MNN - Mother Nature Network

Last month I wrote about a smartphone app, PaperKarma, that claims to help consumers stop unwanted junk mail so I decided to download the app and put it to the test. While I had high hopes for the app, I was a bit guarded because a few of the reviews were complaints that the junk mail continued.

 

After a month of using the app, I’m happy to report that it worked as advertised. All of the junk mail that I submitted stopped. After receiving an unwanted item, I simply took a photo, making sure that my complete address as well as the sender’s information was clearly visible, and submitted it to PaperKarma. It really was that simple.

 

I believe that at least a portion of the complaints were from customers who did not use the app properly. Either the photo wasn’t submitted with complete information or the customers were trying to remove their names from a generic mailing list.

 

The PaperKarma app clearly states that it won’t work on junk mail that was not sent directly to you. So, in my case, if an item were sent to “Homeowner” instead of “Melissa Hincha-Ownby” then PaperKarma wouldn’t be able to remove my address from the mailing list.

 

Additionally, PaperKarma says that the app may not work because sometimes there isn’t an actual mailing list being used. “Junk mail can be carpet-bombed over an entire postal code or mail route, and there is little we (or anyone else) can do about this type of mail.” Source: PaperKarma

 

Overall, I’m happy with the app and I would recommend it to anyone who wants to reduce junk mail without the hassle of contacting each company individually.