Mailing/Fulfillment - Postal Trends

By Erik Cagle Senior Editor Postal reform is the rally cry for 2005 in the commercial printing industry. Though it seems the cries are strong only from a select group, as opposed to a unison shout from the industry collective. In other words, a relatively small amount of people are making a big stink to Congress about the need for reform of the United States Postal Service (USPS), an entity that is still operating under guidelines set in 1971. Guidelines, mind you, established before the onslaught of private sector parcel delivery options and well before the invention of the Internet, both of which have

It's surprising, sometimes, how misleading a simple piece of punctuation can be. Consider the ampersand that's so routinely tossed in between the words "mailing" and "fulfillment." One might almost think the two specialties went together like Ham and Eggs. In fact, mailing and fulfillment are dramatically different propositions, and printers considering diversifying into mailing services need to keep the distinction clearly in mind. This September's PRINT 05 & CONVERTING 05 aims to support these diversification strategies with a special exhibit section whose title uses the ampersand, but whose content will highlight the diverse demands of the two fields. (See sidebar.) The striking growth of

By Mary Ann Bennett One of the hottest business trends of 2004 is the move many printers are making to bring mailing and fulfillment services into their line of offerings for their clients. Whether through acquisition, partnering, expansion or a combination, the trend is on an exciting upswing and there appears to be no end in sight. However, careful planning should be utilized before progressing down this path. It has already been shown that moving headfirst into this new venture without diligent attention can lead to a waste of time, money and effort for everyone involved. Step 1: Develop a Strategic Plan for Mailing. A common

By Tom Quinn The addition of fulfillment services is a natural business extension to the printer's core competency and has the advantage of allowing printers to differentiate themselves as solutions providers for their existing and potential clients. However, while the storage and shipment of materials that have been printed for a client appears to be a simple task, many printers have found the transition to be very difficult. There are many reasons why this is a more difficult transition than originally expected, but one of the primary reasons is always found to be the software system chosen as the fulfillment operating system (FOS). The following

By Robert B. Swick Merlin, the progeny of ABE, has acquired the persona of its predecessor in its formative years. Some would say, particularly those in the original test areas, that the reputation is well earned. And yet, Merlin—or Mail Evaluation Readability and Lookup Instrument—is simply a tool that helps expedite the mail flow by assuring that consistent, readable mail enters into the automated processing system. So why has Merlin become such a lightening rod in its early life? The root cause of this stigma, which came early and held as Merlin rolled out nationally, was an intense desire to bring a more exacting standard of accuracy

By Steve McNutt For today's printers, it is fast becoming a question of when, not if, they will provide mailing services to customers. Diversifying to offer services such as fulfillment and delivery of printed materials is a growing industry trend in a sector progressively challenged to become all things to all customers. The "one-stop shop" for all of a customer's printing and delivery needs is becoming more necessity than value-add in the struggle to remain competitive and broaden profit margins. And for customers of the printing business, there is no gray area. The message is in black-and-white: Don't offer these services, and customers will go somewhere

By Laine Ropson Helping your customers design a mailpiece that's both creative and meets the USPS automation requirements is...an oxymoron? A challenge? An opportunity? In the real world, it's all of the above. A mailpiece needs to be mailable, automation compatible and deliverable, as well as having a clear message. Back to Basics: Mailable Review the size of the mailpiece relative to the postage costs. Letter-size is cheaper than flats, for instance. Letter-size must be greater than the minimum mailing size (31⁄2x5x.007˝) and less than the maximum letter-size (61⁄8x111⁄2x1⁄4˝). Don't forget that the aspect ratio—length divided by height—must be between 1.3 and 2.5). If you want to use

By Mary Ann Bennett Mail since the 1990's and into the foreseeable future can be likened to a stool supported by three legs. The three legs are the U.S. Postal Service (USPS), the mailing industry and software. Remove any one of the legs and the stool cannot stand. Conversely, any one of the three legs could not exist without both of the other legs. * The mailers of the mailing industry would have no method of getting their mailpieces delivered to intended recipients without the USPS. Mailers cannot produce quantities of mail in today's technologically advanced world without software. * Software developers that

By Erik Cagle Senior Editor Today there is a distinct advantage for printers that offer mailing services to their clientele. Someday soon, there will be an extremely distinct disadvantage for those printers who do not offer mailing. Simply put, mailing capabilities may seem like a value-added, bonus service presently. Two years from now, those companies that have not committed to this discipline will find themselves in an unenviable minority. Mailing services has long been a core strength for Arandell Corp., according to H. Don Landis, its vice president of postal affairs. "The sad thing is, if you're not in the mailing arena, you're coming

By Erik Cagle President Kennedy put it best when he said: "Ask not what mailing services can do for you, ask what mailing services can do for your customers." OK, so there's a little liberty taking with the paraphrasing. But there is considerable value in putting another tool in the commercial printer's sales kit. Obviously, JFK never lived to see the marriage of printing and mailing under one roof. In his day, a dedicated mailing house handled direct mail. Commercial printers were still a generation away from uttering "one-stop shopping." They would soon realize the value of selling more to current customers, and