Remove Me From Your List

09-23-2025

Direct mail floods your mailbox.

Every year, more than 100 million trees are destroyed for bulk mail. That equals clear-cutting the Rocky Mountain National Park every four months. The environmental cost is staggering, but the personal impact is just as troubling.

Lists capture your information.

If you’ve ordered online, filled out a warranty card, or entered a sweepstakes, congratulations—you’ve made the list. Direct marketing firms sell and resell this information. Once added, your name circulates endlessly. The scale of waste is shocking. Direct mail creates 100 billion pieces each year, generating 2 billion responses. Yet 45% remain unopened. Worse, the average person spends eight months of their life opening the rest.

Why do companies keep mailing?

Marketers know direct mail works. Even with low response rates, profits flow. For advertisers, it remains the cheapest way to grab attention. You need to understand that privacy matters more than freebies. Free offers, catalogs, and loyalty cards always come with a catch. The actual cost is your privacy. Personal information, once shared, becomes a tool for profit in ways you may never expect.

Everyday actions reveal habits.

Ask yourself: why does a grocery store offer pennies off for using a loyalty card? It is not generosity. Instead, they gather data on every purchase. Likewise, warranty cards often exist less for protection and more for future mailing lists.

Junk mail fuels bigger risks.

Identity theft thrives on careless information sharing. By revealing small details daily, households expose themselves to junk mail, telemarketing, and even fraud. Awareness is the first defense.

Reclaim your privacy today.

Take back control. Use Catalog Choice, a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization managed by The Story of Stuff Project. You can also opt out of catalogs through the Direct Marketing Association.

If you’re tired of getting prescreened offers in the mail, you have two choices:

You can opt out for five years: Go to optoutprescreen.com or call 1-888-5-OPT-OUT (1-888-567-8688). The major credit bureaus operate the phone number and website.

OR

You can opt out permanently: Go to optoutprescreen.com or call 1-888-5-OPT-OUT (1-888-567-8688) to start the process. To complete your request, sign and return the Permanent Opt-Out Election form (which you get online).

Say remove me from your list.

Protecting privacy requires intention. From phone calls to junk mail, companies thrive on consumer silence. When you act, you regain control. The first step is simple—remove me from your list.

To learn more, visit the blog life, reflection, and faith.