically designed to match the USPS requirements. Each entry is matched against other entries to ensure that there are no repeated addresses. The software will update old addresses through the information provided by the postal service. Consumers use a "Change of Address" form and submit it to the Post Office when moving. This information can be accessed by companies through the software to continue marketing to their current clients. The United States Postal Service provides forms for a change of address.
History
The National Change of Address Processing Systems have helped direct mailers maintain a clean mailing list for decades. In the early 1990s, some were concerned about the privacy issues involved in having address available. This concern has not had a big impact, as recently it has become easier to take names off mailing lists. The National Change of Address System has been adopted by several countries including the US, the UK, Canada, Germany, and Austria.Articles
NCOA in Germany, Austria, US, and UKNew NCOA System Processes in Hours Instead of Days
NCOA Concerns Consumers
http://www.mailersmvp.com/pdf/lorton_move_update.pdf