Spam Spreads to Paper

Zairmail's digital-to-paper mailings give electronic marketing a new twist.

Owen Linderholm, special to PCWorld.com

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Whatever you call it, mass e-mailings are an effective and cost-effective form of small-business marketing. And if "traditional" electronic spam isn't enough for you, there's a new service from Zairmail that lets you spread your electronic word even to those unfortunates not connected to the Internet. Zairmail Express Direct provides postal mail-on-demand services.

A company of any size can set up an account in minutes at Zairmail. You choose from about 10 preset templates for a mailing, fill in all the relevant information, and provide a list or database of addresses. Zairmail will send the mailing via the U.S. Postal Service to the people on your list. It has all the convenience of spam (for the sender) and reaches people who don't have e-mail.

Prices are reasonable and competitive. They start at 35 cents plus 12 cents postage per piece for a simple two-page black-and-white mailing. You'll pay $1.20 plus 12 cents postage for a four-sheet, full-color mailing with a window envelope.

In addition, Zairmail offers an ad-supported service that allows ordinary consumers to send postal mail letters to one person for free in the same manner. Obviously, this won't have the impact of a true personal letter since it's printed on a business printer and mailed by a bulk mailing organization. Plus, you don't get to sign it. But the price is certainly right.

In addition, if you send a free letter, Zairmail will send along a page of coupons that are tailored to the recipient's interests (with your references). Unfortunately, the free delivery doesn't serve all parts of the country, and an ad-free Zairmail delivery costs 67 cents per letter--not such a bargain.

Distributed Mailings

Zairmail can provide its services so cheaply because its basic mail-on-demand system is spread geographically across the United States. Using Zairmail, an electronic version of the mailing is sent over the Internet to a location near the delivery point. Then it is automatically printed, folded, inserted into an envelope, and mailed for next-day delivery.

Zairmail's first business offering, Express Direct, is designed to provide businesses a way to send bulk mailings to customers and potential customers in a very timely fashion. Expect delivery one to three days after submission. Zairmail's goal is to guarantee overnight mail service to the 22 largest metropolitan areas in the United States within a year.

Currently Zairmail has about a dozen customers with mailings from 1000 to 120,000 pieces, company representatives say. Those customers average about 55,000 pieces per mailing. The company is seeking projects and partners to help provide similar services internationally.

But what about that spam issue? Technically Zairmail isn't spamming, since the mail is sent via the U.S. Postal Service. Still, many people could regard it as another form of spam or junk mail. Zairmail is a member of the Direct Marketing Association, and you can remove your name from all mailing lists--including Zairmail's--by contacting the association, a Zairmail spokesperson says.

While the personal service is valuable only if you don't mind your mail recipient getting ads too, the business service could be handy for companies and organizations that want to send last-minute mailings quickly and cheaply.

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