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USPS News & Events

POSTAL SERVICE ENCOURAGES ELECTRONIC TRANSACTIONS POSTAL SERVICE SCORES BIG IN CUSTOMERS' DELIVERY COMPARISONS The Postal Service — no stranger to measuring itself for performance success and customer satisfaction — took the lead in four informal package delivery tests conducted by postal customers this past holiday mailing season. The New York Times, Grand Rapids Press (MI), KSL-TV (UT), and KTVI-TV (MO), within days of one another, conducted mailing comparisons among DHL, FedEx, UPS, and the Postal Service, measuring delivery time, quality, and cost. Shipping identical items ranging from coffee mugs and holiday ornaments to pecans within each test, and using comparable classes of mail, the competition began. The New York Times test pointed out that the Postal Service offers the most convenient and user-friendly electronic service of the four carriers and was the least expensive and fastest in delivering their pecans, surpassing the other carriers by at least one dollar and one day. The Grand Rapids Press test results cited one recipient as receiving her holiday ornaments via the Postal Service "sooner, in perfect condition, and for a fraction of the cost" of the other companies. KSL-TV representatives also discovered from their comparison that Postal Service offerings were less expensive than the other carriers, "by about 10 bucks." KTVI-TV teamed with four of its sister stations across the country in putting the carriers to the test. This station's representatives cited the Postal Service's Parcel Post offering as the least expensive, and in one instance a package sent via Parcel Post arrived before the other packages. All other delivery times were tied, although the condition of one package — not delivered by the Postal Service — left much to be desired. The sound of jingle bells at holiday time can be a joyful one, unless that sound emits from a package containing coffee mugs.

HEROES RETIRED: SEMIPOSTAL STAMP COMPLETES SERVICE WITH HONOR Completing its service with honor, the Heroes of 2001 semipostal stamp was withdrawn from sale December 31. More than $10 million in proceeds from sales of the stamp has been transferred to the Federal Emergency Management Agency to provide assistance to the families of emergency relief personnel killed or permanently disabled in connection with the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. The stamp went on sale June 7, 2002, and was the second semipostal stamp issued by the Postal Service. Nearly 130 million Heroes of 2001 semipostal stamps were sold. USPS CARRIER PICKUP LAUDED AS INNOVATIVE Business Wire reports the Postal Service's Carrier Pickup Online Notification service was one of only seven government projects featured in the 2004 InfoWorld 100. Each year InfoWorld magazine recognizes 100 projects that "stretch beyond the typical, off-the-shelf solution" by using technologies in innovative ways. The feature on USPS.com allows customers to schedule pickups by letter carriers up to 90 days in advance. The article noted that the award-winning USPS.com was ranked second among government Web sites in the June 2004 Nielson/NetRatings. Delivering results. That's what we do every day as we work to transform the Postal Service. Whenever you see the "Delivering Results" symbol, you'll know it's about how we're making the Transformation Plan a part of everything we do.