Distribution Directions Vol 9 No 2 Simplified Addressing, 2011 Logistics Rate, Summer Sale Rebates, Gift Cards and Full Service IMB

The U.S. Postal Service hopes to encourage more small businesses to use its direct-mail services by easing rules for simplified addressing, such as using “Postal Customer” instead of a full name and exact address. Click here to view the dedicated USPS webpage and to download a step-by-step user’s guide. Simplified addressing currently is an accepted option on rural routes and for government mailings, but beginning this year it will be expanded to saturation flat-size mail pieces, for mailing to every address in a geographic area. The expansion of simplified addressing can help lower costs by reducing mail preparation time and eliminating the need to purchase address lists.

Source: B2B Online & USPS

2011 Logistics Rate Outlook - Going Up!

Volatile oil and diesel prices, capacity shortages, another looming driver crisis, debilitating regulatory uncertainties, and an improving economy have lead industry analysts across all modes to one conclusion: Shippers will have to shoulder some of the burden associated with escalating transportation costs this year. Join a panel of leading analysts as they give shippers our annual update on the current state of the truckload (TL), less-than-truckload (LTL), rail, air, and ocean markets and help shippers get a better idea of where rates will be heading across all the modes in the coming year. Click here to register.

Source: Logistics Management

USPS 2010 Summer Sale Generates $69 Million in Rebates

The U.S. Postal Service has submitted its 2010 Summer Sale Data Collection Report to the Postal Regulatory Commission (PRC). According to the Postal Service, “information on rebates settled after this report is filed will be provided to the Commission in a final data collection report.” To date, the Postal Service has given over $69 million in rebates on over 1.1 billion pieces of eligible volume. NOTE: Don’t forget about the 2011 Saturation/High Density Standard Mail Incentive Program. Customers wanting to participate must have their applications accepted by January 31, 2011. The program will run from January 2, 2011 through December 31, 2011. More details can be view here.

Source: PostCom

Post Office to Offer Gift Cards

The USPS wants to get into the gift card business. Pre-paid cards have become one of the most popular gift items and postal officials want to do more than just deliver them to the lucky recipients. So they plan a two-year test beginning in May, with about 2,000 post offices selling cards issued by companies such as American Express, Discover, MasterCard or Visa, according to papers filed with the Postal Regulatory Commission. The first test will be at post offices that also sell greeting cards. If that works out, the experiment will expand to another 3,000 offices or so in October in hopes of getting in on holiday card sales. The National Retail Federation estimates that more than three-quarters of consumers purchase at least one gift card during the holiday season.

Source: Washington Post

Full Service IMb: The Cornerstone to the Success of the Mailing Industry

According to Tom Day, USPS Senior VP of Intelligent Mail and Address Quality, Intelligent Mail provides the bridge that links the physical delivery of an item of mail with the digital information associated with it. This digital information includes the sender, the preparer, type of mail, the recipient, and unique identity of each individual item. Intelligent Mail provides visibility throughout the supply chain as well as return and response data.

Source: Mailing Systems Technology

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