Shed Those Extra Pounds of Junk Mail

Wouldn’t it be great if you could lose a pound a week with a couple of emails and phone calls? You can save thousands of trees and thousands of gallons of water by putting your mailbox in a diet. Sign up for on-line bill pay and receive your statements electronically. When you receive unwanted catalogs or other mail, call the 1-800 number and ask to be removed from their mailing list – it is legally required for companies to comply with your request.

If you want to take it even further, here are some additional resources that can help you at some to no cost:

• 41 Pounds: Cost: $41 for 5 years. Claims to stop 85-90% of the 41 pounds (on average) of junk mail you receive each year. They stop most common junk mail such as credit card offers, coupon mailers, magazine offers and catalogs that you specify. They also register you with the DMA (Direct Marketing Association) to remove you from their member company lists. They will also donate 1/3 of your fee to an environmental or community organization that you choose from their list.
• Tonic Mail Stopper.com: Costs $20 per year. They will automatically remove you from several lists and plant 5 trees for you. They claim they can stop 90% of your junk mail.
• The Direct Marketing Association: Cost $1. They will have your name removed form a large number of lists of their member companies – your request will remain active for 5 years.
• Optout:A free, self-serve option. Generates easy form letters for you to send to companies who do not let you opt-out on line as well as a quick opt out form you can fill out for those that accept on-line opt-out notices.