Informed Delivery-“ Post Office to go”

As everyone involved with print, paper and mailing know, the postal service is critical to the success of each industry. Direct mail marketing, newsletters and other publications rely on mail to get the “job” done.

Did you know there is a new service called Informed Delivery? With this free service, you can preview incoming mail daily, as you will receive an email showing a gray scale image of the address size of all letter size mail arriving at your address when mail pieces are processed through USPS automated equipment. There is also the ability to track packages and leave delivery instructions if you will not be there to receive a package.

As stated in the Domtar Blueline blog (Domtarblueline.com), there is more to the program than just seeing what is coming that day. From a blog post by Tammy Tufty: The USPS Informed Delivery® program also targets consumers in a groundbreaking way, by offering them digital previews of their paper mail. It increases the time that people interact with mail, and it increases the number of eyes on mail, because multiple household members use the service. Not only does more mail reach intended audiences, Gary Reblin Vice President of Product Innovation for the U.S. Postal Service, explains, but marketers can use Informed Delivery to make mail work harder, because they can incorporate branding, coupon codes or links into their digital preview, so customers can instantly interact with their brand. Informed Delivery has been criticized for lessening the mail moment, but Reblin affirms, “It’s incredibly popular, with over 12 million users and a 72.5% open rate, as compared to email’s open rate of just over 20%.”

Informed Delivery is a game changer for many households, in how they receive and perceive mail, as well as for our industries.

You can read more about this service and learn how to sign up and use it, by visiting www.informeddelivery.usps.com, or accessing the free mobile app for iOS, Android, and Windows smartphones or tablets using The Apple App Store, or Google Play.