Tracking 8x10 No Returns. Do you?

[lizard-jd]

I have a very respectable 73% return success for my TTMs in the past 5 years. However, after looking at my statistics, I was surprised to find that for 8x10s I have a "no returns and/or failures" of over 17%. For me, it meant that I spent over $750 in postage and materials for items that I never saw again. Some of these were high risk tries but certainly not more than 40% of attempts. This has prompted me to send out more card type of TTMs in the past 2 months. If you regularly send out 8x10s, what have you determined?

[Rbuck1982]

I too have noticed a lower success rate on 8x10 it seems and wonder often times if something happens with the post office rather than them being signed. I have really backed off on sending 8x10s out in the mail as well and have been sending more cards as of late

[lizard-jd]

If you try to look up the "lost mail" percentage of the USPS you will never find it. The only estimate I ever found was a 3-5% guess by wiki.answers.com. The funniest quotes I ever read was that "the USPS would rather privatize oxygen than divulge that information" or that you would have "more luck finding Dick Chenney's social security number than the percentage of lost mail."

I'm sure there have been some USPS mishaps with some of mine because I will sometimes include a sharpie within all the protective cardboard. There is a combination of things. I like to think that some (the person, family members or workers) just liked the pic and just kept it. Unfortunately, I think the most likely cause is that they just plain threw it away! Too bad because it takes no time to just RTS a folder... In any event, the 8x10 failures are obviously on the high end of the TTM costs.

[comfortably9numb]

yeah I don't send too many 8x10's out. Only for my LPGA collection, and most of those are to the LPGA headquarters. They forward all my mail, and I've had a ton of success from them, so I trust them. Other than that I stick to cards

[indyreds]

Do not laugh when I tell you this. The actual postage on 8x10's maybe the issue! My company had us mail out sale inventations to select customers last year in the full page white envelopes. Literally one sheet of paper and one card stock sheet. It was funny to see how different the cost to mail was from different post office branches. Some of our stores were good to go with just one forever stamp. It cost my store two forever stamps per envelope. We had one site in our area that cost two forever stamps and a postcard stamp per inventation! I am sure should a player start getting items that are post due that they would not want to mess with them! The few 8x10's that I mail I drop three forever stamps on and fill the return and the to areas on the SASE with my nameand address!

[mrveggieman]

I mainly collect cards I never sent out any 8x10s. I couldn't stomach the thought of printing up an 8x10 and paying for all the postage just for it to never come back of to recieve a fake auto. I stick to cards instead. I only send out base cards that I don't care if they get lost. No rookies or high value cards.

[Oxxon]

I went from 8x10's to 4x6's due to the cost of printing and shipping.

[dsolzman]

I'll send out a few 8x10 requests once a year in hopes that they will provide the headshot. There are some that I will print out and even at that, I have yet to see them come back. Until last week my most recent 8x10 requests were sent during the Olympics with no photos provided. I'll check here and FanMail.biz to see if they are worth the postage and hassle.

I did lose a baseball card recently when I sent a request to Wade Boggs. I don't know if it was lost after I mailed it or after he returned it.

Unless I know for a fact I get an item signed, I won't waste the postage.