Scottsdale Business Postal Strategies Offers Discounts as U.S. Post Office Raises Rates Jan. 22

Scottsdale, AZ, January 23, 2012 --(PR.com)-- On Jan. 22, postage rates will once again increase across Arizona. But one Valley firm is actually helping businesses drive their postage costs lower, as they traverse the Valley each day, picking up mail from small business owners, private companies, even Maricopa County Community Colleges and delivering the metered mail to the post office.

Postal Strategies, founded in 2007 by Andrew and Sandy Smith, is thriving amidst the postal increases through a pre-sort discount the U.S. Postal Service offers to businesses who can meet the minimum 500-piece mail count set by the post office.

The savings are significant, with one- and two-ounce mailings costing just 42.4 cents each, a significant savings from the single piece price of 45 cents for a one-ounce mailing and 65 cents for a two-ounce mailing. The savings can add up to hundreds of dollars per mailing for businesses.

The key is in the ability of Postal Strategies to bundle the mail of several businesses in order to reach the minimum piece count. Postal Strategies collects, sorts and bundles the mail so the post office doesn’t have to use its own labor to do the same job. For this service, the post office pays Postal Strategies a small commission per piece of mail delivered.

Before Postal Strategies, small businesses had to clear several major hurdles if they wanted to cut their postage costs. They had to purchase a permit from the post office, invest in postal software and, last but not least, commit to mailing at least 500 pieces of mail each time.

But Postal Strategies changed all of that. Suddenly, small business owners who could never dream of reaching the 500-piece minimum began receiving discounted rates. It didn’t take long for them to begin raving about the reliable, free service that not only saves them money but also picks up when they request and delivers the mail to the post office for them.

“People don’t realize that 80 percent of each 45-cent stamp goes to labor costs,” Andrew Smith said. “It’s easily the biggest cost of doing business for the post office and the reason why they had an $8-billion hole in 2010, a $9.2 billion operating loss in 2011 and are projected to have a $14 billion deficit this year.

“Postal Strategies is thriving amidst this because we’re able to sort the mail for the post office in an efficient manner. They’re passing on that efficiency in the form of a monetary incentive to us. In turn, we pass along greater mail savings to businesses.”

With clients like Maricopa Community Colleges, Johnson Utilities, Pinal County and many other Valley mainstays, Postal Strategies has risen from a small startup in 2007 to the largest mail consolidator in Arizona. It has quickly risen to one of the largest in the country as well. Smith said it’s just the beginning for the company.

“What we do costs the post office absolutely nothing while reducing their labor costs,” he said. “These are basically the first steps of privatization of the post office.”

The company has been offered such mega mailing areas as Los Angeles as it moves forward and Smith said large growth is on the horizon for the company.

But while business is booming, Smith said he doesn’t expect the post office shut down anytime soon.

“The post office is still very relevant to many people,” Smith said. “Without the Post office, Grandma’s letter would cost $12 to mail. And many people don’t realize that the post office is still the leading provider of rural mail service, even contracting with UPS and FedEx to deliver their parcels to outlying areas.”

For more information on Postal Strategies, please visit www.postalstrategies.com.

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