Post Office
Update on 5 Day Delivery–New Website
The U.S. Postal Service has launched a website on usps.com to provide information to all customers about its proposal to implement a five-day street delivery schedule. The Postal Service proposes to end regular Saturday mail delivery to street addresses as part of a comprehensive plan to ensure that it can continue to deliver affordable service to the American people. Post Offices will remain open on Saturdays.
The website, www.usps.com/communications/five-daydelivery has a planning guide for businesses and household customers, and answers to frequently asked questions.
Gay pride display fails to get postal stamp of approval
Jim Stingl from JS online
Maggi Cage was thrilled when she was asked to help set up a gay pride display in the lobby of Milwaukee’s downtown post office.
The organization she leads, the Milwaukee Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender Community Center, alerted its members to head down and check out the photos of famous gay people, historical information and a giant AIDS awareness stamp in glass cases.
“I started getting calls saying, ‘I can’t find that exhibit at the post office,’ ” Cage said. “I sent some of my staff down there, and the cases were empty.”
The display had lasted less than four hours. It was created the morning of June 1, the very day President Barack Obama proclaimed LGBT Pride Month in America, and came down that afternoon.
Marge Oehlke, spokeswoman for the U.S. Postal Service in the Milwaukee area, said she removed the material.
“It did not fit our qualifications,” she said.
Cage smells intolerance at the post office.
“I think it’s plain and simple homophobia,” Cage said. “I really do think it’s a case of discrimination.”
Letter carrier Dale J. Schuster resigned last week from his position as chairman of the post office diversity team.
Postal rules say he can’t talk to the media, but in an e-mail to Cage he said, “In light of the controversy over the pride month display being taken down, I had no other recourse than to resign. I believe it is important that everybody is treated with dignity and respect, and that nobody should feel excluded.”
It was Schuster who had approached Cage with the idea of collaborating on a gay pride exhibit.
He had written permission from the post office’s diversity manager, so long as the display didn’t contain anything too controversial or political.
That’s not high enough up the chain of command, Oehlke said. The postmaster needs to give an OK.
Plus, she said, the post office operations manual spells out that these exhibits must be “revenue related,” meaning something about stamp purchases, stamp collecting, packaging, new products and such. The AIDS stamp isn’t for sale anymore, and therefore doesn’t count, she said.
Oehlke, who serves on the diversity team, denied the removal was because of the gay theme, and said she did not know of any citizen complaints about the display. I asked Friday to be put in touch with Postmaster Charles Miller, but that never happened.
It’s not surprising that the gay community would take offense.
Black history displays have appeared at the same post office in the past, and those weren’t pulled down. Same with exhibits about veterans.
Why bother having a diversity team if they can’t spread a little diversity around?
Advertising budgets slashed in favour of online
But is it working???
campaignlive.co.uk 08-Jul-09, 10:20
LONDON – Traditional media channels such as above-the-line advertising and direct mail have been most harshly cut in favour of online channels, as marketers seek to get the most out of drastically reduced budgets, according to a new survey by Forrester Research.
The survey, which questioned a panel of chief marketing officers worldwide, discovered that 71 per cent of marketing budgets have been reduced in 2009 compared with last year, with more than half cut by at least 20 per cent.
Spending on TV, print, radio or magazines has been cut by 67 per cent of respondents, and only 4 per cent increased spend in these areas.
Direct mail suffered badly, with expenditure cut by 52 per cent of respondents.
Some digital disciplines have benefited from an uplift in expenditure as a result of marketers wanting to get the best results with their reduced budgets. While online advertising budgets were cut by 27 per cent of companies, 40 per cent said they increased them. Social media spend was reduced by only 7 per cent and increased by 47 per cent of respondents.
Other online channels have also fared well, with spending on e-mail marketing only cut by 11 per cent compared with 38 per cent who increase their investment.
Now this is a rough day at Work!
Steve Jefferson/Eyewitness News
Indianapolis – Police released two urgent 911 calls made by a mail carrier the same day. He made one call concerned about a postal customer. Then hours later, he called again after witnessing a violent bank robbery.
“I stood up and dialed 911 and went out the front door,” said Robert Norman, bank customer and postal carrier.
Norman got shot in the face during a hold-up last Thursday. It happened at the Chase Bank on Southeastern Avenue. Part of the bullet is lodged in the 53-year-old mail carrier’s neck.
“I could have died. All he did was break some bones in my jaw,” said Norman.
Witnesses say the robber entered the bank wearing a trench coat carrying a handgun and shotgun. He fired a shot after one customer ran out the back door.
Still, Robert Norman ran out the front door. He circled the bank to see the suspect’s getaway car, but instead ran into the suspect. Norman says as he called 911 the robber shot him.
CALLER: “There’s a robbery at Chase Bank.”
(Gunfire)
OPERATOR: “Do you see anything?”
“He was bringing the gun up and I grabbed the pistol with my hand and he shot me in the face,” said Norman.
Officers chased and caught the suspect, Brook Abebe.
As the mailman was rushed to the hospital. he’d also had another kind of trauma earlier in the day.
As part of his mail route on Somers Drive, he often looked after a 73-year-old woman who lived alone. On the same day as the bank robbery he noticed her mail had not been picked up for about month.
CALLER: “I am a mailman. The lady hasn’t answered her door or picked up her mail in quite a long time.”
OPERATOR: “She normally lives alone, did you say?”
CALLER: “Oh yes, she is very much a recluse.”
“When the police got there they found her in her bedroom and unfortunately she was deceased,” said Lt. Jeff Duhamell, IMPD.
Amazingly, Robert Norman will survive the point blank range gunfire.
“God was with me the whole time,” Norman said.
Police expect federal authorities to get involved in the investigation not only because of the bank robbery, but also because Robert Norman is a federal employee.
High-tech mail service raises $30M
Atlanta Business Chronicle – by Urvaksh Karkaria Staff Writer
An Atlanta company is said to have raised about $30 million in venture funding to expand a niche between the U.S. Postal Service and overnight delivery.
MailExpress Inc., which raised the capÂital from Silicon Valley-based Lightspeed Venture Partners and existing investors, offers high-volume corporate mailers expedited delivery of mail and small packages with first-class speed, online tracking, real-time analytics and customized reporting.
MailExpress uses its nationwide processing and logistics network to deliver mail and small parcels nationwide in three days — two days for regional service — leveraging the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) for the “last mile†of delivery.
The MailExpress option fits between courier services such as United Parcel Service Inc. (NYSE: UPS) and first-class USPS service, said Frans van Schaik, managing partner at Logispring, a first-round investor in MailExpress.
Zumbox lines up partner to launch paperless postal service
| June 9th, 2009
Zumbox is announcing a new partner and a new chief executive today to prepare for its launch of a national paperless postal service.
The Westlake Village, Calif.-based company said it has partnered with ALC, a data marketing service provider, to help launch its system, which lets companies send you bills or friends send you correspondence to a digital mailbox, eliminating the need to send paper letters or bills through the U.S. Postal Service. The company came out of stealth mode in February.
Zumbox has also hired Donn Rappaport, ALC’s own CEO, as its new chief executive. Rappaport will remain chairman of ALC, which he founded in 1978. ALC will help Zumbox with sales and marketing. Maury Friedman, founder and chariman of Zumbox, said the moves represent a new stage of growth for the company. Zumbox will start its national service in September.
Zumbox lets you send or receive scanned, physical representations of letters, bills or other things you might normally send via paper mail. You can log into your mailbox at the Zumbox site and then receive digital delivery of your mail.
And you don’t have to put a stamp on anything. For now, it’s free for everyone except advertisers and marketers, who can pay for premium service. Consumers can now view online the mail they wish to receive and the service allows them to access it from anywhere at anytime via the Internet. And the service doesn’t take a day off on Sundays.
Zumbox has created a digital mailbox for every street address in the U.S. So companies can send bills via Zumbox. You open them and they look like scanned versions of the real paper bills. The Zumbox site will let you look at a variety of media in the form of HTML, Flash, audio, and video. Nonprofits, businesses, government entities and consumers can use it for free.
Zumbox mailboxes are secure, since the company uses a closed system with security measures that meet the toughest regulations, such as the medical-record HIPAA law. Users get a secure PIN number, which they receive from Zumbox via paper mail, just to make sure that scammers don’t hijack your mail. The benefit of the closed system is there’s no junk mail. Consumers can still order and use a variety of electronic payment systems. They can also browse through the catalogs they want to see and order goods.
Zumbox will charge advertisers and marketers because it gives them real-time campaign measurement tools that are unavailable through traditional mail. Marketers and advertisers can also send mail to a single address, a mailing list, or a specific geographic region such as all of the homes in a specific zip code.
The company was founded in 2007. It has 33 employees and has raised $4 million from private investors. Rivals include Earth Class Mail, another provider of alternative mail services.
Dodger Stadium now has its own ZIP code
According to Major League Baseball, “Dodger Stadium and the associated property now have a new ZIP code to go along with the new “Dodgertown, CA” name it was designated in October 2008. The Los Angeles Dodgers announced Saturday that the United States Postal Service will designate Dodger Stadium and its property with the new 90090 ZIP.” [EdNote: Oh, I get it. Dodgertown gets its own zip code, but towns and villages elsewhere are being told we're running out of five-digit zip codes. No wonder people in Congress are ripped with the Postal Service.]
Lands’ End becomes first catalogue client of Royal Mail’s Sustainable Mail service
by Noelle McElhatton, Marketing Direct 27-May-09, 09:00
LONDON – Upmarket clothes catalogue Lands’ End has been signed up as the first mail order client of Royal Mail’s green DM postal service, Sustainable Mail.
The service, launched in April, offers a lower price tariff for mail that meets environmental criteria in line with the new DM green standard, PAS 20:20. Black Horse Personal Finance and Standard Life are already using Sustainable Mail.
Lands’ End, which sells high quality casual clothing and footwear by mail order and online, has just posted its first catalogues using the Sustainable Mail service.
Direct mail posted through Sustainable Mail is priced up to 4.7 per cent lower than standard Mailsort prices and is available to mail users that meet criteria based on three environmental criteria: improved sustainability, minimised waste and increased recyclability.
Tim Curtis, Lands’ End managing director, said Sustainable Mail would help the mail order firm “ensure every aspect of our catalogue distribution programme is sustainable”.
“We were already doing what we thought was right for the environment, such as delivering our catalogues without polywrap, but Sustainable Mail highlighted other ways we could be more environmentally friendly, and rewards us for doing them. It’s a great service and we’re delighted to give it our seal of approval.”
Summer Postage Sale – well, sort of a sale, no, more like a small rebate
summer sale
To those that are excited about the impending summer postage sale, there are a few details you need to know, first, did you receive a letter from the USPS recently?
Here is what it looks like: summer-sale-electronic-letter
Here are the details:
The USPS has made it official (almost) that they are going forward with the proposed ‘Summer Sale’ event. The PRC must still weigh in with their decision, which is expected in late May, to make this program official. This program would provide a 30% postage credit on mailings submitted between July 1, 2009 and September 30, 2009. This incentive program is designed to increase mailing activity during the usually dormant summer months, when the USPS has their most excess capacity available.
Unlike most sales however, there are a multitude of qualifiers that apply to the Summer Sale.
Who and what qualifies?
For the most part, the USPS has already determined what mailers qualify. Letters were sent out on 5/7/09 to approximately 3,200 mailers whom they determined will be eligible for this program by utilizing the mail volume data that exists within their internal system.
1. This program only applies to Presorted Standard letters and flats.
2. The next qualifier is that you must have mailed a minimum of 1,000,000 pieces during the time period of October 1, 2007 and March 31, 2008. Total volume is calculated by mailer, so even if you utilize multiple permits, your total volume will be calculated across all permits that are associated to your organization. This also applies to “Ghost Numbersâ€, which are created if your mail is sent through a Mail Service Provider. If you feel you are eligible, but have not received a letter, then you can request a contact by emailing your information to summersale@usps.gov.
If you have met the criteria above, you are ready to begin to calculate the ‘Sale’ portion of the program. The 30% postage credit will be given only on the number of mail pieces that exceed your mailing threshold for the time period of July 1, 2009 to September 30, 2009. The caveat to this all is that your mail volume in October must not fall below your mailing threshold for that month. If this occurs; the total credit accrued from mailings between 7/1/09 to 9/30/09 will be deducted by the amount of pieces that fell below the threshold in October and that will be the final credit. The credit will be issued at some point in December of 2009 once the USPS has completed the above calculations.
How to calculate your potential savings:
Below is an example of how to calculate the savings that you as a mailer may receive through this program. Listed in this example is the all important Threshold, which will be the key to planning your mailings to take advantage of this program.
1. Base volume (7/1/08 – 9/30/08): 500,000 pieces
2. Trend:
a. Volume 10/1/08 – 3/31/09 = 1,800,000 pieces
b. Volume 10/1/07 – 3/31/08 = 2,000,000 pieces
c. a/b = (1,800,000 / 2,000,000) = .90 or 90%
3. Base x trend = Threshold:
500,000 x .90 = 450,000
4. Rebate = (Actual volume – threshold) x (actual postage cost / actual volume) x 30%
a. Actual volume for 7/1/09 – 9/30/09 – threshold =
475,000 – 450,000 = 25,000 pieces
b. Actual postage cost / actual volume =
$103,075 / 475,000 = $0.217
c. Rebate =
25,000 x $0.217 x .3 = $1627.50
The October Effect:
It is important to keep your mailing volume for October in mind when factoring the potential savings. If your volume falls below the calculated threshold, then your overall credit will be impacted. Below is an example of how to calculate this effect.
a. October 2008 volume x trend (in #2 above) = October threshold:
300,000 x .90 = 270,000 pieces
b. If October 2009 (260,000 pieces) < October threshold:
Threshold – actual = adjustment
270,000 – 260,000 = 10,000
Rebate adjustment
a. Actual volume – summer sale threshold – rebate adjustment:
475,000 – 450,000 – 10,000 = 15,000
b. New rebate:
15,000 x $.217 x .3 = $976.50
For those of you that have received a letter; be sure to certify the volume that the USPS has provided to you since this will be a binding once you have agreed to enroll in the program. Also be sure to have your response in by August 1st, 2009.
This program is a great way to potentially reach more customers at a lower cost and therefore enhance your business’ ROI. The system is not perfect, but it is a step in the right direction for the USPS to utilize their new found pricing freedom to help mailers.
From the Federal Register today:
Federal Register Notices
DATE: Pending publication in the Federal Register.
Standard Mail Volume Incentive Program (aka Summer Sale)
AGENCY: Postal Serviceâ„¢.
ACTION: Final rule.
SUMMARY:
The Postal Service is revising Mailing Standards of the United States Postal Service, Domestic Mail Manual (DMM®), to add section 709.2 which introduces new standards for a special volume incentive program for mailers of Standard Mail® letters and flats with mail volume exceeding their individual USPS™-determined threshold levels. The program period will be from July 1, 2009 through September 30, 2009.
EFFECTIVE DATE: July 1, 2009.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Kevin Gunther at 202-268-7208.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
The Postal Service is implementing a volume incentive program for qualified high-volume mailers of commercial or Nonprofit Standard Mail letters and flats, for volume mailed between July 1, 2009 and September 30, 2009, above their USPS-determined threshold level. This program encourages mailers to provide new volume and to take advantage of our current excess capacity to process and deliver additional volume.
postage increase goes into effect on Monday, May 11th
I would be remiss if I did not remind you that the postage increase goes into effect on Monday, May 11th. Here is a link to the new rates!
http://www.usps.com/prices/pricechanges.htm?from=prices&page=NewMay09Prices
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