The Intelligent Mail® barcode – scheduled to replace POSTNET™ and PLANET® barcodes beginning in May 2009 – promises to raise the level of service the USPS provides to its customers while helping them control costs in the face of new rate increase limits, higher fuel costs and changing workforce skills. This mandate will help the USPS improve deliverability, provide new service and increase overall efficiency, but transitioning to this new barcode will require a significant effort from mailers.
Key benefits include:
- Maximum postal savings
- Visibility into the mailstream, including mail piece tracking
- Increased customer knowledge and less undeliverable mail
- More efficient print and mail operations
- Better looking mail pieces
As of May 2009, mailers looking to earn the maximum postal discounts will be required to implement the Full-Service Intelligent Mail® barcode. (The POSTNET™ and Basic IM™ barcodes will be priced the same at a higher rate, and the POSTNET™ barcode will be phased out entirely by May 2010.)
History of the Intelligent Mail® Barcode
Over the years, the USPS has referred to this as OneCode, Intelligent Mail, IMB and the 4-State Barcode. Announced in 2003, the Intelligent Mail barcode became available in 2006. To date, several hundred high-volume mailers have already migrated to this new barcode, primarily to take advantage of specific USPS services, including OneCode ACS™ (electronic address change updates) and OneCode Confirm™ (mail tracking).
Barcode Specifics
The Intelligent Mail barcode is a height-modulated barcode that encodes up to 31-digits of mailpiece data into 65 vertical bars.
The code is made up of four distinct symbols, which is why this barcode was once referred to as the 4-State Customer Barcode. These are the tracker, ascender, descender, and full bar (TADF).
The data payload incorporates five fields, including a Mailer ID (identifies who sent the mail) and a Sequence Number (unique to this specific mail piece).
The Importance of Early Planning
As the first full-scale barcode change since the introduction of POSTNET™ in 1980, many companies may find themselves in uncharted territory. In addition to a new barcode format, the change requires new data fields, new printer fonts and new mail preparation processes.
This barcode impacts how information flows between you, the Postal Service and your customers. Learning how to take advantage of this data could have a tremendous effect on the overall profitability of your operation.
The Business Perspective: a One-time Opportunity
Early adopters have discovered great value in this new-found intelligence – value that can positively impact departments throughout your company, including marketing, sales, customer care, collections, finance, risk management and compliance.
Companies who are not planning to leverage the new tracking, addressing and productivity benefits should implement the new barcode with these benefits in mind for a simple reason: once you have gone through the hassles of a company-wide barcode change, you will not want to deal with it again. Fact is, it may not cost much more to do it right the first time.
The Operational Perspective: Multiple Choices
You can create barcodes at different points in your production process. In simplest terms, the further upstream you generate the barcode, the easier it may be to take advantage of the intelligence. The further downstream you generate the barcode, there may be less effort required to comply.
- Document Composition. Draw barcodes on documents using source data.
- Document Production. Centralize barcode creation on your production floor.
- Mail Piece Sorting. Manage Intelligent Mail® compliance just prior to induction.
- Third-Party Presort. Minimize your effort and save on postage.
How you manage the near-term implementation of this mandate could have long-term implications for your business. Larger companies may need to employ several strategies in order to achieve the best results.
The Connected Mailstream: New Customer Value
The Intelligent Mail® barcode makes it easier to leverage mailstream intelligence across your business. A sampling of benefits include: low-cost proof of mailing; more efficient customer care; elimination of unnecessary collection calls; more effective marketing; improved SLA tracking; less returned mail; automated job reconciliations; file-based processing; more accurate performance tracking; and of course, maximum postage savings.
Given the scope of this expected mandate, and the number of departments, documents and workflows it could affect within your business, mailers are encourages to assess their IMB readiness well in advance.