PrintMEMO TO MAILERS - JUNE 2006 (text)
UNITED STATES POSTAL SERVICE
VOLUME 41 NUMBER 6
JUNE 2006
WHAT'S INSIDE
GROW YOUR BUSINESS
CUSTOMIZED POSTAGE
ROOM FOR MTAC
SHAPING THE FUTURE
POSTAL NEWS BRIEFS
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MAKE MAIL
How does your business grow? Plant the seeds of success with Direct Mail. The Postal Service is showing customers how to “make mail” at “Grow Your Business Day” workshops being held at select locations around the country.
The goal of this program is to teach customers, particularly small businesses, how to create compelling messages that bring customers through the door. It’s a hands-on experience where customers actually design and create direct mail pieces.
The workshops show customers — jewelers, real estate or insurance agents, shop owners, anybody — how to create and send a mailing from their own mailing lists using their own digital images and messages. They make original postcards, which they can purchase and send via NetPost Premium Postcards online at www.usps.com.
“This seminar is exactly what I was looking for!” said Jason Minow, owner of The Sacramento Sweets Co. Inc., based in Sacramento, CA. “I integrated color photos of our peanut brittle, our Web address, phone number and logo to create a postcard that looks professionally designed. It is so striking — I think people will want to save it.”
The postcards let individuals like Minow incorporate Direct Mail advertising into their overall business plans. It’s a valuable, cost-effective way for a small business to let customers know what it offers.
“I can’t wait to take some new photographs and create another mailing,” says Minow.
Want to learn how to put the power of Direct Mail to work for your business? Go to www.usps.com/growyourbusiness for a list of seminars and their locations.
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PACKAGING MADE SPECIAL
Sure, it’s what's inside that counts, but your customers see the packaging first. That’s why the U.S. Postal Service offers a wide range of creative packaging and co-branding opportunities for shippers. The Postal Service wants to help you stand out in a crowded marketplace.
Custom boxes get products noticed. They help strengthen a brand. And they can help streamline a company’s shipping operation — and help save money.
There are 55 standard packaging options for shippers who use Express Mail, Priority Mail or Global Package Services. In addition, USPS offers 18 specialized packages such as padded mailers and Tyvek envelopes.
Generally, customers who qualify for specialized products are large-volume mailers who meet certain guidelines. Shippers generating more than $500,000 annually in expedited services are eligible for customized packaging services, including co-branding. Companies can order their logo printed directly on packaging.
It’s a big country. USPS will help your package get noticed. And nobody else reaches every address, every day in the United States.
Want to learn more about your packaging options? E-mail packageservices@usps.com.
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KEEPING POSTED
News from and for Postal Customer Councils - www.usps.com/nationalpcc
NEW CERTIFICATE PROGRAMS MAKE IT EASY
The Postal Service works with Postal Customer Councils (PCCs) nationwide to offer educational tools and certificate programs designed to keep PCC members informed about USPS products and services that will help them grow their business.
Two new professional certificate programs were launched this year — Quality Processes Professional (QPP) and Technology Innovations Professional (TIP) — and response to these new programs has been impressive.
USPS and industry mailers collaborated to offer the certificate programs at a conference sponsored by the Milwaukee PCC. The results were 108 mailing industry professionals earned QPP certificates and 89 received TIP certificates.
These certificate programs are offered to recognize mailing industry professionals for their commitment to mailer education.
Workshops-in-a-box can be used to provide on-site training for interested customers and PCCs can offer professional certificate programs to recognize mailers that participate in education and training programs.
Workshops that were offered during the certificate programs in Milwaukee included:
Addressing and Your Bottom Line
Postage Payment Methods
First-Class and Standard Mail Eligibility
Mailpiece Quality
Periodicals Eligibility
Nonprofit Mail Eligibility
Introduction to Manifest Mailing
PostalOne! System
If you are interested in learning more about professional certificate programs, please contact your local PCC. Go to www.usps.com/nationalpcc and select “Locate a PCC.”
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CUSTOMIZED POSTAGE GOES COMMERCIAL
Businesses across the country now have one more way to literally send a message about their company and products — the Postal Service has expanded its popular customized postage program.
Customized postage allows a customer to personalize postage with pictures or images using Customized PC Postage technology. The Postal Service has signed contracts with three qualified PC Postage vendors able to produce customized postage to be used on First-Class Mail, Priority Mail and Express Mail for personal and commercial use.
Endicia, Zazzle and Stamps.com will add the commercial application to their existing agreements for the production of postage for personal use, says Nick Barranca, vice president of product development for the Postal Service.
“Expanding the way customized postage can be used is a bonus for businesses that want to create awareness for their products or services, build their brand and develop strong customer relationships,” Barranca says.
This is the third phase of the market test for customized postage. It will run through May 16, 2007, with an option for the Postal Service to extend the test for a second year. The third test removes the restrictions around commercial images that were in place for the second market test.
The first two phases of the test, which began in 2004, allowed the Postal Service and qualified vendors to determine the viability of the product and to gauge the interest of consumers in creating their own personalized postage.
“We are very pleased with the way customers have responded to this option. We have seen an increase in personal correspondence,” Barranca says. “This is one more way the Postal Service is reaching out to meet the needs and interests of our customers.”
Customized postage has two parts: a customer-supplied image and a state-of-the-art secure bar code. All customized postage is compatible with the Postal Service’s automated mail processing systems.
Like postage meters, PC Postage facilitates customer access to postage payment and use of the mail. PC Postage is not a stamp and the use of customized postage will not affect the Postal Service’s production or commitment to postage stamps, Barranca says.
“We want to make sure that anyone we authorize has the ability to produce postage in an efficient way,” he says. “While we continue to strive to meet the needs of our customers, we want to make sure that any product also meets our standards for quality and security.”
The Postal Service will require vendors to produce a product that meets current postal regulations and conclusively prove that all images produced and services provided abide by all federal laws, including copyright laws.
Authorized vendors will determine pricing and are expected to price their products based on the value provided to the consumer. The Postal Service’s role is to authorize and monitor qualified providers.
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FYI
The Breast Cancer Research semipostal stamp has raised more than $50.3 million for research. For more information on stamps and stamp-related products, or to purchase them, visit www.usps.com/shop.
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CALL FOR PAPERS
In search of speakers for next National Postal Forum
Now is the time to think about sharing your mailing knowledge and expertise at the next National Postal Forum (NPF) to be held March 25-28, 2007, in Washington, DC.
The NPF is the nation’s premier mailing industry event. There will be more than 125 workshops providing information on the latest technologies and best practices. Abstracts will be accepted through June 30. Presentations supporting the mail application and mail execution value chains, mail technologies, innovations, solutions and mail center management will be part of the 2007 event. You can find submission forms at www.npf.org or contact heidi.cherry@usps.gov for more information.
All potential presenters will be notified of their submission status by Aug. 15.
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MAKING ROOM FOR MTAC
The U.S. Postal Service has recognized the significant contributions of the Mailers’ Technical Advisory Committee (MTAC) in helping to keep the mailing industry strong with the dedication of “The MTAC Room” at USPS headquarters in Washington, DC.
Postmaster General John E. Potter was joined by postal officers and mailing industry leaders last month at a ribbon-cutting ceremony during MTAC’s quarterly meeting.
For more than 40 years, MTAC has provided a venue for the exchange of technical information and recommendations about mail-related products and services. MTAC membership comprises the major mailing associations and organizations that work together with the Postal Service to enhance the value of the mail to benefit the entire mailing industry.
MTAC and the Postal Service remain dedicated to keeping the mailing industry strong well into the future.
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INFO@USPS
SMALL BUSINESS TOOLS
Get new customers.
Meet customer demands.
Around town or around the world.
www.usps.com
SIMPLE FORMULAS
Use the mail to grow your business.
Order a Simple Formulas kit.
800-THE-USPS, ext. AD4433
SEND MAIL FROM YOUR PC
Send postcards, letters,
flyers, booklets or greeting cards.
www.usps.com/netpost
THE POSTAL STORE ONLINE
Open 24/7. Stamps.
Subscription services.
Digital scales.
www.usps.com/shop
SHIPPING INFORMATION
Express Mail, Priority Mail
and package support line.
800-222-1811
PRINT POSTAGE ONLINE
Your shipping label is just
a Click-N-Ship away.
www.usps.com/clicknship
CARRIER PICKUP
From your home or office
at no extra charge.
www.usps.com/pickup
ONLINE SHORTCUT
One-click access.
www.usps.com/smartbusiness
QUESTIONS?
800-ASK-USPS
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SHAPING A MORE EFFICIENT FUTURE
The U.S. Postal Service has unveiled proposed new pricing incentives that would effectively reshape the future of mail and provide benefits to both business customers and the Postal Service. The current pricing structure for postal products relies primarily on a weight-based system. The new plan — sent to the Postal Rate Commission as part of a 2007 price adjustment proposal package — combines weight with shape to allow the Postal Service to better align prices with processing costs to ensure every type of mail covers its costs. Price changes would not occur before May 2007.
Current Postal Service prices do not distinguish among some letters, flats and parcels. For example, in First-Class Mail, the current single-piece price is 63 cents to mail a 2-ounce letter, a 2-ounce flat and a 2-ounce parcel. The new plan recognizes that each of these shapes has substantially different processing costs and should have different prices.
The new pricing plan, in effect, creates an adjustable rate system by giving mailers the opportunity to obtain lower rates as they find ways to configure their mail into shapes that reduce processing costs for the Postal Service.
For example, if the contents of a First-Class flat can be folded and placed in a letter-sized envelope, the mailer can reduce the postage by as much as 20 cents per piece. If a First-Class parcel can be configured as a flat, the mailer will save 36 cents.
As the Postal Service emphasizes shape in its pricing, it also proposes to reduce the additional ounce rate. As mailpieces become heavier, the proposed price increase declines. For letters over one ounce, the new prices are actually lower than today’s prices.
“Our pricing proposal recognizes changes in underlying costs and market conditions, and includes pricing initiatives to improve efficiency, which helps keep rates affordable for everyone,” said Postmaster General John E. Potter.
“We will work closely with our business mailers in the coming months to show them how they can take advantage of the new pricing to keep their mailing costs as low as possible,” added Potter.
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POSTAL NEWS BRIEFS
FINANCIAL PERFORMANCE FIGURES
The Postal Service has released the results of financial performance figures for the second quarter (Jan. 1 through March 31). Revenue was up 7.7 percent and expenses rose by 4.5 percent over the same period last year.
On a year-to-date basis, revenue is up by 2.9 percent over last year, while expenses are up by 4.2 percent.
For the first six months of the fiscal year, First-Class volume is 1.3 percent below the same period last year, while Standard Mail volume grew by 1.5 percent and Priority Mail volume rose by 7 percent.
Year-to-date transportation costs, including fuel-related expenses, are 11.7 percent higher than the same period last year.
IMPROVING MAIL PROCESSING
The Board of Governors of the Postal Service approved funding to purchase additional Delivery Bar Code Sorter equipment for sorting letter mail in the sequence in which mail carriers deliver it.
This purchase consists of entirely new machines and stacker modules for existing Delivery Bar Code Sorters. It will reduce the manual sorting of letter mail required today for new addresses that have been established since the last Delivery Bar Code Sorter equipment deployments were completed.
Funding to purchase 148 Automatic Induction Systems for retrofit onto existing Automated Flat Sorting Machine 100s also was approved by the Board.
The Automatic Induction System includes automatic feeders that induct flats (oversized pieces of mail such as catalogs) directly into the machine. This enhancement will enable the Postal Service to reduce operating costs through improved mail preparation methods and reduced staffing requirements.
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HYBRID-ELECTRIC TECHNOLOGY
The Postal Service, which has been on the cutting edge in developing every new mode of transportation in the United States, has launched the first conversion of a mail-delivery van into a hybrid-electric vehicle.
“As an agency that delivers mail to 145 million businesses and households six days a week, drives approximately 1.1 billion miles a year, and consumes more than 125 million gallons of motor fuel annually, we are in a unique position to demonstrate to the public and other businesses the growing viability and positive environmental and energy-savings benefits of alternate-fuel technologies,” says Walter O’Tormey, vice president of engineering for the Postal Service.
The hybrid-electric mail-delivery van will be monitored in regular service — delivering mail to Boston-area homes and businesses — to determine its potential for emissions reduction and fuel-economy improvements. It was converted by Azure Dynamics Incorporated, Boston, a developer of electric and hybrid-electric powertrain systems.
The Postal Service has been testing alternate-fuel vehicles for several years now. In fact, it operates the largest alternative-fuel fleet in the nation — 30,000 vehicles. The fleet includes compressed natural gas, propane, ethanol, biodiesel and electric vehicles.
“We expect hybrid delivery trucks to significantly improve our nation’s fuel economy and reduce our reliance on foreign oil,” says O’Tormey. “That’s why this innovation is so important to us, and why we want to share our experiences with the public.”
Due to the size of the Postal Service network, every penny increase in the price of fuel costs the agency an additional $8 million a year.
“We will continue to manage the operation of our more than 200,000-vehicle fleet to maximize fuel efficiency and to keep mail delivery costs as low as possible,” says O’Tormey.
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MEMO TO MAILERS
Volume 41 Number 6
Ilze Sella
Editorial Services
David Ostroff
Designer
George Huelsman
Purchasing Specialist
John E. Potter
Postmaster General and CEO
Thomas G. Day
Senior Vice President, Government Relations
Azeezaly S. Jaffer
Vice President, Public Affairs and Communications
MEMO TO MAILERS
is published by U.S. Postal Service
Public Affairs and Communications.
USPS eagle symbol and logotype are
registered marks of the
United States Postal Service.
© 2006 United States Postal Service. The following are among the many trademarks owned by the United States Postal Service: USPS®, U.S. Postal Service®, United States Postal Service®, Postal Service™, Post Office™, Priority Mail®, Express Mail®, Standard Mail™, First-Class Mail®, Registered Mail™, Certified Mail™, Delivery Confirmation™, Signature Confirmation™, ZIP Code™, Click-N-Ship®, NetPost® and The Postal Store®. This list is not a comprehensive list of all Postal Service marks.
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