In our constant strive to improve not only the technical aspects of our platform, but also the usability, we have reworked our the mailing statuses at the beginning of 2024. Often, those keywords are not self-explanatory, and many complex states are summarised in a handful of short concepts. To help you to always know where your mailing is, what it’s doing, and where it’s going, we’ve compiled this article. As always, if any open questions remain, please do not hesitate to contact us and we’re happy to help!



TABLE OF CONTENTS


In Draft

When the mailing is still in the Draft status, no data has been transmitted to our end. You’re free to change any detail of the mailing, including the designs, trigger amount, or format. To continue, you have to confirm the booking at the end of the process.


If there’s been a reset, e.g. due to faulty data, your booking ends up in the draft status again. This is your sign to rework it and transmit the mailing again once everything has been adjusted accordingly.


Awaiting Price (Optional)

Once the mailing has been finalised on your end, we will take over and price the mailing.  Most products and several countries are already priced automatically, and we’re working hard to expand that list. If you’ve booked a standard product or - country, you will not receive a separate email and we will not require explicit confirmation. 


Price Approval Required (Optional)

When you receive that notification, it’s time to let us know as soon as possible if the pricing works for you. Simply confirm the link in the email! Once everything is confirmed, we’re moving on to the next status and create your mailing.


Processing

The moment you confirm the pricing and the ball is back in our court, the status changes to “Processing” to reflect that change. We’re creating the mailing for you and will get to fine-combing it manually by our Operations team momentarily. 


In Review

Our professional Operations team is looking into the transferred data and is checking both the machine-readability as well as the printability based on a whole host of different factors, as well as the viability of the submitted data like voucher codes and the data mapping. Ideally, the mailing is now out of your hands and there’s nothing else you need to do. However, if there are issues with mailing or data, we will get back to you next.


Revision Required (Optional)

If something went wrong with either the print- or machine-readability requirements, our team will contact you via email and let you know as soon as possible. Please mind that the email may contain a deadline by which the corrections need to be made; otherwise the PHD will be delayed. So keep a good eye on your emails on that day! All changes have to be performed on your end via the platform itself or your marketing cloud, e.g. by uploading a new design file or pushing a new set of addresses. 


Due to questions of liability and data protection, our team is unable to ever interfere with any transmitted data. If changes have to be made, e.g. due to excluded addresses in the list, you will need to make them yourselves, even if it’s a small change. Thank you for your understanding!


Once the changes have been made, we’re going back into the review state and either continue with another feedback round, or hopefully continue with the next status. In order to be prepared best and avoid the feedback loop as much as possible, we would recommend this article.


Preparing to Print

Once we’re confident that you will be satisfied with the outcome, we’re preparing your data for print. If you’re running a new automation with a 1:1 picture personalisation, a unique mailing, a large order above 100k, or if you simply requested it, we’ll send you a proof PDF before the actual production starts.


This is the step you only expect to see if you receive a proof PDF. We will literally hold the printing presses until you have checked the proof PDF as thoroughly as you want and give us the explicit go-ahead. However, please keep the timeline in mind to stick to the agreed-upon PHD. The quicker, the better!


Prepayment Required (Optional)

Some mailings have to be pre-paid, either as a whole or partially, e.g. the postage costs only. This is always communicated upfront, either at contract negotiations or by your CS manager when it comes up, and should not catch you off guard. However, if you have further questions about the prepayment or would like to change that, please feel free to contact us and we’re happy to discuss the possibilities! 


To confirm your prepayment, please send us the remittance advice to avise@optilyz.com. Using this email instead of answering an email or writing your CS is crucial to processing the mailing in a timely manner! We will require proof of payment until the last day of printing — the mailing will only ever be handed over to the post once prepayment has been finalised. 


In Print

Finally, your mailing is at the printers! Now, no further adjustments can be made and mailings cannot be halted. (However, do call your CS manager in case of emergency.) Depending on the size of the mailing, any special instructions (like an FSC certificate), the season, and some other minor factors, your mailing should be ready in three to six business days + PHD. 


In Delivery

Once all the mailing has been printed, the post will come to pick it up the next morning. The status then changes automatically to “In Delivery”. 


Completed

Eventually, when everything has been delivered, the mailing is completed. You can still look up details like pricing, control addresses, or the recipient list, but please keep in mind that personal data will be removed from the platform due to privacy laws. Please download any details you may need for your record-keeping as soon as possible after completion. 


On Hold

We’re probably already in communication with you if you see that state — you may have even requested it yourself. Most likely something had to be changed in an active mailing, maybe the designs required an overhaul, there’s been an issue with the campaign data, or the voucher codes needed a small adjustment. Either way, this state should not catch you off guard, so if it does, please check your email and coordinate with your team. And of course, when in doubt, contact your CS manager or our support team!


Cancelled

And we finish off with an easy state — your mailing has been cancelled if you see this state. 




We hope that this article helped you to get a good grasp of our new and improved states. As always, if you have any questions or concerns, please contact us. We’re more than happy to help!