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Getting In to Mailing
December 4, 2007
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Question: As a small commercial printer looking to expand our services, is it possible to get into mailing without going out and hiring someone who used to work at the post office or a mailing house? Is the current state of mailing software sophisticated enough to keep beginners from making costly mistakes, and taking the profit out of mailing?
Brian Bell
Pella Printing Co., Inc.
Certainly there’s no one better equipped to handle this question than internationally recognized mailing and fulfillment expert Clint Bolte! This experienced consultant offers seven tips for successful mailing services:
1. Knowledge and Experience
Your Mailing Services Product Manager should have first hand knowledge and experience of the USPS mailing regulations, Direct Mail Manual (DMM).
2. Don’t go postal
It is not recommended that you hire a former USPS employee. While they have the requisite knowledge of DMM, they are not used to working for small enterprises where the key employees must act like entrepreneurs and are willing to learn every job, perform every task, and work whatever hours that are required.
3. Lean on your vendors
Mailing softwares, such as BCC and Satori, have excellent 24/7 customer services to help beginners run the programs well. Yes, it is highly sophisticated, but very straightforward. They are very much in sync with DMM as well.
4. Be profit-minded
If you know DMM and the Mailing Services Product Manager has the discipline of assuring that the (a) lists are cleansed, (b) the inkjeting staff puts out clean and accurately placed addressing, and (c) you charged fairly for all services provided, i.e., don’t give the extra work away, the Mailing Services business can be a profit contributor to the overall business.
5. Share your knowledge
Become a member of your local USPS PCC (Postal Client Council) to learn from other mailers as well.
6. Train everyone
Top management of the printing company should meet their local USPS account representative and take advantage of a number of training materials and brief seminars available locally at no charge.
7. Don’t skip #6
If you expect to turn the new Mailing Services business over to your Product Manager without you and your top management team getting up to speed on mailing's vertical learning curve, please don’t get into the business! Clients with screwed up mailing jobs will walk out the door, taking away their printing and fulfillment as well.
Posted by Hal Hinderliter on December 4, 2007 | Comments (2)
