Mailing Systems Technology - September/October 2008 - (Page 47) concept. The complexity of the postal system lends itself to acronyms and technical terms. But still, what do you bring back to your boss, who is clearly looking for some “action items” around mailing better or smarter? Where do you turn to get answers? You know where many mailers turn? To their vendors. Consolidators, mail service providers and software companies are a primary sales and communications vehicle with USPS customers. Many end-users call these suppliers when they have mailing questions or concerns. And so suppliers have to be on top of every single postal issue. I would argue the Postal Service needs to view its partners in a new light. Despite the fact that postage costs make up a huge part of many mail-using companies’ budgets, these companies don’t see themselves as “in the mail business.” They often leave postal and mailing issues to their suppliers. The USPS has to view its relationship with these mail-related service companies differently. It should find ways to capitalize on the depth of experience and reach these “customers” bring to the marketplace. The Postal Service must keep its partners abreast of plans, actions or coming changes to postal operations and requirements. Communications have to be open and frank, and we can’t fall into the old patterns of hoarding information or withholding items until a big media event occurs. While the Postal Service has made tremendous progress in the past few years in enhancing its Ongoing communication will make us a communications, it still sometimes treats supstronger industry. If suppliers are in the loop pliers as secondary to “postage payers.” I find it every step of the way, they can reach out to a curious statement for postal officials to say they the larger market with all the necessary tools want to hear from “mailers” on a topic and not in hand. They can open the door to new suppliers. These suppliers are speaking for their customers. Wouldn’t it be great if we didn’t customers, the ones who leave it to them to care who opened the door as long as there is handle all their postal needs. The suppliers aren’t a customer walking through it? Now that’s a going up to headquarters and making things up. true partnership. Actually and in fact. They are telling the USPS what their customers — their joint customers — need to stay in the Kate Muth is VP of the Association for Postal mail and how they (as suppliers) are going to Commerce. Contact her at kmuth@postcom. dcc3042_Ga-VehrenAd_MST_v2 8/12/08 10:05 AM Page 1 provide it in the most efficient way possible. org, 703-524-0096 or visit www.postcom.org. Communication is at the heart of our industry. It is the business we are in. Yet we don’t always do a good job of communicating with each other. It’s not just that we take very technical concepts and boil them down to acronyms, it’s that we don’t keep each other in the loop about changes to operations or to regulations. What’s one of the keys to a successful marriage? Communication. Partners need to talk all the time. The Postal Service has to view all stakeholders as partners. Personalize. Package. Profit. Add impact to your mailings and create new sources of revenue with Datacard® Attacher® systems. Offering the most extensive range of product attaching and print finishing capabilities, these systems help you to attract a broad range of high-margin jobs and deliver them using a single system. Our flexible solutions are ideal for the gift, loyalty and financial industries, as well as direct mail houses, commercial printers and others. • Affix • Cross Fold • Plow Fold • Insert • Inkjet • Label • Tab • Score/Perforate Visit us at Graph Expo Booth 425 Datacard St. Louis Tel: 314.576.2007 www.ga-vehren.com ©2008 DataCard Corporation. All rights reserved. WWW.MAILINGSYSTEMSTECHNOLOGY.COM | SEPTEMBER-OCTOBER 2008 47 http://www.postcom.org http://www.collinsink.com http://www.collinsink.com http://www.collinsink.com http://www.MailingSystemsTechnology.com
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