Slightly later than advertised, I have been taking a look at ways of reducing the amount of junk mail I get shoved through my letter box 6 days a week (sometimes 7 days a week actually). To remind new readers, a few weeks ago I carried out a simple test to see how much junk mail I get in an average week (take a look here). I classed junk mail as it is described on wikipedia, i.e. any mail that is not welcome or solicited.

In total I received 23 items in 6 days, or an average of 3.8 unsolicited items a day. I actually received the same flyer from a well-known pizza company twice in that one week timescale. So anyway…

How to stop this happening or, at the very least, reduce it? The things I will detail here are all things I am actually doing and that anyone can do. Some of the things might actually lead to an overall reduction in junk mail (we can only hope) and others might simply reduce the amount that comes through my letter box, meaning less precious space in my bin is used up.

1. MPS
My first step was to visit MPS (the Mailing Preference Service) and register my address, name and a few other details. Their form is very simple and easy to follow and takes just a few moments to complete. You will need an email address so you can receive the confirmation email that is sent out. MPS is a FREE service, and they have lots of requests to deal with, so it might take a month or so for this to take effect.

2. Royal Mail
The next port of call is the Royal Mail Door to Door opt-out service. This is a good way to stop some of the unaddressed mail which arrives with all the bills. About the only thing it might not stop it junk mail addressed to The Occupier (I’m not totally sure why, but i’m looking into it ). You can email Royal Mail at optout@royalmail.com or write to them at: Freepost RRBT-2BXB-TTTS, Royal Mail Door to Door Opt Outs, Kingsmead House, Oxpens Road, Oxford, OX1 1RX.

3. Door Sticker
Much less low tech, but often effective, is the No JUnk Mail Please stickers you can buy at diys or hardward shops (and many other places). I have not done this yet, but I will as soon as I get chance to visit B&Q or similar.

And there you have it, three very simple and quick steps you can take to reduce junk mail. The more people that do this, the quicker marketeers and other letter box spammers will get the hint that junk mail is very often not wanted. But as long as a mass mail out makes commercial sense, they will continue to happen.

–As a side note, you can also register your telephone number on the MPS site. Nothing to do with junk mail, but it might reduce those annoying unsolicited sales and “you have won…” calls that seem to be increasing by the day.