Tweet Under tremendous pressure to reduce its deficits, the USPS has decided to increase postage rates while substantially reducing the speed of delivery for most first class mail. The postage rate increase is scheduled to go into effect on January 22, 2012, and now today, the USPS released its recommendations to slow down first class mail . Does this make sense? It just seems counterintuitive for the USPS to say to its customers “We’re going to offer you an inferior product, but charge you more.” While most organizations have been forced to reevaluate their business plans in light of a changing economy, I can’t think of another organization brazen enough to do something like this. It certainly seems like an invitation for USPS customers to use competitors or come up with alternatives that do not involve the USPS. As a bulk mail professional, I’m heavily committed to direct mail marketing. It’s a cornerstone of my clients’ marketing, so I’m certainly not ready to abandon it. While I’m very discouraged by this latest turn of events, ironically, there are some genuinely positive steps that the USPS has taken over the course of the last 12 months. So is the USPS making any positive changes? • Introduction of Every Door Direct Mail (EDDM) Recognizing that the direct mail market for small businesses in the United States was largely untapped, the USPS took a step in the right direction with the introduction of EDDM. This simplified bulk mail

Read More:
Marketer’s Nightmare: USPS Combines Slower Service with Higher Postage Rates