This example poses some fundamental questions about Mr. Doe: 

Mr. Jon Doe
123 W. Main St
Tinytown, IL, 60606
312-555-1212
jondoe1@isp.com 

Looks good on the surface – doesn’t it?  Lets dig a little deeper…. 

1.                   Are you sure that Jon is a “Mr.”, and not a “Ms.”?

2.                   Is it possible that Jon is a “Jr.”,  “Sr.”, or a “III”?

3.                   Are you positive he’s not really “Dr. John M. Doe Jr. MD”?

4.                   Is Jon even still alive?  Or are you offending his family every time you try to contact him?

5.                   Does “123” fall within the acceptable address range for Main St.?

6.                   Is “123 W. Main St.” a valid mailbox, or is it an empty lot, park, or other such undeliverable place?

7.                   Would you swear it’s “Main St.”, and not “Main Blvd”,  “Pkwy”,  “Rd”, or any of the other over 200 accepted USPS address suffixes?

8.                   How do you know for sure that it’s “W. Main”, and not “E. Main”?

9.                   Is there really a “Tinytown” in Illinois?

10.               Are you mailing to his home, or his business??

11.               If 123 W. Main is a high-rise – what is Jon’s apartment number?

12.               Is  60606 the correct zip code for Tinytown Illinois?

13.               Does Jon even live there anymore?

14.               If he doesn’t, where did he move to?

15.               And if he moved, was it just himself or his whole family?

16.              By the way – is Jon incarcerated and 123 W Main the penitentiary address?

17.               Is “312” still the correct area code for Tinytown?

18.               Is 555-1212 still Jon’s phone number, or has it changed?

19.               Is his email address formatted correctly?

20.               Is it still HIS email address?

21.               Does that email address even exist anymore?  

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