New 42-day free trial
Smarty

Unlock value in your address database with metadata

John Hickey
John Hickey
 | 
October 4, 2022
Tags
In this webinar, we briefly considered the value of breaking an address into its component parts to reveal hidden metadata.

Did you know that every address has loads of hidden data buried in its metadata? In this webinar, we briefly considered the value of breaking an address into its component parts. Then we looked at the different metadata available and provided definitions for each one. And finally, we went over use cases and ideas on how to leverage metadata for improved operations, business intelligence, and financial performance.

There’s gold in your address metadata!

Every address contains basic components that are standardized by country. In the US, the components are:

▢ Primary number

▢ Pre direction

▢ Street name

▢ Street suffix

▢ Post direction

▢ Secondary designator

▢ Secondary number

▢ City

▢ State

▢ ZIP Code

While each of these is valuable, there’s knowledge and data available that’s associated with every address. It’s THAT data—categorized as Root, Components, Metadata, and Analysis—that can bring a new life and a wealth of information to your address database.

What is address metadata?

Address metadata is simply information about an address. Smarty provides up to 55 points of metadata for every address.

Because there is a lot of metadata and the webinar promised to be a short one, we only went over 9 of the data points that are offered, as indicated with yellow arrows in the image below:

Address data points

Break down of the metadata

  • Root
    • Input ID - Your identifier to reference the input & output address
    • Input Index - The order in which an address was submitted with others
    • Delivery Point Barcode - 12-digit barcode; consists of 5-digit ZIP Code, 4-digit add-on code, 2-digit delivery point, and 1-digit check digit
  • Components - Details listed above
  • Metadata
    • Record Types - Indicating what type of building is at the address, ex: highrise, rural, street, etc.
    • Residential Delivery Indicator - Whether the building is zoned as residential or commercial
    • Geocodes - Latitude and longitude for each address
  • Analysis
    • Vacancy Indication - Whether the USPS registered the address as vacant or not.
    • Footnotes - The notes on what was done to obtain a match
    • DPV Footnotes - The quality of match for each address

Try it yourself

If you want to start getting this hidden treasure, along with crazy accurate address validation and rooftop geocoding, you can try it out yourself for FREE by visiting our Single Address Verification Tool.

Do you want to validate and get this data on more than one address at a time? Try our bulk address lookup tool, also for free, by signing up for a free account.

You can also view the full webinar recording here:

Subscribe to our blog!
Learn more about RSS feeds here.
rss feed icon
Subscribe Now
Read our recent posts
Smarty announces virtual user conference: Save the date for Pinpoint, by Smarty
Arrow Icon
OREM, UT, August 18, 2025—Smarty®, the leader in address data intelligence, is inviting developers, data decision-makers, and certified address nerds to join our first-ever 2-day virtual user conference: Pinpoint. This interactive online event will begin on November 11, 2025, and bring together a verifiably fun mix of industry experts, technical deep dives, and business-boosting insights. Participants will walk away with a better understanding of how address validation, geocoding, data enrichment, and autocomplete can solve their toughest data challenges—and maybe even score some sweet prizes while they’re at it.
How address data became Fabletics's (and others') secret sauce
Arrow Icon
Address data accuracy isn't just about getting mail delivered. Having quality address data will directly impact revenue, compliance, and customer experience. In a recent webinar, we explored real-world case studies showing how companies across industries leverage address verification and geocoding to solve expensive problems and unlock new opportunities. Healthcare data: Compliance and accuracy at scaleCuratus, a healthcare data provider, faced a critical challenge with provider directory accuracy.
Usage notifications | Get notified before hitting your lookup limit
Arrow Icon
Burning the end of a brisket can lead to some tasty results (we’re looking at you, burnt ends), but unexpectedly burning through your lookups? Not so appetizing. All users receive notifications when their API usage reaches 90% and 100%. To help users further leverage their lookups, Smarty’s cooked up a solution: the ability to get notification emails when usage reaches three additional intervals: 25%, 50%, and 70%. With these notifications working alongside usage by key and limit by key, you can manage your API usage better.

Ready to get started?