Now that the U.S. Postal Service has increased the cost of First-Class Mail postage to $.42, effective May 12, 2008 (today!). it’s time to re-think the need to send a letter in the first place.
Hank Green’s post, It’s Time to Stop Sending Letters, at EcoGeek has excellent tips to save on postage:
- Scan and send documents by email – I forgot about this one but used it recently to complete a real estate transaction. Many printers have multiple uses – print, copy and scan.
- Online bill pay- His suggestion to use PayPal for companies or individuals that don’t have a bill-pay system, such as his landlord, is awesome.
- Digital greeting cards – I think paper greeting cards are a rip-off. First, the cost of a card is more than the cost of organic vegetables and second, you’re using natural resources that could be put to better use or not used at all. Design your own personal digital card or, better yet, call. You can’t get more personal than that.
- Send a postcard – If you must. And, Hank reminds us, avoid airmail which has a bigger carbon footprint.
Here’s another suggestion:
- Email invitations – Send invitations via email using a website such as eVite. Maybe Miss Manners would disapprove but I’m not planning on inviting her to my party anyway.
And if you’re getting too much junk mail, sign up at Direct Marketing Association:
- Go to: DMAChoice.org.
- Click on: DMAChoice – DMA’s Suite of Preference Services.
- Then select: How to remove your name from mailing lists.
- Register and provide a credit card number to validate your identity and mailing address. This is a secure no-charge transaction.
There are days we get no mail at all.
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My conundrum is in that I still feel more heartwarmed by something handwritten instead of the old times new roman 12 pt on a flat screen.
My letter writing is primarily to my grandmother, grandfather, father and moms, all of whom are more warmed by handwritten and handmade cards, or in some cases, simply do not have ability, understanding or access to internet. And really, I do like the specialness of an unexpected surprise in my mailbox. If I am going to take a big stance against mail, it won’t be to the people who send me love via paper, it will be to the massive penny-saver and ad papers that spew forth from my mailbox daily. THAT is what upsets me.
In agreement, though, evites are really fantastic, especially if it isn’t a very formal event.
Ashley Sue – You’re right about parents and grandparents being excluded from the no mail rule. While my mom is savvy about email, my dad is clueless. I like phone calls more than letter writing though. Possibly because I can talk a lot faster than I can write!
If anyone could ever figure out how to ditch the weekly paper ads to occupant, I’d be ever grateful.
Hey! Thanks for the info about mailing. I always to use the internet instead of mail! I was browsing through a bunch of green websites and blogs and I came across yours and found it very interesting. There are a bunch of others I like too, like the daily green, ecorazzi and earthlab.com. I especially like EarthLab.com’s carbon calculator (http://www.earthlab.com/signupprofile/). I find it really easy to use (it doesn’t make me feel guilty after I take it). Are there any others you would recommend? Can you drop me a link to your favorites (let me know if they are the same as mine).
Adrian, I appreciate the comment. I hadn’t heard about earthlab.com but checked it out and like it. My links are listed in my sidebar. The one I use the most ‘the green guide’. Daryl
Heaheh I loved what you said about talking faster than you can write. I think maybe that’s why I avoid the phone often with my family… My dad is deep south sounding when he talks… slow drawl with lots of long pauses. One simple conversation can easily take 40 minutes, much of which is in silence! Then again, you can never go wrong hearing your parents’ voices, right?
Thank you for the great posts, as always!
Ashley Sue, Having been raised as a fast-talking New Yorker, I would have a hard time with a conversation with long pauses and lots of silence. I would probably put my bluetooth on and clean the house during the “conversation”. As a parent I can tell you I really appreciate when my children call me. I talk to my daughter nearly every day for about an hour. Goodness knows we always find something to talk about! Daryl
If it is not a bill I cannot remember getting a letter or sending one out. As far as junk mail goes I Stop Junk Mail by having a mebership with MyJunkTree.com. It works great, I stop the weekly coupons, Miscellaneous junk mail, catalogs, credit card offers and phone books. Long live the web.
Yes, I use the site myjunktree.com also and found it to be very helpful.
Thanks for the heads up. I wasn’t aware of MyJunkTree.com before. ~ Daryl
I happen to be one of the owners of MyJunkTree and as a new company I search the web to see if we are getting any visibility out there and it seems the word is getting out. Thanks for the support.
We launched the company because we were tired of all the junk mail we were receiving and we personally did not want to bounce all over the web to contact all the different companies to stop it all. First and foremost we wanted to let people choose what they wanted to let come to their home knowing that some people really do like some of the coupons and catalogs. So our clients choose what they want stopped.
We also had to provide a service that is different than the other services out there, so here is what we offer:
1. We have a database of over 1300 catalogs that you can choose to stop.
2. We have over a 2000 charities/Non-Profits that you can stop solicitations from.
3. Stop the delivery of the national phone directories.
4. Stop the delivery of the weekly coupons.
5. Stop the general credit card offers as well as the ones from your own major bank.
6. Stop the miscellaneous junk mail from the data brokers.
7. You can register on the National Do Not Call Registry from the website.
8. You can order your no strings attached free annual credit report right from the website.
9. We plant trees with every new membership.
And, yes we are a paid service and yes you can do everything that we do for free, if you want to do all the research and spend the time contacting the companies yourself it can easily be done. We have just done all of the legwork for our clients and feel there is value in the service we provide.
Tim, Sounds like your company covers all the bases. Good work! ~ Daryl