THINKING THURSDAY - Banishing JUNK MAIL

There was a time when I loved a mailbox stuffed full of catalogs, sales papers, magazines and, well, just junk. Now that I am trying to be more "earth-friendly" AND trying to save money, I have banished the junk mail. No more costly magazine subscriptions to magazines I can't find the time to read. No more catalogs full of stuff I used to buy but never really needed. Gone are the piles and piles of credit card offers in the mail just waiting to be plucked by some identity thief! How did I dwindle down my mail? Read on to see the steps you can take to BANISH YOUR JUNK MAIL!

I Opt out – Whenever I join a club, register for a conference, apply for ANYTYING, I always check the “Opt Out” box. This keeps the company I WANT to give my info to from selling or passing it onto someone I DON’T want to contact me. Many companies have “sister” companies they will pass your info onto, creating a new line of junk mail.

I think twice – Before I sign up for any type of newsletter at my gym, event calendar from my daughter’s ballet or the library’s mailing list – I rethink…..Can I check the info on-line instead of getting a mail out? Is there a monthly email newsletter? Anything that will keep my MAILING address off a list – I chose that route! Every piece of paper, every envelope very stamp printed counts. According to 41pounds.org, the average amount of junk mail each American adult receives in a year is, well 41 pounds!

Speaking of Mailing Lists – The Direct Marketing Association will remove the names of everyone in your household for three years for $1 per person. Visit www.dmachoice.org/mps or the-dma.org/consumers/offmailinglist.html for more info. The DMA says that doing this will reduce your junk mail by 80%!!!!

Credit Bureau Mailing Lists – All Pre-approved credit offers and insurance offers come from these guys. Visits www.optoutprescreen.com to be removed for 5 years. This not only reduces junk mail but is a good precaution against identity theft.

Valpak coupon Mailings – Rarely do these packets contain coupons you will actually use. www.coxtarget.com/mailsuppression/s/DisplayMailSuppressionForm will remove you.
Use online catalogs – www.catalogchoice.com lets you search by catalog name and cancel the ones you want to stop. As you get catalogs in the mail, take the time to visit this site and remove your name. Use the online versions instead.

Contact the marketer directly. Sometimes all it takes is an email or phone call to be removed from a mailing list. Ask the company to send you online material instead. You can still get the great offers but not the paper version. If you don’t care about their sales and info, you can always add them to your email “junk” inbox and never know the difference!

You won’t be able to stop every single piece of junk mail from finding its home in your mailbox, but you can significantly reduce the flow. Visit earth911.org for more info.

How have you reduced your paper junk mail?

Thursdays in the Simple Life Series are all about reducing the clutter (mental and physical) you bring into your life in the first place, starting with our “green” tips. I will let you know what I am doing to make simple changes in my own life. I hope you follow along and try some of these steps yourself. Please let me know how you are coming along by leaving comments at the bottom of each post. Tell me what works, what doesn’t, if you are bored – whatever – we are learning and growing together. Hopefully by the end of this process, you will have a better view of your health, your money, your lifestyle, your dreams, your regrets and use these findings to make steps to improving your life overall.