Junk Mail Magic

Keep private addresses out of a board’s advertising review

Put a one-page table in the packet and leave the mail out. Give each vendor one row: what it promotes, the decision the board needs to make, and who follows up. Street addresses, recipient names, label codes and unrelated mail contents stay off the page.

By Junk Mail Magic. Updated .

Build the table

  1. Give each vendor one row with its name and a plain description of what it promotes.
  2. State the decision needed in each row: keep receiving, ask to stop, or get more information first.
  3. Name a follow-up owner who has authority over the organization's advertising records. Members' personal mail is not part of this review.
  4. Take out bills, notices and member correspondence and send each one to the person who handles it.
  5. Leave the original mailpieces with the records holder. Only the table goes in the packet.

Keep the decision in the packet

The board needs enough information to decide whether an advertisement is useful. It usually does not need the label that identifies the recipient. Describe an unclear offer in the table and ask for a decision. The records holder can keep the matching mailpiece separately for the authorized person who will contact the sender. When recording a reply, summarize the stated change and any unresolved question instead of copying the whole message.

Meeting table

Example for your own use. Replace the bracketed details and review what you share.

Vendor | Promotional purpose | Decision needed | Authorized follow-up owner | Status [vendor] | [what it advertises] | [keep / ask to stop / need information] | [role] | [open / request sent / vendor reply] Left out on purpose: street addresses, recipient identifiers, unrelated mail contents Decision date: [date]

Track status between meetings

Before the next meeting, the owner adds a status column with entries like request sent, vendor replied or still mailing, plus any reply the vendor gave. The board then reviews only the rows that are still open.

Official source

Review vendor marketing sent to an HOA boardHand off promotional mail when a condo board changesDecide what to keep out of a mail photoStore opt-out records in a private placeClubs and organizationsAll practical mail guides

Keep personal records with the organization that handles them

Junk Mail Magic is for ordinary unwanted advertising. Use the official contact route in this guide for records, account changes or someone else’s correspondence.

Compare removal routes