Best Tips to Manage Your Postal Mail More Efficiently

This article is sponsored by Pitney Bowes, the leader in small business mailing solutions, and a proud supporter of OfficeArrow.

Even if your company relies more on email than ever before, it's likely that you've still got plenty of important snail mail associated with your business. The need to send invoices, legal documents, payments, advertisements, promotions, even handwritten thank you notes is still very much a part of the American landscape.
So while you may have thought that with the advent of email and social media you'd have one less task to handle, in fact, managing your postal mail more efficiently is still vital to ensuring the effectiveness of your small business.
Current Trends in Printed Mail Services
Yes, the number of pieces of first-class mail posted through the U.S. Postal Service (http://www.usps.com/postalhistory/_pdf/FirstClassMail1926to2010.pdf) has declined from its peak in 2001 (103,656 million) to its current level in 2010 (78,203 million). However, statistics in a 2010 study (http://www.directmarketingnewswire.com/2010/August/Young-Adults-Strongly-Prefer-Offline-to-Online-Sources-for-Marketing-Offers-Research-Reveals.htm) of 2569 U.S. households and 2209 Canadian households focused on consumer preferences in regard to the delivery of marketing information, offers and promotions. The results showed that:

•  36% of U.S. respondents in 2010 said information is more private if sent through the mail vs. email or online, up from 29% in 2008; corresponding responses in Canada were 38% and 35%

•  25% of U.S. respondents in 2010 said a lot of online information can't be trusted, up from 19% in 2008; corresponding responses in Canada were 28% and 24%

•  20% of U.S. respondents in 2010 said they trust information received by mail more than online, up from 12% in 2008; corresponding responses in Canada were 25% and 18%.

Things may be changing when it comes to how you communicate with customers and vendors. However, the need to manage your postal mail efficiently is still relevant to today's small business.
Managing Your Postal Mail Efficiently
Remember a time when the best place to get your foot in the door of an organization was to get a job in the mail room? Well, business still revolves around the very real need to communicate. And while working your way up from the mail room may be a long-lost tradition, making effective and efficient use of the tools found there is still important. Here are three tips to help.

•  Ensure the Required Tools and Supplies are Available

           The only way someone can be successful at their job is to ensure they have the tools and supplies necessary to perform at their best. For those    handling the mail this means access to items such as packing materials, envelopes and mailing labels.

•  Assign One Person Mail Responsibility

           Small businesses that don't have a large staff or big mail room will benefit from assigning one individual to handle the mail. This is the person    who collects, receives, sorts and distributes all the company mail and packages. They interface with the post office and other delivery services and run  errands related to postal services and supplies.

• Track Incoming and Outgoing Mail

Want to stay organized? Then you need a system. Developing a mail tracking system, such as a spreadsheet or log, will help you track pieces of mail.
You want employees to spend their valuable time on the important projects related to your business, not dealing with the mail. And with the proper system and tools you can manage your postal mail more efficiently.
Pitney Bowes is a $5.6 billion company that provides software, hardware and services that integrate physical and digital communications channels. The company employs 33,000 worldwide. Join us on Facebook, follow us on Twitter and catch us on YouTube.