The Postal Service has many different people and tools that can help you with all aspects of your mailing. All of these services are available, free of charge!

For general questions about the Postal Service

• 1-800-ASK-USPS is a 24-hour information hotline.
• Customer service representatives can answer all of your questions about the Postal Service and your mail.

For help designing a mailpiece
Mailpiece Design Analysts (MDAs) are postal employees specially trained to answer your questions regarding mailpiece design. These employees provide advice and issue rulings regarding acceptability for automated rates. MDAs provide technical assistance on mailpiece design to envelope manufacturers, printers, advertising agencies, and graphic designers.

Use this handy link to locate the MDA responsible for your ZIP Code area. Mailpiece Design Analysts are available for:

• Testing paper and actual mailpiece samples for acceptable thickness, background color, flexibility, rigidity, and barcode print tolerances.
• Assigning unique ZIP+4 codes for Business Reply Mail® (BRM) mailpieces.
• Providing camera-ready artwork for the proper facing identification marks (FIM) and barcodes for BRM and courtesy reply mail (CRM).
• Reviewing artwork prior to printing.
• Reviewing and approving vendor-prepared "privately printed" forms for USPS extra services.
• Analyzing optical character reader (OCR) readability and automation compatibility of prospective or actual mailpieces.

For help with nonprofit mail
Publication 417, Nonprofit Standard Mail Eligibility, describes the kind of organizations that are eligible for lower nonprofit postage rates. Publication 417 also is available for free from your local Post Office or business mail entry unit.

Publication 417 - Nonprofit Standard Mail Eligibility

For help sorting your mail
An Introduction to Mailing for Businesses and Organizations (DMM 200), contains some of the same information found on the Business Mail 101 Web site. The Guide is also available for free from your local Post Office or business mail entry unit.

Quick Service Guides (QSG) are quick reference guides that describe, with words and pictures, how to prepare your mail to qualify for a certain postage rate. Quick Service Guides are included in Publication 95, which is available for free from your local Post Office or business mail entry unit.

Quick Service Guides

Business mail entry staff are specially-trained postal employees who can answer any technical questions you have about business mail. Business mail entry offices offer free bulk mail training seminars for beginning mailers.

For official Postal Service mailing standards

The Postal Explorer web site is a complete collection of mailing standards and Postal Service publications.

The MailPro is a free monthly newsletter that keeps you up-to-date on recent changes in mailing requirements.

For help with this web site

What Is Business Mail 101?

Information About International Mail