USPS Services Performance Results Release (3Q) - August 14, 2009
[Press Release.]The Postal Service™ measures service performance in terms of speed and reliability. Single-Piece First-Class Mail® includes letters, flats and parcels and is measured from collection box drop point to delivery. Presort First-Class Mail® includes commercial mail prepared by the mailers which is sorted to the finest extent required. Single-Piece First-Class Mail® International provides a measure of the domestic leg of travel for single-piece international mail.
Standard Mail® is a class of mail consisting of mailable matter that is not required to be mailed as First-Class Mail or Periodicals. Service performance for Periodicals (e.g. publications) and Package Services, which includes Parcel Post®, Bound Printed Matter, Media Mail® and Library Mail is measured from entry into the postal system to delivery. Special Services measures those services purchased in addition to the required postage such as Registered Mail™, Certified Mail™, Delivery Confirmation™, and Signature Confirmation™. Other types of service such as the timeliness of Post Office Box mail “uptimes” or the electronic transmission of data such as Confirm® are also included in Special Services.
Survey: Traditional Direct Marketing More Likely To Drive New Customer Web Traffic Than Online - July 14, 2009 Overview
More than twice as many UK consumers say traditional direct marketing is more likely than digital marketing to encourage them to go to a website and seriously consider a purchase from a company for the first time, a new poll from messaging specialist Pitney Bowes reveals.
The survey reveals that 60 percent of the respondents believe offline marketing, in the form of addressed mail or direct response advertising, is most likely to get them to visit the website of a company they have not bought from before with the intention of buying a product or service. Only 24 percent of the consumers surveyed said that a marketing message delivered through digital media such as email, a sponsored web link, or an ad on a social networking website would drive them to a company site with a first-time purchase in mind.
The figures came out of a broader European study conducted by Pitney Bowes, which involved a survey of 10,000 adults in the UK, Germany, France, Scandinavia and Benelux. The sample was balanced by age, gender, region and social class. Survey
“Post offices—securing their future” Eighth Report of Session 2008–09, Volume I. Report ordered by the House of Commons - July 7, 2009
The post office network has been established for nearly 400 years. From the beginning, a combination of state service and private enterprise ensured that first mail services, and subsequently a wide range of government services, were available throughout the country, without the Government having to provide those services directly. At its height in 1964, the post office network contained 25,056 branches. However, the network has been reduced sothat now there are no more than 12,000 post offices and outreach services. Nonetheless, the Government has set access criteria for the network to ensure that it covers the whole country.
We all want a thriving post office network. As it is, Post Office Ltd has made losses in the past, and has only made a profit in the current year because of government financial support. Accordingly, the Government asked us to look at what services could be provided by the network to ensure its future viability. In turn, we ourselves consulted widely to find out what people wanted from their post office network. This Report sets out what we have found. There are real problems. The network has been losing both public and private business to other delivery channels. Post Office Ltd delivers services through manypartners. It must make sure that both sides benefit from these arrangements. Many of our witnesses criticised the standard of service in both Crown post offices and other branches. This must be improved. The use of technology must be improved. However, the Post Office is also trusted and even loved. People depend on it as a community hub. In many areas, the post office and the local shop are run by the same person, from the same premises, and if one fails, so will the other.
There is no shortage of demand for more services. The network can and should provide: " Mail services; " Financial services; " Local authority services; " Central government services; and " Broader community services.
We should not underestimate the need for mail services. The internet may be reducing the number of letters sent, but technology has enabled people to set up businesses in remote areas, and increased the demand for packet and parcel services.
The post office network is far greater than that of any retail bank. For this and other reasons, we have no doubt that the post office network should be used to provide access to significantly enhanced banking services. However, there are different models available to achieve this outcome and we have insufficient information to choose between them at this stage. The Government must act urgently to resolve this issue. The Government should also act quickly to encourage negotiations between Post Office Ltd and individual banks toimprove access to their services through the network; specifically, the Government should encourage those banks in which it has shares to make sure their accounts are widely available.
Local authorities offer a wide range of services through the post office network, and someare taking a lead in sustaining post offices directly. However, there is no consistency inwhat is offered; we believe that more could be done to benefit both sides, and urge PostOffice Ltd to take the lead in developing services that can be easily accessed by localauthorities.
Many of the problems facing the network are a consequence of the Government moving services online, and so reducing Post Office Ltd's income. But people see the post office network as a public service, and expect the Government to support it. We believe the Government has seriously underestimated the potential of the network to serve as a link between government and its citizens. Although some departments are seizing theopportunity a truly national network offers to allow easy access to their services, many government departments are woefully unimaginative about the needs of their customers, and show too little respect for members of the public's right to choose how to deal with the Government.
The Digital Britain report sets out ambitious proposals for a Digital Switchover of Public Services in which the internet would be the primary means of access to public services, rather than one of many. We wholeheartedly support e-delivery of public services; it can be more convenient for the user, and more cost-effective to the taxpayer. But however much the Government may want to encourage digital inclusion, it also needs to prevent social exclusion. The British public believes that post offices are essential to the fabric of our society. Those who contacted us were eloquent in their belief that the post office closure programmes may have saved Post Office Ltd costs, but had displaced those costs onto individuals, and onto society as a whole. They were also sceptical about the extent to which online services were desirable. We note that 40% o households do not have access to theinternet. Members of the public can be encouraged online they should not be driven there. Social exclusion and isolation can often best be countered by encouraging face-to-face services.
It makes no sense for one arm of government to recognize the importance of the network, while another makes policy proposals which do not recognize people's right to access services in ways which suit them, not the state. The Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform was clearly committed to the success of the post office network; however, the new Department for Business, Innovation and Skills and the Government as awhole need to share that commitment.
The Post Office has been used to provide public services and private services in partnership for nearly four centuries; we have no doubt that with will and imagination, and wholehearted government support, it can continue to do so. Report
“Oversight Of The Post Office Network Change Programme” Report By The Comptroller And Auditor General (National Audit Office, UK) - June 5, 2009
BERR’s oversight of the Post Office Network Change Programme
In May 2007 the Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform (BERR) approved plans to close up to 2,500 post offices. The closures are known as the Network Change Programme. Prior to the programme the Post Office had a network of around 14,000 offices and in the financial year 2005–06 it lost £130 million.
The Network Change Programme is intended to save around £45 million a year from 2011 onwards and has cost £161 million to implement.
The Programme is part of a larger plan aimed at returning Post Office Ltd to profitability by 2010-11.This plan includes action to improve efficiency and Post Office Ltd’s financial performance and is being supported by funding of up to £1.7 billion over five years from BERR. This funding includes a £150 million annual subsidy payment in recognition of the social and economic role that post offices play.BERR is responsible for the oversight of Post Office Ltd and is the main shareholder in Royal Mail Holdings plc. It therefore had three tasks in relation to the Network Change Programme:
• To act as a shareholder and safeguard the public’s investment in Post Office Ltd.
• To ensure a nationwide post office network with reasonable access for all because of the social and economic benefits that such a network delivers.
• To put Post Office Ltd on a footing that creates a sustainable network for the future.
The report examines BERR’s oversight of the development and implementation of the Network Change Programme. The report explains why the closure programme was proposed, and BERR’s oversight of the development of the programme. The report then evaluates:the effectiveness in practice of the protections for users given when the programme was announced (Part 3), andBERR’s ongoing monitoring of the programme (Part 4).
We also examined the role played by Postwatch and its successor organisation, Consumer Focus, in monitoring the implementation of the Network Change Programme.
Deutsche Post DHL Presents Study Of Future Trends - June 4, 2009
[Press Release.]Deutsche Post DHL has just published a study with the title "Delivering Tomorrow - Customer Needs in 2020 and Beyond".
It provides a number of expert opinions and analyses on issues such as globalization, economy, technology, logistics, environment and society. The study reveals trends in these areas up to the year 2020 and even beyond. By carrying out this study, the mail and logistics group has created an orientation guide for possible future scenarios.
Deutsche Post DHL has made use of the knowledge gained by integrating it into its recently presented corporate strategy. "The study's results show that issues such as sustainability, education and social responsibility will gain in importance for companies in the future. By implementing programs like GoGreen and Teach First today, we are already preparing ourselves for the challenges of the future and pointing the way ahead by highlighting key issues early on," said Frank Appel, CEO of Deutsche Post DHL, at the official presentation of the study at the Globe Forum in Stockholm.
The research and analyses for the study "Delivering Tomorrow - Customer Needs in 2020 and Beyond" were carried out between June 2008 and January 2009. 81 future theses were developed and then discussed at length by the participants. 900 people from all corners of the globe, including CEOs from prestigious international companies and scholars from the fields of economics, futurology, and logistics as well as experts provided by selected customers from a wide range of sectors received the comprehensive questionnaire for evaluation.
The study utilized Delphi methodology, which has been in use since the early 1950s. It consists of a multistage assessment process, during which experts are presented with various theses and asked to provide their opinions. This systematic approach helps ensure Delphi studies produce prognoses that are generally more precise and coherent than those derived from general surveys. Key predictions arising from this study concentrate on the challenges of climate change, the influence of increasing Internet networking, and the growing importance of the logistics industry.
Climate change and CO2 reduction
Climate change is already widely perceived as one of the greatest challenges facing humankind. The study participants predict that, in the years to come, purchasing decisions will no longer be based solely on brand, quality and price. In the future, the environmental impact of products and services will play a major role.
"If you look at the label on a glass of jam today, you'll see it lists the number of calories. But in 2020, likely labels will also indicate how much carbon dioxide was emitted in production and transport of the product," comments Frank Appel. To a certain extent, consumers will be willing to pay more for ecologically sound products and services. With less environmentally conscious providers striving to overcome their competitive disadvantage as quickly as possible, consumer behavior will effectively bring about a steady improvement in environmental standards.
Logistics companies lead the way
In spite of the current financial crisis, the Delphi experts do not foresee far-reaching upheavals within the existing political and social system - in 2020 the world will still be run as a market economy. The competition for growth, wealth, and resources will persist, with countries and companies the major players. The trend toward outsourcing production will continue, and many companies will look to global value chains in the pursuit of a competitive edge.
On the other hand, the Delphi study also predicts that companies will have to collaborate more often and more closely than ever before. At the vanguard of change, the logistics industry will be the model that other sectors follow. To combat the high cost of energy, logistics companies will invest more resources than ever before into establishing and operating shared networks.
Appel explains: "Ensuring that the logistics of the future is as environmentally friendly as possible is one of our strategic goals. We already offer carbon-neutral shipping, for example. And we were also the first logistics company to create a climate protection program that ties us to specific emission reduction targets. We're already on the right track. But as the Delphi study shows, by 2020 a good number of our competitors will have copied us. So we have to keep on finding new ways to keep ahead."
Business via the Internet - anytime, anyplace
Customers in 2020 may attach great value to the environment, but not at the expense of speedy delivery. They will want all products and services to be available immediately. Consequently, consumers will demand greater transparency and extensive information in real time from suppliers.
This will make the Internet more important than ever: by 2020, a good deal of the population of the world, primarily in developed and emerging counties, will be almost permanently online and some three billion people will conduct their business exclusively over the World Wide Web. The pace of events will continue to increase - not just in the commercial world, but rather in all walks of life. The demand for flexibility and permanent availability will increase.
Optimistic outlook
Although terrorist attacks and global pandemics will remain a threat in the future, the experts believe that these scenarios can be kept in check through financial and technological investment. The same applies to the growing global population. The respondents from Asia are confident that state-organized population control will be an effective tool for arresting population growth, and most of them predict that the world population could stabilize between seven and eight billion.
By contrast, respondents from other parts of the world are convinced that the population will continue to rise, and with it the consumption of resources. "Nevertheless, our experts were generally optimistic," says Frank Appel, "They believe that these future challenges can be controlled by market economics."
“The Facts of our Value Chain” prepared by European Mail Industry Platform - May 26, 2009
Facts, figures and arguments to challenge common environmental myths that unfairly hurt the reputation of our collective industry.
Executive Summary
There is growing consensus amongst the general public, politicians, scientists, business customers and others that current climate changes and behaviouralpatterns are threatening the environment. Especially increasing levels of carbon dioxide (CO2) in the atmosphere, which are the cause of global warming, are causing concern. In general, the paper mail value chain in Europe recognises that its business activities create CO2 emissions.
Nevertheless, concerns over the emissions must be taken into context. All business activities create CO2 emissions - some more so than others. However, to avoid weakening European industries and local communities, it is also important to recognise the work and efforts undertaken so far by industry to reduce its impact on the environment. A lack of understanding and/or unwillingness to understand is highly likely to have contributed to volumes losses, reduced customer loyalty and increasingly restrictive regulation leadingto significant (economic and other) losses.
The paper mail value chain has a collective revenue stream in Europe of over 300 billion Euros and is responsible for employing nearly seven million Europeans5.
In the battle to become environmentally sustainable businesses, these industries have invested millions of Euros to investigate and take actions tomitigate their impact on the environment. Despite this massive undertaking, our value chain remains one of the main targets of negative commentaryon environmental issues. The goal of this document is to provide all stakeholders of the European Mail Industry with objective data and argumentsconcerning their actual environmental impact and their efforts to reduce it.
In order to reach this goal, seven subsets of the mail industry sector have been analysed thoroughly.
Judgment of the Court of Justice in Case C-357/07 TNT Post UK Ltd vs. The Commissioners for Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs - May 20, 2009
The Sixth VAT Directive exempts ‘public postal services’ from VAT on the basis that they represent activities in the public interest. The postal directive began the process of the gradual liberalisation of the postal services market. It lays down rules concerning the provision of a universal postal service and the criteria defining the services which may be reserved to the universal postal service providers.
Canada Post Strategic Review Advisory Panel Report - May 1, 2009 Introduction
Context
On April 21, 2008, the Honourable Lawrence Cannon, Minister of Transport, Infrastructure and Communities and Minister responsible for Canada Post announced that an external, independent advisory panel had been mandated to conduct a strategic review of Canada Post. The Advisory Panel consists of Dr. Robert Campbell (Chair), Mrs. Nicole Beaudoin, and Mr. Daniel H. Bader. (Biographies of the Panel members are annexed to this document.)
Pitney Bowes Releases White Paper on Importance Of One-to-One Customer Marketing in Raising Response Rates While Lowering Costs - April 14, 2009
Pitney Bowes Management Services, Inc. (PBMS), a wholly owned subsidiary of Pitney Bowes Inc. (NYSE: PBI) has released a new white paper that explains how companies can increase the value of their customer marketing spend by refocusing customer communication to a more efficient one-on-one platform across print, web, voice and mobile channels.
The white paper, entitled, “Distributed Marketing in a Cost-Conscious World: Solutions that can Increase Marketing Response Rates While Reducing Costs,” presents a situation that is all too common today: with the number of media channels growing every year, the quantity of messages has grown exponentially. As a result, consumers and businesses are frustrated by an overwhelming number of marketing messages.
The good news for both businesses and consumers is that, in an environment crowded with marketing messages, the relevance of the communication to the recipient can significantly help cut through the clutter. And, by transforming a company’s collateral system so that each customer only receives relevant information, not only will the communication experience dramatically improve, the cost of producing and distributing the communication will be reduced.
UPU Survey: The Global Economic And Financial Crisis - Initial insights into its impact on the postal sector - April 2, 2009
[Press Release.] The results of a recent Universal Postal Union (UPU) survey indicate that postal networks are increasingly trusted to further the growth of e-commerce and provide financial services. This trust is keeping this postal sector's head above water as the financial crisis wreaks havoc on the global economy.
While operators are feeling the pinch, especially in the letter-post and express business segments, financial services and some areas of parcel post are showing signs of growth.
This is what the UPU reported today during a high-level conference on the impact of the financial and economic crisis on the postal sector, held at its Berne headquarters. More than 200 participants from 100 countries, including about 40 of the world's postal CEOs and leading sector stakeholders operating in e-commerce, direct marketing, consulting and equipment and technology manufacturing, attended the special debate.
Results of the survey conducted among 15 of the world's largest Posts and private courier companies show that the sector is certainly feeling the effects of the crisis, but it is not showing signs of an economic depression like other sectors. Surveyed operators account for 66 percent of total worldwide letter-post volumes, 88 percent of parcel-post traffic, and up to 75 percent of express volumes, providing a statistically valid sample to analyze market evolutions, according to UPU experts.
The worldwide postal sector employs more than 5.5 million employees and operates 660,000 post offices, making it one of the largest industry workforces and the world's largest physical distribution network.
Strong competition in the parcels and express business segments prevents the UPU from sharing detailed information about country-specific mail volumes, but analysis of survey results provides positive and negative growth rates and thus a good overview of the worldwide postal sector's situation.
Here are the key findings by business segment (unless otherwise indicated, all figures reflect same-quarter comparisons in 2007 and 2008):
Financial services Postal financial institutions are experiencing tremendous growth since the crisis began. Some European operators, such as Swiss Post and Deutsche Post, are experiencing annual growth rates above 50 percent in the number of postal deposits and savings accounts opened in 2008. Interestingly, a similar phenomenon occurred during the Great Depression, according to UPU statistics.
Parcels After dropping from 0.5 percent in the first quarter of 2008 to 3.4 percent in the third quarter, compared to the same periods in 2007, domestic parcel volumes recovered 1.1 percent on a year-to-year basis in the fourth quarter. Experts say the increase could be due to record e-commerce sales during the last quarter of 2008 or strong resilience of online sales to the crisis observed in several countries.
The news is not so positive, however, on the international parcels front. After experiencing growth in the first three quarters of 2008, volumes decreased by 4.5 percent in the last quarter among surveyed operators. Experts again believe that international parcels are not benefiting from e-commerce as cross-border sales remain challenging.
Letter post Domestic letter post is feeling the brunt of the crisis impact. In a year-over-year comparison, operators reported a 5.9 percent decrease in volumes in the last quarter of 2008, due in part to less direct mail being generated, especially by the financial sector as credit thresholds have increased, experts believe.
As direct mail is less developed in the international arena, international letter post is showing more signs of stability. In a year-to-year comparison, Posts reported volumes varying between 3.7 and - 2.8 percent in the last quarter of 2008 in terms of quarterly growth rates.
Express services Survey respondents reported a 4.4 percent decrease of domestic express service volumes in the last quarter of 2008, compared to the same quarter in 2007, while international volumes went from a 7.1 percent increase in the second quarter of 2008 to a 2.2 percent decrease in the last quarter.
In last-quarter comparisons of 2008 and 2007, express revenues declined by 7.9 percent worldwide. Experts explain this drop as a consequence of consumers and businesses moving more towards low-end express services.
Stock-exchange listed Posts Five Posts from Austria, Germany, Malaysia, the Netherlands and Singapore are listed on stock exchanges as well as two express courier companies, Fedex and UPS. A comparison of the evolution of their share price with their reference index from August 2008 to January 2009, the six months covering the worsening financial crisis, shows that, while the share prices of some operators were closely correlated with their reference index, those of others evolved much more positively than the market (see graphic in full report; link indicated below). Considered defensive stocks, listed postal services shares tend to resist better during a crisis and can even gain value, say UPU experts.
Comparison with the Great Depression To compare the effects of this crisis with the worst performances achieved during the Great Depression, UPU experts also looked at historical postal statistics from the 1930s. Heres what they found (all statistics from the UPU, unless otherwise indicated):
- So far, the sector has not reached performance levels recorded during the Great Depression, when postal revenues decreased by 12.3 percent in the United States between 1931 and 1932.
- Between 1928 and 1934, franking revenues in the United States decreased by 21.9 percent, with the highest drop (12.3 percent) occurring between 1931 and 1932; postal employment dropped by 17.6 percent; and the number of post offices fell by 7.8 percent.
- Postal savings account deposits multiplied eight-fold in the United States in the 1930s, reaching 1.2 billion USD (United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs).
- In France, the sharpest decrease in franking revenues (24.8 percent) ccurred between 1931 and 1932, following a 15.5 percent drop between 1929 and 1930.
- In Germany, the largest decrease in letter-post traffic reached 16.6 percent between 1930 and 1931.
