The USPS classifies mail into different services, called “classes.” Every mail class has its own features, service levels, postage prices, and presort requirements. All of these features can be confusing if you are a new business or are wondering if you are using the right mail class.

First-Class Mail

First-Class Mail is intended for letters or parcels up to 13 oz. and provides reliable delivery. Pricing is the same for all mail in this class, regardless of where it is being sent to or from. Prices include forwarding and mail services. First-Class Mail is the most commonly used business mail class because of its low cost and its efficiency.

Priority Mail

Priority Mail provides delivery for letters or parcels up to 70 lbs. This mail class provides delivery in one to three business days, depending on origin and destination. Saturday and residential delivery are included at no extra charge.

Priority Mail also offers free USPS tracking an up to $50 in mail insurance. Supplies, such as boxes and envelopes, are available for free with Priority Mail. Flat rate prices are fixed, which can be useful when mailing small but heavy packages.

Priority Mail Express

Priority Mail Express provides overnight delivery every day of the year. Similar to Priority Mail, this option includes Saturday and residential delivery at no extra cost. This is the fastest option offered by the USPS. It includes free tracking and up to $100 of insurance.

Priority Mail Express offers some of the same features as Priority Mail, including free supplies and no additional charges for fuel surcharges.

USPS Marketing Mail

USPS Marketing Mail is for bulk mailing of at least 200 mail pieces or 50 lbs. To qualify for this class of mail, mailings must be less than 16 oz. and be intended for commercial use. If you plan on advertising, USPS Marketing Mail may be the best option for you.

This mail class is only for domestic mailing.

As a business, take into account the different mail classes and options available to you. Make the most of the variety of mailing options and make the right choice for your business!

Businesses that send critical information through the mail or rely on mail to get paid know the importance of making sure mail is delivered.  Take steps to improve your data quality and avoid undelivered mail and packages.

Assess Your Data

Your business likely deals with high volumes of information you collect from customers. With such high volumes of information, it is so important to check the quality of your data. Incorrect addresses, names, and data used for mailing can impact your business. Poor data quality can be incredibly costly!

Assess your data and see how your business utilizes its data. Resources to validate your data are available for high volume mailing. Use technology to check your databases and ensure customer data is complete and correct!

Check Data Entry

Data errors can come from entering incorrect information into your systems at the start. Whether customers are providing the wrong information, the mistakes occur from human error, or typos, these data errors can add up. Check your information when you enter it into your system to save time in the future.

Consider an Address Verification Tool

The USPS has a database of up-to-date addresses. This database is available to all mailers who want to evaluate data quality and verify addresses. The Coding Accuracy Support System, CASS, can validate the accuracy of your addresses.

CASS verifies:

• City and street spelling
• Street suffixes
• Zip codes

Businesses can save money on postage by using this tool to verify information and ensure customer data is accurate and up-to-date.

Another useful tool is National Change of Address, NCOA. This tool checks for any change of address and will notify you if your system is not accurate. If a customer moves without notifying you of any address change, you may have undelivered mail. Use this tool to ensure you are mailing to the correct address.

Data quality is incredibly important for your business and checking your data accuracy can save unnecessary expenses.

Do you know what it means to “be in compliance”? “Being in compliance” means your business meets the regulations on the handling of data and communications. Meeting these requirements can be timely and costly. Ensure your mailing systems are in compliance and learn how to better manage your customers’ data and personal information.

Securely Manage Customer Information

The USPS defines the mail owner as the entity that:

• Makes business decisions regarding mail content
• Directly benefits from mailing
• Pays for postage on the mail piece

The mailing agent:

• Acts on behalf of the mail owner
• Provides mailing services

As the mail owner, you have the responsibility to manage customer data and information in a safe and secure way. Having a postage meter can help ensure control over your customers’ information.

Avoid Compliance Fees

Fines for not being in compliance range from $100 to $50,000 per penalty, depending on severity. As a business owner, make sure your mailing systems are in compliance to avoid hefty fees.

Postage meters can give you more control over your mailing processes and help avoid fines and complex processes. Make sure your mailing methods are in compliance!

If you are considering leasing a postage meter, you may be wondering if metered mail is cheaper than stamps. There are three different types of methods to pay for postage: stamps, online postage, and postage meters.

Metered mail is a method of payment where letters use printed or postage meter stamps instead of single stamps that can be found in post offices. With high volume or even medium volume mailing, postage meters can become the best option for mailing solutions.

Stamped vs. Metered Mail

Postage meters increase mailing efficiency for businesses. Meters offer reliable payment methods and increased convenience.  If you plan on sending high volumes of mail, metered mail creates an ease of use that stamped mail can’t offer.

If you want to improve mailing efficiency and save on postage, metered mail may be a better option than stamped mail.

Reliability

Postage meters offer improved mailing reliability. You are the only person who has access to your leased meter, which offers additional mailing security and reliability. Eliminating trips to the post office not only saves time, but ensures you are able to mail faster with control to printing your own postage.

Stamps require trips to the post office and your mail is handled by external sources. Postage meters enable you to gain more control over your mailing.

Consider time and cost when comparing postage meters and stamps. If you plan on increasing your mail volume to a higher volume, you may want to consider a postage meter.

New businesses often overlook postage and shipping costs. Beyond the postage and shipping costs, employees spend time stuffing, folding, and addressing envelopes. On top of preparing mail, businesses spend time sorting and processing letters and packages. Shipping costs can account for over a quarter of business expenses.

Below are some tips to help you reduce these costs and increase your business efficiency.

Consider a Postage Meter

Postage meters save on trips to the post office and offer discounts on postage and shipping costs. Some estimates project businesses can save a third of postage costs by leasing or renting a postage meter.

Employees won’t need to spend time sorting mail and taking letters to the post office. On top of the time savings, overall spending on mailing decreases.

Don’t Hand Fold or Stuff Envelopes

Manually folding material and hand inserting them into envelopes is inefficient. Many postage meters have optional inserters that save time on mailing processes. Neopost, for example, can fold up to 26,000 sheets per hour and stud up to 12,000 envelopes per hour.

Folding materials and stuffing envelopes can be extremely time consuming. If you have a postage meter, consider adding an inserter to your machine.

Verify Addresses

Manually checking addresses can be very time consuming. Software can easily replace the time required for employees to verify each address. This software validates addresses on each piece of mail against the USPS change of address database. The database checks for customers who have moved, are incarcerated, are deceased, or have requested “do not mail” from the USPS.

Validating addresses prior to shipping ensures that your mail reaches the right person in an efficient manner and that invoices do not get lost in the mail.

Negotiate with Carriers

As a business owner, you have the ability to negotiate shipping rates with multiple carriers to ensure you are getting the best rates. There are reps responsible for negotiating the best rates for your business. They also are available to answer questions and ease the shipping process for your business.

Check Your Bill

The average shipper overpays their shipping bills by up to 5% due to mistakes made by carriers in the invoicing processes. Make sure to go over your monthly bill carefully once you have the best rates.

What is the difference between a physical mailing machine and PC Postage Solutions?

The key difference between mailing systems and PC Postage is the physical postage meter itself. While postage meters can weigh and run your mail, PC Postage simply allows you to print postage from your own home.

When deciding which option to go with, consider the following!

Productivity

Postage meters and PC Postage both increase productivity, but you should make your decision based on your specific mailing needs.

For letters and flat mail, consider volume. Postage meters can run at extremely high speeds and can process over 300 letters per minute, depending on your system. They also have option sealers, scales, and feeders. These add-ons can improve the speed of these machines even more. On the other hand, PC Postage is only as fast as you and your employees can make it. While you can import lists and print postage, you still need to manually peel labels and feed envelopes through your printer. This can be incredibly time consuming if you have high volume mail.

For packages, these two options are very similar. You will need to manually attach shipping labels with both options. PC Postage has one significant advantage – one label with all necessary information can be printed and manually attached to the package.

Reporting

Most mailing systems have basic accounting functions. These functions let you track your mail and postage. Depending on your specific meter or PC Postage, functions can differ. PC Postage stores transactions from 90 days up to a year, depending on your vendor.

You can control the access of how much postage is printed and how much funds are added. When tracking large amounts of mailing, these features can be incredibly beneficial.

Ease of Business

Depending on your business needs, you may find add-ons to your machine or PC Postage to be a hassle. You should consider leases and additional fees before making any decisions regarding a mailing system.

Physical mailing systems may require maintenance and installation fees. While some vendors are easy to work with, the maintenance requirements may outweigh the benefits of a postage meter.

Different businesses have different needs. Consider the pros and cons of postage meters and PC Postage before making decisions.

Renting a postage meter comes with many costs. From the lease itself, to maintenance, to ink cartridges, these machines can get expensive. But what are the added costs, really? If you own a postage meter already, or are planning on leasing a machine, you should consider the hidden costs of these machines.

Meter Reset or Transaction Fees

When you add postage to your meter, you may receive a charge. This charge will depend on the terms of agreement with your leaser and what type of postage account you have.

Tips:

• Avoid incurring multiple fees by downloading more postage. Download enough postage to last you a quarter.
• Consider your contract. The contract you have will determine what charges are applied to your account.

Meter reset and transaction fees are often overlooked costs when leasing a machine. While these costs exist, there are ways to lower additional fees. Make sure to really consider your business needs before signing any contracts.

Ink Cartridges

Ink cartridges are an obvious cost of a postage meter, but what some users don’t realize is that they are overpaying for their ink.

Purchasing directly from Pitney Bowes, Neopost, etc. is not necessary and adds additional cost. You can save money by purchasing compatible ink cartridges. Consider our catalog as an alternative to expensive ink cartridges from your leaser.

Maintenance and Insurance

Many postage meter contracts require you to purchase insurance for your equipment. This insurance often includes maintenance agreements.

Tips:

• Make sure to have insurance but be aware that this is an additional cost. If your meter breaks without insurance, you may end up paying even more to get it fixed.

Equipment Return Fees

When you decide to return your meter, you may be responsible for paying mailing fees.

Tips:

• Your leaser will notify you when your lease or rental agreement is terminated.
• Review cancellation and lease policies by companies before selecting a postage meter machine.

Whether your contract ends or you terminate your lease agreement, an equipment return fee may be high. Mailing a large machine may be costly.

Postage meters costs can add up quickly. Save money by comparing vendors and by choosing cheaper options for ink, sealing solution, and labels.

How exactly are ink cartridges refurbished? What is the process used to ensure ink is high quality?

As a customer, you may be wondering how these products work. Buying a used cartridge may seem intimidating, but these cartridges work as well as brand new cartridges and offer significant savings. These cartridges are still high quality and are compatible with your postage meter machine.

The Process

We receive used ink cartridges and refurbish them to be sold and used again. Before we box up our products and ship these cartridges to our customers, they go through a cleaning and refilling process.

The cartridge is first restructured using heated tools that have been specifically made to alter the plastic build. The chip on the physical cartridge is removed and will be replaced with a new chip later. The new chip has been specifically engineered to work with compatible machines.

Inside the plastic outer build of the ink cartridge is a bag filled with ink. These bags are removed from the plastic shell and go through a cleaning and drying process before they are refilled. The ink cartridge is cleaned out using a vacuum and is filled with water multiple times and vacuumed again. This step ensures the cartridge is clean and ready to be dried.

The cartridge is then filled with USPS-approved ink that has gone through extensive testing. Our ink is specifically formulated to meet all standards that OEM cartridges must meet.

The finished cartridges are then packaged and shipped out to customers.

Refurbished cartridges use high quality ink and new chips made specifically for your printer needs. These cartridges save money. Consider buying refurbished cartridges for your postage meter needs.

When you lease a postage meter, companies will require you use a sealing solution in your postage meter. Companies do this to prevent corrosion of machine parts. While companies such as Pitney Bowes often market their own specific sealing solutions, you are not required to purchase a specific brand.

Machine Maintenance

Postage meter machines need sealing solution to prevent mold and corrosion. If sealing solution is not used, mold will begin to grow in the tank and tubing of your postage meter machine. The mold will clog the system and the system may require a replacement.

Keep your machine in great condition by making sure to use sealing solution. Consider saving on machine costs by purchasing compatible sealing solution at a fraction of the price of Pitney Bowes and large companies.

Francotyp Postalia provides postage meters for businesses across the United States. This company runs a network of distributors. These independent dealers allow customers to have access to local and personalized services while also utilizing the technology provided by a large corporation.

Francotyp Postalia offers a wide range of meters for both small and large businesses.

Available Postage Meters

Francotyp Postalia offers a wide variety of high-end postage meter machines. Below are some of the most popular leased machines.

• PostBase mini
• PostBase econ
• PostBase semi
• PostBase auto
• PostBase pro
• PostBase proDS
• PostBase one

Available features of these machines include an integrated scale, a label dispenser, an automatic feeder and sealer, and the option to include up to 200 accounts. Additionally, Francotyp Postalia machines come in six different colors.

Why Francotyp Postalia?

Francotyp Postalia offers high end customer support from the initial consultation to its extensive dealer network to the customer’s orientation. This company also maintains a close partnership with the USPS to ensure all products are compliant and customers are aware of changes in rates and policies.

When choosing a postage meter, consider Francotyp Postalia and its wide range of postage meters to suit your business needs.