Happy Anniversary ZIP Code
- Posted by Misi McClelland on July 1st, 2009
filed in Advertising, Market Segmentation, Marketing |
On July 1of 1963, the U.S. Postal Service implemented the Zone Improvement Plan (ZIP) code as a technique to expedite mail delivery across the nation. The coding system was invented by Robert Moon, who submitted the idea back in 1944 while working as a postal inspector. The Postal System will only give him credit for the first three digits - which relates to a general region of the country. The last two digits that in essence carve out smaller geographies was a shared endeavor and credit goes to a “committee” of smarties.
But not only did Mr. Moon contribute to the efficiency of the postal system, he also gave a helping hand to marketers. Zip codes are often used as a way to identify particular market segments and advertise to them accordingly. Which segment are you? You can find out the top segments in your zip code by going to the following link and going to the “Zip Code Look-up” Tab: