What You Can Do to Stop the USPS' Appeal of the Exigent Postage Rate Increase
I don’t know how much more I can do or say about the U.S. Postal Service and its stupidity. I've made all kinds of suggestions on how it can increase its revenues, incentivize companies to try mail and win back customers who have abandoned the channel.
I even wrote a fake testimonial letter from an online marketing company thanking the USPS for helping it build their business.
And yet the madness continues …
Not happy with the Postal Regulatory Commission's (PRC) rejection of an exigent postage rate increase of 5 percent-plus, the USPS is back to its dirty, old tricks. It's filed an appeal to have the PRC's decision overturned. It's unbelievable how our beloved Post Office consistently bites the hand that feeds it.
But there isn’t much more I can say on the matter. I need your help. Specifically, here are a few ways to join the fight:
Get involved. One organization that's working on the behalf of the catalog industry is the American Catalog Mailers Association (ACMA). "The real harm this does right now is it creates uncertainty for mailers when they're trying to make crucial mailing plans and need predictability," says Paul Miller, deputy director and vice president of the ACMA. "But it's a legal matter at this point, and we're working closely with the Affordable Mail Alliance and other groups to determine what our next best steps should be." Also working on your behalf is the Direct Marketing Association. Get more info on its government affairs mission here.
Of course you can lobby directly to the Post Office. Contact the Postmaster General by writing here:
Jack Potter
475 L’Enfant Plaza, SW
Washington, D.C. 20260-0010
Well, that’s it for me this week, short and sweet. Make contact, do something.
And feel free to post a comment below with your opinion about this postage rate increase debacle, as well as any ideas or suggestions to help.
- Categories:
- Shipping
- Companies:
- Direct Marketing Association
- People:
- Jack Potter
- Jim Gilbert
- Places:
- SW Washington, DC
Jim Gilbert has had a storied career in direct and digital marketing resulting in a burning desire to tell stories that educate, inform, and inspire marketers to new heights of success.
After years of marketing consulting, Jim decided it was time to “put his money where his mouth was" and build his own e-commerce company, Premo Natural Products, with its flagship product, Premo Guard Bed Bug & Mite Sprays. Premo in its second year is poised to eclipse 100 percent growth.
Jim has been writing for Target Marketing Group since 2006, first on the pages of Catalog Success Magazine, then as the first blogger for its online division. Jim continues to write for Total Retail.
Along the way, Jim has led the Florida Direct Marketing Association as their Marketing Chair and then three-term President, been an Adjunct Professor of Direct and Digital marketing for Miami International University, and created a lecture series, “The 9 Immutable Laws of Social Media Marketing,” which he has presented across the country at conferences and universities.
