As soon as email became an effective form of communication, the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) began losing customers quickly. In the past few years, the number of mail sent through the USPS has slowly declined, forcing the agency which is partly funded by the US government to find other ways to profit. Despite raising the prices of stamps, closing businesses and laying off workers, the service remains underwater. Other federal mandates, including a retirement fund for employees the USPS must put funds in but doesn't have access to, have caused the USPS to lose money. Now, it loses about $25 million a day.
The USPS proposed early this year to Congress to end Saturday delivery, moving to a five-day system. Since it's partially funded by the U.S. Treasury, the decision was required to go through Congress. However, this month Congress passed the legislation that requires the Postal Service to deliver six days a week, according to an article in the Christian Science Monitor.
If the USPS continues at its current rate, the service will run out of funds this October. Though the number of mailed letters has decreased over the years, many businesses and individuals continue to rely on the USPS.
Therefore, businesses that often send out high volumes of mail may soon see themselves with higher prices or fewer offices or hours available, as the USPS looks for other ways to fight this decrease in profits. To prepare, companies can work with mailing and lettershop services, to use more affordable options like pre-sorted mail, as well as different types of mailings, including pressure seal forms. Pressure seal forms, as we've previously discussed, are an affordable way for sending out forms, in which the form itself makes up the envelope. Regardless, as the USPS effects how letters are sent, working with a mailing service can help companies adapt.
Tab Service Company is a Chicago based company with over 53 years of experience as a data processing service provider. We provide business with outsourcing solutions for document scanning services, data entry services and mailing/lettershop services. As a SOC2-approved service organization, we apply industry-best practices to our approach with clients.