Black Box 4/BlackBox.cdr/database/datamage.arj/DOCS.ZIP/MAIL.DOC

Text File | 1991-02-09 | 9.2 KB | 174 lines

                              SALES MAIL MANAGER:



The   files  POWRMAIL.BAS and MAILLIB.BAS in the \MAGE\DOCS directory  are  the
BASIC   programs   that,  when  compiled  with   the   Microsoft   Basic   6.0b
compiler, produced POWRMAIL.EXE. It will not  run  under your version of I.B.M.
or G.W. BASIC because there are no line numbers on  some of the lines.  You can
modify it to suit your needs, AND TO PRINT MOST ANY KIND OF REPORT.

The POWRMAIL program is a sales mail manager.  Many organizations are  involved
in  using  the mail to market their products, and far more who  are  not  could
benefit  from using a mailing campaign to let those in their markets know  that
they  are  in business, and to place before  them, on a  regular  basis,  those
matters which may interest them.

Having  created a datafile that contains his data, the user can  print  mailing
labels  containing  the  information recorded in the datafile,  in  the  normal
format  required for an address.  By inter-acting with the  DATAMAGE  programs,
POWRMAIL  offers  to  the user the ability to produce labels  for  one  or  all
records  in  the target datafile.  POWRMAIL can be used in conjunction  with  a
program such as WORDSTAR/MAILMERGE ,or a custom printshop, to automate the task
of mass mailings.

If  desired, a one character code can be chosen to represent the mailing  being
done,  and  recorded into the records being mailed to.  In this  way,  you  can
simply  and  easily  keep  track of what has been mailed  to  whom.   For  your
convenience,  the  label also contains the record number  associated  with  the
label,  and  the  code  chosen at the time of mailing,  if  any.   If  you  ask
respondents to include this code with their replies, you can quickly update the
records  of  the  respondents; you have their datafile record  number  and  the
mailing to which they responded at hand.


HOW DOES IT WORK?


The  basis of the POWRMAIL program is a datafile containing all  the  necessary
information  to  mail an item to a potential customer.  The  datafile  used  as
target for the program must conform to a per-defined format including the first
eleven  data  segments.  The remainder of the datafile can be declared  in  any
manner   you  wish.   Therefore, any datafile that contains  with  the   proper
eleven  data-segments  may be accessed by the POWRMAIL  program,  for  purposes
related/NOT RELATED to sales.

The mandatory segments are:

ORG. NAME      STRING         35
CONTACT        STRING         35
TITLE          STRING         20
ADDRESS        STRING         20
CITY           STRING         20
STATE          STRING          2
ZIP CODE       STRING         10
PHONE          STRING         17
MAIL CODE 1    STRING         35
MAIL CODE 2    STRING         35
MAIL CODE 3    STRING         35

The DBSEMAKR program will allocate these fields.  You may move them around  and
place  your own fields among them, indexing them any way you please.   You  may
NOT  delete  these fields, or change their lengths.  If you do the  POWER  MAIL
program will not access the file.

The  use  of  the  POWRMAIL program begins with  using  the  BASE  programs  to
establish  a group of records, representing those individuals or concerns  with
whom  you wish to communicate by mail.  Instead of learning another version  of
record  entry, updating and sorting you will use the facilities available  with
the DATAMAGE.

When  you  have  established a group of records that meet your  needs  write  a
sorting place marker file.  POWER MAIL will read this file and print labels for
only the records it contains, or print labels for all records in the datafile.

If you want your labels in order on zip, do a sort before writing the marker.

It   should  be  noted that, to increase processing  speed,  the  marker  files
contain  the  INTERNAL record numbers of the target records.  This  saves  many
sequences of "looking up" the user-assigned record number and relating it to an
internal  number  (representing the sequential position of the  record  in  the
file)  before the record can be loaded.

There is, in this case, a small price to be paid for processing speed.  Because
the  relationship of user-assigned record numbers and internal numbers  can  be
changed by deleting records, the sort files are invalid after the first  record
is deleted.

If you re-use a sort-file, expect disaster.  Instead, record a macro sort,  and
produce a fresh sortfile each time.  Not only will you avoid disaster, but  you
will  also pick up any records that have been updated and are now in  agreement
with the sorting parameters, and vice-versa.


CODING STRATEGY


If  you record a code that connotes the fact that a mailing has been done to  a
record,  you  can do another sort to avoid sending the same thing to  the  same
person twice.  Prepare a list, with a word processor or on paper, that  details
the codes you have used and their meanings in terms of what went out.

In  any  mass mailing system, a number of problems arise due to the  fact  that
some records are mailed to more than others, causing the code-bearing  segments
to  fill at different rates for each record.  Eventually, the  most  frequently
mailed-to  records'  code  segment will fill, and it will not  be  possible  to
record another code.  What do we do then?

The  normal P.C. style keyboard has forty-seven "normal" keys.   Including  the
capitals  of  all  keys, that's ninety-four  possible  characters.   Since  the
program accepts only one character codes, that's all you can use.

The exception to this is the quotation mark.  DATAMAGE reserves this  character
for it's own, internal use.  To understand why read your BASIC manual for  FILE
DELIMITERS.   The  quote is used to mark the beginning and end of a  string  on
disk.   If  you are permitted to embed the delimiters in the  data  the  system
falls apart.  So, DATAMAGE refuses to accept the quote as data.

There  are  three mail code data segments.  The program will  select  the  next
available  storage space within each record, and no code will appear  twice  in
any  record.  Since the total storage available is 105 bytes, and  the  maximum
demand for storage is 94 bytes, you will run out of codes before you run out of
storage.

The program records all codes used, with a user-supplied descriptive string, in
a  file  called CODESUSD.HTY and checks that there is a  code  left  unassigned
during  datafile  loading.   If  all codes have  been  used,  the  operator  is
informed,  and given the option to end the program.  The codes previously  used
can  be printed from the coding menu, or the file can be viewed with  the  TYPE
command  from  DOS,  copied directly to the printer, or loaded  into  any  word
processor that will accept a pure ascii file for further formatting.


                                RESTART OPTIONS


O.K., so we've gotten the warning from the program that all the codes have been
used.  We've got to do some sort of restart process to empty the code segments,
delete  (or re-name) the current CODESUSD.HTY file, and generally  prepare  the
system to continue.

Instead  of a set process to accomplish this, you are faced with many  possible
options.  You should choose, based on the anticipated frequency of your need to
retrieve  historical mailing data and the size of the associated files, one  of
the  proceeding secnarios, or design your own to suit your need.  The  DATAMAGE
offers the flexibility to do it your way.

The  simplest  and most time-efficient way to deal with a  reset  operation  is
simply  to  backup the datafile to a floppy.  Mark the old  floppy  as  mailing
history  from a date to a date.  Don't copy the old CODESUSD.HTY file onto  the
new  floppy  disk.  Then, load the base program and use the write  code  option
(F9) Use the replace option, and, when prompted for the string to record, press
return.  Repeat this process for nine, ten and eleven, and you have cleared the
code segments.

Note,  in the above procedure, that the used floppy becomes the  history  disk.
The  new  disk  will be used for a time, then its' data  will  be  transferred,
again, to a fresh diskette.  That way, you avoid dead disks.

Of  course,  you  could opt to print off a listing of all  records  having  the
record  name and the three code segments.  Place it in a folder with a copy  of
the relevant code key sheet, and you have a record of the transactions.   Then,
load  the base program, and follow the instructions above.  Finally, delete  or
re-name the CODESUSD.HTY file.

In comparatively rare instances where it is truly beneficial to have access  to
all  past  mailings in a single datafile you can use POWER COPY.   Specify  the
current  datafile as both the source and target datafile, and simply  move  the
data  now  in the three current code segments to other string segments  of  the
same  size  that  were  included at the time of datafile  design  to  hold  the
information.   Re-name  your  current CODESUSD.HTY  file  to  CODESUSD.001,  or
whatever.   Mark  your code sheet as to the new location of the  code  segments
relevant  to it.  Then, load the base program and remove the codes  from  nine,
ten and eleven.  Your restart is complete.