Got Stimulus?
How About Giving Some to Business Mailers?
By Scott Gerschwer, OutputLinks
The U.S. Postal Service (USPS) recently filed its 2009 fiscal year-end financial results, showing a net loss of $3.8 billion for the year. Total mail volume was 177.1 billion pieces, compared to 202.7 billion pieces in 2008, a decline of more than 25 billion pieces, or 12.7 percent.
If other retailers were facing this kind of losses, they’d probably advertise a sale. Something a bit more useful than the Saturation Mail Volume Incentive Program, whatever that is (for details, check here >>>).
“We realize our customers are facing the same economic challenges,” said Postmaster General John Potter. “That’s why we are not raising prices on First-Class Mail, Standard Mail and our other market-dominant products in 2010.”
Well, that’s a start. But let’s see if other posts---also beset by economic challenges---are doing better.
The Royal Mail announced the UK’s first-ever ‘DM Sale’ to help advertisers who use direct mail to try new campaign tactics and encourage those that don’t to discover its benefits. It’s a two month trial that gives a discount of 20 percent on new or additional mailings during March and April 2010.
This initiative is designed to encourage advertisers who don’t use direct mail to test it as a stand alone activity or as part of an integrated campaign. It also enables existing DM users to try different campaign tactics during the two-month period.
Recent research carried out by media agency group OMG, on behalf of Royal Mail, showed that direct mail can improve the performance of other marketing activities, with digital campaigns seeing a 62 per cent increase in payback when combined with direct mail.
The study also revealed direct mail as the only advertising channel to show an increase in response rates in the first half of 2009.
The mail works.
So if President Obama wants to stimulate the economy, he’d do well to extend some stimulus funding to the USPS and business mailers to encourage the greater use of the postal system. This would stimulate the economy, increase tax revenues in the long haul and get business moving again.
Let’s put things into perspective: The loss suffered by the USPS this year is probably less than the cost of one wing on one fighter jet. And if it stimulates more business---and all indications are that mail does stimulate more business---than it is a worthwhile program for inclusion in a stimulus package. As bad as things are, the USPS generated over $68 billion in revenue last year. That’s not too shabby.