FRONT PAGE
Delivering Data
Intelligent Mail helps customers better manage their business
The Postal Service is working with the mailing industry to apply new technology to drive improvement in both service and efficiency. The Intelligent Mail barcode enables the tracking of individual mailpieces from creation by the mailer, entry into the Postal Service, through various stages of transportation and processing, up to the point of delivery.
This total mail visibility is a key to improving service, reducing costs and adding value to mail.
Among the customers currently using the Intelligent Mail barcode is JCPenney Company, Inc., one of the nation’s largest retailers. The company enters more than 1 billion pieces annually in letters, flats and catalogs, and company officials are excited about the value Intelligent Mail will bring to their company.
Along with the Intelligent Mail barcode on mailpieces, JCPenney also uses OneCode Confirm service and electronic documentation through the PostalOne! system. This combination allows the company to realize near real-time tracking on its retail marketing campaigns and review activity through online reports.
“The Intelligent Mail barcode along with OneCode Confirm will take the variability out of the mail, which will improve our overall delivery predictability,” says Ty Taylor, manager of Postal Affairs at JCPenney. “The data we receive back from the Postal Service will not only enable us to improve our marketing and logistical planning, but it also enhances the entire direct mail media experience to our JCPenney customers.”
Beginning in 2009, mailers will be required to use Intelligent Mail barcodes on automation letters and flats. Mailers will have two options. With “Full Service” Intelligent Mail, mailers apply Intelligent Mail barcodes to mailpieces, trays, sacks and pallets and submit electronic documentation. With the “Basic” option, mailers apply Intelligent Mail barcodes to mailpieces only.
For information about PostalOne!, go to usps.com/postalone. For questions about Intelligent Mail, contact the Intelligent Mail group at imaq@usps.gov.
Express Mail Changes Coming
Postal Service plans to realign pricing and offer volume discounts
We’re making changes to Express Mail to make sure our premier package service is your first choice for affordable, reliable overnight shipping.
USPS plans to expand the number of ZIP Code pairs that are committed for overnight delivery and extend cutoff times, among other changes. Also expect to see a major price overhaul, both to realign Express Mail’s pricing with the rest of the market and to take advantage of new pricing flexibility by offering volume discounts.
Express Mail is the only overnight service that delivers seven days a week. Your package is automatically insured up to $100 against loss or damage. Express Mail provides signed proof of delivery and tracking information. Environment-friendly shipping supplies are available at no charge.
And don’t forget free carrier pickup — go to usps.com to schedule your mailing and our carriers will pick up your packages when they make their regular delivery to your location.
Learn more about Express Mail service at usps.com/shipping/expressmail.htm.
2008 National Postal Forum
From the latest technology to new ways to connect with customers
It’s all about the business of mail.
More than 7,000 industry professionals are expected to attend the National Postal Forum May 18-21 in Anaheim, CA. This is the mailing industry’s premier educational event and trade show, bringing USPS together with its customers, suppliers and business partners.
How is today’s mail meeting the needs of today’s businesses? The forum is the place to find answers and educational opportunities. The NPF offers more than 140 workshops. There will be four symposiums on Intelligent Mail, the Flats Sequencing System, packages and how mailers can go “green” with direct mail. There are 13 business tracks that include topics ranging from mail center management to Periodicals to quality addressing, and two new offerings explore environment-friendly mailing practices and global business. Also, 13 professional certificates will be offered.
Postmaster General John Potter, who delivers the keynote speech May 19, will be joined at the forum by speakers sharing the message of how influential mail can be in business, marketing and advertising. The opening session May 20 will be hosted by Deputy Postmaster General and Chief Operating Officer Pat Donahoe and Chief Marketing Officer and Executive Vice President Anita Bizzotto. In addition, Chris Gardner, author of Pursuit of Happyness, will speak, and the exhibit hall will feature 550 booths — the most in forum history.
Make plans now to attend. For more information and to register, go to npf.org or call 703-218-5015. PCC members get a $100 discount on four-day registrations, and a $50 discount on two- and three-day registrations.
WHAT'S UP
Feedback Welcome
Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking on use of Intelligent Mail barcodes was published Jan. 7 in the Federal Register. The notice provides technical specifications for Intelligent Mail barcodes and describes our proposal to require them on automation letters and flats in January 2009.
Mailers will have two options:
- “Full Service” Intelligent Mail. Mailers apply unique Intelligent Mail barcodes to mailpieces, trays, sacks and pallets and submit electronic mailing documentation.
- “Basic” Intelligent Mail. Mailers apply Intelligent Mail barcodes to mailpieces only.
You can send questions and comments through Feb. 21 to a special e-mail address — imb@usps.gov. Graphics illustrating Intelligent Mail barcodes are posted on Postal Explorer at pe.usps.com. Click “Federal Register Notices” in the blue navigation bar.
PCC Symposiums
Here’s your chance to learn more about requirements for using Intelligent Mail barcodes and what your business needs to do to get ready. PCC symposiums will be held in four cities: Las Vegas (March 6), Chicago (March 7), New York City (March 12) and Atlanta (March 13). Participate in an exchange of ideas between industry and USPS representatives about how Intelligent Mail can be implemented in your business to drive improvements in both service and efficiency and add more value to your mail.
Watch for an upcoming special edition of PCC Insider with details on registration and additional information.
Roadmap Online
The Strategic Transformation Plan 2006-2010, the Postal Service roadmap for the future, has been updated to reflect changes from passage of the Postal Act of 2006. The law makes a number of changes to postal oversight and regulation but does not alter our mission — providing trusted, affordable and universal service.
“We’re proud of our accomplishments, and we’re ready to raise the bar to ensure a viable postal system for future generations,” said Postmaster General John Potter and Board of Governors Chairman James C. Miller III in a letter included in the 2007 update. “There are challenges, but for every challenge there is also an opportunity.”
The update is available online at usps.com/strategicplanning/2006-2010.htm. In addition, the 2007 Annual Report and the Comprehensive Statement on Postal Operations can be viewed online.
The Annual Report discusses the events that shaped fiscal year 2007 and provides a detailed analysis of the Postal Service’s finances. Go to usps.com/financials/_pdf/AR2007_final_AA2.pdf to read the Annual Report.
The Postal Service publishes its Comprehensive Statement on Postal Operations to keep lawmakers and stakeholders informed about operations, programs and achievements from the past fiscal year. To read this document, go to usps.com/strategicplanning/cs07/cs2007.pdf.
SPOTLIGHT ON SUCCESS
Education, Education, Education
 These are dynamic times in the mailing industry, and expanding professional knowledge and staying informed about postal issues is critical to business success, says PCC Advisory Committee member Lou Ann Warren.
“Education, education, education” is most important to PCC members, says Warren, senior vice president of Neighborhood Credit Union in Dallas. She’s industry co-chair of the Greater Dallas PCC, whose members attend workshop-in-a-box sessions in record numbers. Also a big draw is an annual mailers conference sponsored jointly with the Fort Worth PCC on National PCC Day at which mailers can earn USPS professional certificates.
Last year, the Greater Dallas PCC developed an “Education is Essential” speaker series offering “lectures and lunches” on mailing standards and pricing and every facet of direct mail design, budgeting and production. “Our meeting attendance more than doubled for the series to as many as 200 people at each luncheon,” she says, “proving how anxious our membership was to learn about these critical issues.”
With the new year just beginning, Warren says it’s a good time to plan PCC activities for 2008. “These plans drive your PCC through the year and give you the information necessary to develop your membership campaign and programs,” Warren says. She urges PCCs to take advantage of the knowledge and expertise of local postal executives. “The support we receive from Southwest Area and Dallas District postal executives is invaluable. They never hesitate to attend our meetings, to speak, to help with any PCC issue when called on.”
And, the upcoming National Postal Forum in May is a great opportunity for mailers seeking to build on their professional knowledge. The PCC leadership series at the NPF provides great information on how to run a successful PCC and other information — “and the sessions also are great for networking.”
KEEPING POSTED
2008
- PCC symposiums on Intelligent Mail: Las Vegas (March 6), Chicago (March 7), New York City (March 12) and Atlanta (March 13).
- The National Postal Forum is May 18-21 in Anaheim, CA. Go to the NPF website at npf.org.
INFO@USPS
Your Links To Mailing Resources
U.S. Postal Service: usps.com
National PCC Network: usps.com/pcc
Rapid Information Bulletin Board System: ribbs.usps.gov
Questions? Comments? Send an e-mail to pccinsider@usps.gov
Sign up for PCC Insider at usps.com/pcc, select "PCC Insider Registration"
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