Parcel - April 2008 - (Page 35)

and packages that hit our docks in the afternoon go out the next day. Most of those packages are delivered the ﬁrst time we take them out. For those that aren’t, we offer free convenient re-delivery — which is free even on Saturdays. For those customers who would rather pick up their packages when they are out doing errands, our Post Ofﬁces are conveniently located in the towns and neighborhoods where they work and shop. And everyone knows where to ﬁnd their local Post Ofﬁce. One of the primary reasons “Parcel Select” is growing is because of the low cost. Prices for “Parcel Select” packages dropped off at a Post Ofﬁce (Destination Delivery Unit or DDU) range from $1.47 for a one-pound package to $4.00 for a 70 lb package. A typical ﬁve-pound package can be delivered for $1.71. As with all Postal Service shipping choices, there are no back-end surcharges, such as fuel, residential delivery, extended area locations and bad addresses fees, just to name a few. If you are using “Parcel Select” through a third-party logistics provider, there will be additional costs for transportation and value-added services. Whether you use this product through a regional consolidator or through FedEx SmartPost, DHL@Home or UPS Basic, you will beneﬁt from the new Postal Service pricing incentives that are effective on May 12 2008. There will be two types of pricing incentives for “Parcel Select” packages that are dropped off at Post Ofﬁces for the last mile of delivery: Declining Block Price Incentives: These incentives reduce prices for shippers who spend at least $5 million in total “Parcel Select” postage and who increase their volume of Parcel Select packages year over year. This incentive is in the form of an end-of-year rebate ranging from .25% to 1.5% off the price for packages that were entered at the DDU. Growth Incentives: These incentives reduce prices even further for shippers who spend at least $5 million in total “Parcel Select” Postage and who increase their total volume as well as the total volume they drop at the DDU year-overyear. This incentive is also in the form of an end-of-year rebate. New volume dropped at the DDU qualiﬁes for a discount between two percent and 14%, depending on how much postage the shipper spends and how much additional DDU volume they generated. No one can deliver packages into the neighborhood better economically than the Postal Service. We’re at every business and household every day — six days a week. And our capabilities aren’t just at the “Last Mile.” Now we’re more competitive at the First Mile as well — Package Returns. We created “Parcel Select” to press our home court advantage: We’re at every home and business in America six days www.PARCELindustry.com a week with reliable service at an affordable cost. “Parcel Return Service” is the companion product to “Parcel Select,” providing a quick, easy and convenient way for consumers to return packages at a very low cost. Return labels can be provided with an order, by email or through a merchant’s website. The need for reverse logistics — Returns, Repairs, Recalls and Recycles — is increasing year after year. There is increasing interest in recycling by environmentally conscious consumers. They don’t want to add their discarded cell phones, MP3 players and other electronic gadgets to the nation’s landﬁlls. They’d rather recycle them. In fact, the Postal Service just launched a pilot “Mail Back” program that lets customers discard these items. With this program, postage is paid by the companies recycling these products. And no one can take a returned package out of the household better than we can. That’s because of the convenience! Merchants and Internet shopping sites know they need to make returns easy to get repeat business. It’s incredibly easy to return a package by handing it to a letter carrier, dropping it in a Postal collection box or taking it to a local Post Ofﬁce. Jim Cochrane And like “Parcel Select,” “Parcel Return Service” offers en-route tracking to help businesses manage their returns process better. Delivering more residential packages — and picking up more return packages — are the new goals for the Postal Service. They’re smart goals that bring increased value to our customers and to our company. To help us get even more ground package business, we’re offering pricing incentives on “Parcel Select” for volume and for packages that are dropped at the back docks of our Post Ofﬁces, where our costs are lower and where we can provide the best service to our customers. And we’ve lowered our prices for lightweight “Parcel Return Service” packages that are picked up at our Post Ofﬁces by a merchant or their agent. We’ve changed our pricing for “Parcel Return Service” packages picked up at Post Ofﬁces (Return Delivery Units or RDUs) to weight-based. That has resulted in a 20% price reduction that will help us attract more users of this product. But we’re not stopping there. Soon you will be hearing more about our ability to negotiate contracts for ground shipping, enabling us to match our capabilities to those of our customers — a “win-win” for us and for you. Jim Cochrane is the Vice President, Ground Packages for the United States Postal Service. He can be reached at jim.p.cochrane@usps.gov. ■ Spring 2008 35 http://www.PARCELindustry.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Parcel - April 2008

PARCEL - April 2008 Contents Editor's Note Moving Forward Recycling for Safety’s Sake Want Some Good News? Negotiations Have No Finish Line... Lowering your Parcel Shipping Costs Meeting Industry Challenges New Pricing, New Opportunities Time to Track It’s Scan-tastic! 10 Recycling Facts The New USPS Law Changes New Law, New Opportunities for Package Shippers A Diamond in the Rough Seven Shipping Trends for 2010 ...and Beyond The Move Update Changes A Simple Shipping Solution A Case Study in Efficiency New Products and Services Industry News Advertiser Index

Parcel - April 2008

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