When's the last time you checked out your Postal Service's web site?
You might be surprized at the valuable business information you can
find. It's difficult to speak in specifics, given that readers of this
article are international but each country's postal service has different
terminology, regulations and rules. However, a visit to Australia
Post, Canada Post and the US Postal Service web sites revealed
similarities.

Did you know the following?

1. There are many ways to reduce your shipping costs.
As an old buddy of my mine says, you can get it good, cheap or fast.
Pick any two. That's the rule of thumb for shipping products.
Typically, the larger the product and the faster you want it delivered,
the more you will pay. However, there are other considerations. The
physical dimensions of the product, the weight and even the density
can impact on the cost of shipping. If you ship a lot of items, spend
some time with a postal service consultant to decide your most cost -
effective method of packing and your best choice of shipping
options.

Your postal consultant can also offer security advice -- insurance
options and information about protective packaging materials that
safeguard your items.

2. You can save money with bulk mailings.

You might qualify for a discount if you have a high volume of
material to be mailed and shipped. For example, the US Postal
Service allows discounts for Parcel Post mailings of 50 items or
more, but you must first obtain a Mailing Permit and pay an annual
mailing fee. Most postal services have similar options. You pay a
lower price if you meet minimum requirements and because you do
some of the work -- like presorting by postal code -- yourself.

Bulk mailing is available for envelopes, postcards and parcels.

Tip: Include as much material as you can for the price you're paying.
Adding some advertising material to an envelope containing your
invoice might not elevate the price per unit and will do double duty.

3. You can Send Unaddressed Bulk Mail

Use economical, unaddressed bulk mail to deliver your advertising
and marketing content directly to targeted neighborhoods. You can
target according to geography, demographics or lifestyle clusters.
When you combine this with a Business Reply service, you can build
your own databases of customers who you can then target with
personalized, addressed mail.

Prices for unaddressed mail will vary, according to quantity, size,
weight, etc.

Ask your Postal Service consultant if they can help you establish the
best geographic territory for your mailing. For example, Canada
Post's Householder Counts and Maps feature pinpoints the counts of
houses, apartments, farms and businesses throughout the country, along
with letter carrier routes.

4. Business Reply Services Help you Build your own Databases

The reply is prepaid. Business Reply Mail allows your customers or
potential customers to communicate with you at no cost to
themselves. Most postal services allow business reply for cards or
envelopes. Use envelopes when confidentiality is a factor; cards
work best as magazine inserts or similar.

Pricing will be based on specifications.

Ask your postal consultant if they have a template to assist you in
designing your card or envelope, or check the web site for this type
of service.

4. Your Postal Service Offers Tools to Small Businesses

This will vary, depending on the country you live in. However, look
for databases, online ordering of shipping and other materials,
courier services, help with ecommerce web sites, package tracking
and more. Australia Post offers inventory management,
telemarketing, warehousing and fulfillment services as well.

Spend some time on your Postal Service's web site. You might be
pleasantly surprized at what you find.

About the Author

June Campbell
How to Write Business Plans, Business Proposals,
JV Contracts,Human Resource Package, More!
No-cost ebook "Beginners Guide to Ecommerce".
Business Writing by Nightcats Multimedia Productions
http://www.nightcats.com