US Post announced today that it would stop delivery on Saturdays from August 5, 2013. Only about 12,400 people decided to vote on the CNN Poll after 12 hours of
the story and of them 69% claim that they would not miss Saturday
delivery. Those (31%) who would miss Saturday delivery include folks like this
blogger who receive “Time” magazine on Saturdays. Agreed the
“Time” magazine has become so much thinner and Newsweek has
disappeared into the digital world. One wonders if “Time” magazine
logistics folks understand this change at the USPS or whether the magazine will
now arrive on Mondays from August? At any rate, the implications of the
USPS stopping Saturday deliveries is huge for Direct (Junk) mail and
deliveries. Here is how:
- Direct Mail:
Is one thing that keeps USPS going. If you think about your relationships (Bank,
employer, utility company etc.) everyone is pushing to get you away from
mail and into “digital delivery.” Very very few personal
letters seem to come in these days. So what you are left with are all
those direct mail pieces. These include auto insurance deals, credit card
offers and similar stuff. And even these Direct Mail pieces have become
less grandiose. Fewer of those “real” credit cards that you have
trouble in putting through the shredder. In other words, even the
stalwarts of Junk mail seem to be shrinking on their investments. Given
the five day delivery starting in August, those Direct mailers who get
reasonable results from their investments should consider upping their
attention and budgets. There is so little competition in Direct Mail! - Deliveries
including subscriptions need to look at what no Saturday delivery means to
their customer satisfaction. “Time” magazine needs to probably
rework their deliveries so that the magazine reaches on Fridays from
August. Amazon.com and all other E-Commerce businesses need to look at how
their fulfillment works today. It does feel great to receive an order on
Saturday compared to Monday … perhaps USPS will come up with a solution
for this segment of its B2B customers.
77.3% of the US population was online in 2013 and in 2019 the 90% of the US population had Internet access according to Pew Research Center. , everyone
does enjoy receiving a piece of traditional mail occasionally just as
print media becomes less fashionable. Innovating in a shrinking market with
less clutter is an exciting challenge for Direct Mail marketers and postal
channel fulfillment business models. About StratoServe.