2017 Postal Rates and Impact on Business

2017 postal rate changes are important to businesses, and we’re here to decipher what it all means. As a printing company specializing in inventory, shipping and distribution in highly-regulated industries, our clients count on us to communicate how USPS and 2017 postal rates impact their business and programs.

With direct mail as the number one vehicle rated in return-on-investment for both acquiring and retaining customers.  Direct mail (like social media) gives a personal, non-intrusive touch, letting the recipient receive, read, and respond to a message at their discretion.

Notable 2017 Postal Rate Changes Include:

• First-class stamp increase by 2 cents
• USPS “Standard Mail” category is now referred to as “Marketing Mail”
• “Marketing Mail” letters increase by 2% – flats increase by 2.5% – parcels increase by 1.6%
• Mail sorting and distribution rules have changed considerably.  Fineline’s USPS software will handle these changes seamlessly for our clients.

So how do increased postal rates impact business?

When developing a campaign or project that requires shipping – start at the design phase. Whether it’s a letter or promotional item, shipping will impact costs.  Not only that, many companies we work with have multiple locations and marketing teams running mailing programs. The easiest way to manage is through an online marketing portal like Finelink 2.0 that has real-time shipping costs based on location.

5 things to consider with 2017 postal rate changes:

• Have a displayed postal chart that includes new pricing and letter-sized dimensional standards and envelope sizes – available at a glance
• Evaluate options with cutting carrier costs and understand how 3rd party vendors impact postal rates
• Look at other companies programs, and how they solved mailing and logistics challenges
• Reference and share the 2017 postal rate chart below with teams, giving them the power to budget shipping costs ahead of time
• Check out the USPS official press release on increase postal prices

2017 Postal Rate Changes Chart

Effective January 22nd, 2017 postal rates are as follows: