News
 5
Tips for Surviving the Shock of Shape-Based Postage
Direct mail marketers nationwide were dreading the
May 14th enforcement of new regulations from the
Postal Service™ establishing a set of postage rates
based on the shape, weight and size of a mailpiece.
And for many of them, especially catalogers, it has
created an epidemic of postal rate shock sure to
cause tremors for months, if not years, to come. Is
there a cure?
Review the 5 tips below to discover what size
mailpieces will save you money, what design
characteristics (flaws) will cost you money, and how
address cleaning solutions can improve your bottom
line. Be sure to click on the Postal Rate Case
Report link at the end of the article.
Tip #1 Size matters
According to George Heinrich, AKA, The Postal
Professor, each type of mailing has its advantages
and disadvantages:
Letters
• Lowest rates
• Automated processing runs at 10 feet per
second—36,000 per hour with two people
• Most regulations to qualify for discounts
Flats
• Rates about 35 percent to 88 percent higher than
letters
• Process at 17,000 per hour with six people
• Fewer regulations to qualify for discounts
Non-Flat Machinable (new)
• Standard Mail® only
• New rate category for some letter and flat size
mailpieces that do not meet specific USPS®
guidelines (weight, flexibility or rigidity).
• Rates are between 37 percent and 116 percent
higher than automation flats
• Rates are between 10 percent and 32 percent lower
than parcels
• Usually processed manually
Parcels
• Some First-Class™ pieces not meeting specific USPS
guidelines fall into this category
• Many parcels are processed on automated equipment
at around 2500 per hour with four to six people
• A high percentage of parcels can only be processed
manually
• First-Class parcel rates are between 64 percent
and 83 percent higher than flats
• Discounted parcels are now required to have a
barcode or you pay a surcharge
Tip #2 Design matters
Heinrich says design is important based on the
following three points:
• The USPS has chosen to price their services based
on how much it costs them to process
• If the mailpiece doesn’t fit the automated
equipment, postage costs will be substantially
higher due to manual processing
• Mail without a barcode costs 11 times more to mail
Tip #3 Give postcards priority over letters
The USPS wants you to consider First-Class Mail®
postcards as an alternative to mail letters, due to
the following two points:
• They are ideal for invitations, events and
notifications
• Unlike letters, the message on postcards is front
and center (no “openability” issues)
Tip #4 Avoid surcharges
To avoid a 17-cent surcharge for First-Class
letters, the USPS recommends that you eliminate the
following non-machinable characteristics:
• Raw edges
• Folded edges
• Bound edges
Tip #5 Cut costs by cleaning first
The USPS proposes the following list cleaning
solutions to reduce undeliverable as addresses mail:
• CASS™
• DPV™
• LACSLink™
• NCOALink®
In conclusion, the best way to avoid confusion is to
stay informed. Learn as much as you can about the
new rates and regulations. Decide on a design before
you print to make sure you are getting the maximum
discount. Consider reducing flat- size mail to meet
letter-size specifications, and when mailing parcel
type pieces, make sure packaging is not much larger
than contents. Finally, clean up mailing lists to
assure deliverability.
View the Postal Rate Case Report in PowerPoint
---Sources: The
Postal Professor (info@postalprofessor.com;
303-325-3048) and USPS (www.usps.com)
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Melissa Data
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