What the USPS Mailing Changes Could Mean for Your Business
If you have a business that relies heavily on mail, you may have one less day to reach your deadlines. On March 30, the USPS formally asked the Postal Regulatory Commission (PRC) to allow deliveries to occur Monday to Friday only.
According to a press release sent out by the USPS, “The Postal Service does not take this change lightly and would not propose it if six-day mail service could be supported by current volumes. There is no longer enough mail to sustain six days of delivery.”
With Congress debating the subject now, it seems most of the PRC feels this step would further hurt the USPS and could actually, “further erode mail volumes and harm the agency.”
DM News goes on to report that “the Postal Service lost $3.8 billion in its 2009 fiscal year, and its leaders have projected a net loss of nearly $7 billion this fiscal year.” This could be due to more and more people communicating electronically.
If your business sends out mailings, you may need to streamline your efforts to ensure you get your mailings out in due time. One way to do this is by implementing a postage meter in-house. Postage meters are a great option because they can save a lot of time and money for your business.
Because you don’t have to go to the post office, postage machines allow you to stay in the office and get more tasks done. They also print out the exact dollar amount for your postage—which means no more rounding up postage costs.
If the USPS does indeed get their wish, and Saturday deliveries are halted, what will this mean for post office traffic on Mondays? It could increase traffic at your local post office, taking away time you could be spending doing something else. This is where postage scales can really help out the small business owners and home based businesses.
We will all have to wait and see what happens, but for now you should be thinking ahead of the game, and plan all mailings accordingly. Even if you don’t work on Saturdays, your Friday mailings may be delayed a day or two. Implementing a postage meter could help you get your mailings out quicker, keeping your clients informed and happy.
April 21st, 2010 at 1:57 pm
Another alternative to postage meters is Stamps.com. Stamps.com is an internet postage company that allows you print postage directly from your existing computer and printer. Unlike postage meters, there is no special equipment to lease. Additionally, Stamps.com allows for integration directly with eBay, Amazon, and other sources.
Chuck
Stamps.com
April 23rd, 2010 at 12:19 pm
An easy as email alternative is Click2Mail. Click2Mail makes postal mail as easy as e-mail. Whether you need to mail 100 simple postcards or 10,000 full-color direct marketing brochures, we can help. Click2Mail.com provides browser-based tools for creating and personalizing mailpieces and for acquiring, building, and managing mailing lists. Our system eliminates the need for printing, sorting, labeling, applying postage and transport to a post office and does it for not much more than the cost of postage alone. In short, mail made easy.
April 27th, 2010 at 10:18 am
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April 29th, 2010 at 8:24 pm
Endicia is another service that allows you to print postage from your computer. I’ve been using it for a couple of years and find it very convenient.
September 29th, 2010 at 11:25 am
Stamps.com is easy to use and we’ve had success with it.
November 30th, 2010 at 6:49 am
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January 15th, 2011 at 1:37 pm
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January 18th, 2011 at 10:13 pm
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March 4th, 2011 at 11:54 am
We had good success with Stamps.com it was vwery to use. You need to give it a try!
Keep up the great job!
Thanks,