EDDM Retail VS. EDDM BMEU: What’s The Difference And Which Should You Choose?

Every Door Direct Mail (EDDM) has two distinct programs: EDDM Retail and EDDM BMEU.

EDDM Retail is designed for small businesses to submit EDDM campaigns on their own to a local post office. EDDM BMEU, also called EDDM Business, is designed for professional mail service providers who fulfill EDDM campaigns on behalf of their clients.

The two EDDM programs differ in postage costs, mailstream entry, volume, design requirements, and mail permit requirements.

EDDM Retail vs. EDDM BMEU: What Are The Differences? 

Here are the key differences between EDDM Retail and EDDM BMEU: 

Postage

EDDM postage rates differ between the two programs. EDDM Retail is one flat rate. EDDM BMEU has multiple rates depending on how closely the campaign is entered into the mailstream to the delivery address. This is called an "entry discount"

Nonprofit Postage Rates

Nonprofits enjoy an approximately 38% discount off of postage rates compared to their commercial counterparts. Considering postage is the largest expense in most Every Door Direct Mail campaigns, this is a key difference. 

However, nonprofit postage rates are not available through EDDM Retail. Only through EDDM BMEU. A mail service provider can access nonprofit EDDM postage rates on your behalf. 

Mailstream Entry Point

EDDM Retail can only be entered at the local post office (DDU: Destination Delivery Unit) responsible for delivering the mail to it's final destination.

For instance, If I have a local campaign that straddles multiple Zip Codes, with EDDM Retail you'd have to submit that campaign to the various local post offices where the mail is destined. If my campaign is spread across two Zip Codes, I’d have to submit my campaign across two different Post Offices. 

EDDM BMEU (Business Mail Entry Unit) mail can be entered at any USPS Business Mail Entry Unit around the country, no matter where it's destined, in a single drop.

Volume

EDDM Retail was designed for a small business to enter low volumes of mail locally. Therefore, there is a limit of 5,000 mailpieces being sent per day per ZIP Code. There is no such limitation with EDDM BMEU. 

Design Requirements

There are two design elements required for all EDDM's; an indicia (permit imprint) and address block (mailing label). While both EDDM Retail and EDDM BMEU require an indicia and an address block, the wording and design requirements differ between the two. 

EDDM Retail has a simple mailing label (address block) and indicia that is universal. EDDM BMEU has more options and also requires "ECRWSS" and "EDDM" to be placed in the mailing label OR in the indicia OR below the indicia.

ECRWSS stands for Enhanced Carrier Route Walking Sequence Saturation and is the classification of bulk mail that Every Door Direct Mail falls under. It helps postal workers identify the type of mail and how to sort and deliver it.

Mailing Permit

Part of the innovation of EDDM Retail is that it allows small businesses to participate in bulk mailing without needing to go through an intermediary like a mail service provider or acquire their own mailing permit.

With all other types of bulk mail, you are required to have a mailing permit with the USPS OR have a mail service provider submit your mail on your behalf under their mailing permit.

Acquiring your own mailing permit is costly in both time and money and it must be maintained with fees and paperwork on an annual basis. Not something most businesses should concern themselves with. 

Why You Should Use A Mail Service Provider vs. EDDM Retail

There are some instances where I might suggest Every Door Direct Mail Retail, but even in those instances I still do not think it’s the best option.

Why?

Whatever savings you are making by fulfilling your EDDM Retail campaign yourself, you are taking on far more risk and headache than it's worth. 

Navigating the US Postal Service Can Be Tough

The United States Postal Service is quite the bureaucracy. As with any bureaucracy, there are many rules, regulations, and forms to comply with. If anything is incorrect, you run the risk of being rejected. 

Even if everything is correct, it still doesn’t mean you won’t receive trouble submitting your mail campaign. 

First, I've fielded quite a few phone calls from clients saying that their local post office simply doesn't accept EDDM Retail at all. While I can't find any documentation on if this is allowed or why some post offices wouldn't accept EDDM Retail, but I've heard it enough to consider this to be a reliable claim.

Check with your local post office to ensure they accept EDDM Retail submissions before you start your project.

Also, every postal worker and post office has different levels of understanding and tolerance of direct mail. Your local post office is more trained on customer service and delivering mail, they aren’t trained on direct mail. The truth is, many don’t want to be either. 

One day you could encounter a very helpful and knowledgeable postal worker at your local post office. The next it could be a disgruntled and unenthusiastic one who views your Every Door Direct Mail campaign as “not my job”. 

They could accept your job at the counter only for it to be rejected by a manager later. I’ve seen this happen before. A very nightmarish scenario. 

Postal workers at special postal facilities called “BMEU’s” (Business Mail Entry Units) are trained on bulk mail and can ensure your mailpiece gets over the line and delivered properly. They are highly knowledgeable on the subject and are generally helpful. 

Unfortunately, EDDM Retail campaigns can only be submitted to the local post office. 

Postage Rates Are Similar, If Not More

EDDM Retail and EDDM BMEU can achieve very similar postage rates. 

However, there can be cost savings in postage with EDDM Retail in one very particular scenario. 

As you can see in the table above, the highest postage rate is the EDDM BMEU rate with “none” for its entry discount. This postage rate would be paid if your mail service provider printed and entered your EDDM campaign in Dallas, for instance, but it’s final destination is Austin. 

While these two cities are relatively close to each other, just 3-4 hours drive, they still represent distinctly different delivery zones and postage rates with the US Postal Service. Therefore, you would pay the highest postage EDDM BMEU rate of $0.291 per piece. 

If that same campaign destined for Austin was actually submitted to the Austin BMEU, then it would achieve a DSCF entry discount and the postage would be $0.253 per piece. That is only $0.006 higher than the EDDM Retail rate. So negligible as to be inconsequential. 

Savings is Negligible

The cost difference between using a full-service EDDM provider and fulfilling the campaign yourself is minimal. It really comes down to the cost of preparing, bundling, and submitting the mail. Would you like to pay someone else to do this or would you rather do it yourself? 

The thing is, most mail service providers are not making money on the preparing, bundling, and submission of the mail. They’re not charging a significant amount for this service. At least we don't.

They view it as an added service to get more print business, not as a profit making venture. Therefore, there generally isn’t a large markup for this service anyways. 

Also, mail service providers have more specialized equipment and workers who can prepare mail faster than you could. 

Therefore, it really comes down to how much do you value your own time? 

Risk is High

I was reading a Reddit post the other day about how someone ordered 4”x6” postcards from Vistaprint to send using EDDM Retail. They were ultimately rejected by the post office because 4”x6” postcards don’t meet the minimum EDDM size requirements. They’re too small. 

It’s likely that a whole host of things were wrong with his postcard if he didn’t get this most basic requirement correct. Things like the indicia and address block placement or wording can easily cause your campaign to be rejected. 

In exchange for what little money you’re saving trying to fulfill your campaign yourself, you’re taking on a lot more risk than you’re saving. 

A competent mail service provider will ensure that this doesn’t happen or, if it does, they will bear the cost of reprinting it for you. Sort of like a liability insurance policy. 

I can’t tell you how many times I’ve had customers come to me after trying to fulfill an EDDM campaign on their own and getting rejected. 

In fact, we recently had to reprint 20,000 EDDM postcards ourself because of a mistake we made on the address block. It was a very specific requirement that if your mailpiece is between 10.5” and 11.5” long, it must include “EDDM” after “ECRWSS” on the label (address block). 

We do this everyday and still made a simple yet fatal mistake like that. I don’t understand how anyone who is not a professional mailer would take this sort of risk. 

Something as simple and specific as that could cost you tens of thousands of dollars in reprint cost. If you do it yourself, it’s all on you. If you do it through a reputable mail service provider, they bear the risk of the costly reprinting. 

When You Should Consider EDDM Retail vs. EDDM BMEU

It might seem like I’m making a case that clearly benefits my company as a mail service provider. I’m truly not trying to be biased when I recommend that you do your EDDM through a full-service provider. 

Keep in mind, we will print and ship EDDM mailers to you for EDDM Retail fulfillment just like I would for EDDM full-service. So, in that sense, I don’t have a dog in the fight. Same with most other mail service providers. 

I’ve just seen too many people get burned trying to save a few bucks. 

However, there’s one scenario where I think that a small business could dominate a local market with EDDM Retail mailers. 

Design and Test Your Mailpiece, First

If you were to meticulously qualify your mailpiece design first and do a small test print and submission to ensure that it is accepted, this would mitigate a lot of the risk. 

Order in Large Quantities

Once you’ve tested your mailpiece, order large quantities of it. 10k, 25k, 50k, or even 100k cards. This way you can take advantage of the volume discounts on the printing of the mailpieces. 

When Timeliness is Key

With a tree service or roofing company, for example, timeliness can be key. Right after a storm is a great way to advertise your service.

Also, I've heard from multiple lawn care companies that you want to time your campaign to hit mailboxes on a sunny day in the spring, not a rainy day.

If you have a business where weather or current events plays a big factor in you offer, EDDM Retail might be the way to go.

I don’t care how fast or great your mail service provider might be, you will not get as fast delivery times than if you already had your EDDM cards in hand ready to be bundled and submitted to the local post office the next day. 

In Conclusion

For most cases, finding a competent and trustworthy full-service Every Door Direct Mail provider to fulfill your campaign is likely your best choice. The only caveat would be a well thought out campaign where precise timing is key. 

If you’d like to discuss your Every Door Direct Mail campaign, give us a call and have one of our experts, or even myself, consult with you for free. No obligation. 

Good luck! And may the sun shine brightly on your efforts:) 

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