BUY IT. STAMP IT. MAIL IT.

BUY IT. STAMP IT. MAIL IT.

GREETING CARDS ON SALE AT MORE LOCATIONS FOR GRADS AND DADS

One of the 1,500 Post Offices participating in the greeting card program.

With thousands of students graduating from schools and colleges across the country, and with Father’s Day approaching next month, customers are looking for a convenient way to purchase and send a special greeting card.

How’s this for shopping convenience? Buy a graduation or Father’s Day card at one of the Postal Service’s retail locations that offers greeting cards, stamp it, mail it and you’re done.

USPS had been offering greeting cards in select areas to determine if customer interest warrants expanding the program nationwide.

Already, the program’s success has prompted USPS to expand its test to another 1,000 retail locations, in addition to the 500 offices that initially offered greeting cards.

“Sending greeting cards is as American as apple pie,” said Tim Healy, vice president, Retail Products and Services. “And customer response has been very positive. We have cards for almost any occasion or celebration, and now they’re even more widely available.”

More than half of the 7 billion greeting cards sold in the United States each year are sent through the mail. “Greeting cards and the mail are directly connected,” said Healy. “There’s no better place to sell them than at our Post Offices.”

Greeting cards also are the most popular gift for Father’s Day. According to greeting card company Hallmark, an estimated 110 million cards are purchased annually to honor dads.

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DID YOU KNOW?

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TIP OF THE DAY

INFO EVERYONE KNEEDS. More than 10 million men and women over the age of 45 will suffer from knee pain this year. Knee problems usually result from overuse, poor form during physical activity, not warming up or cooling down or inadequate stretching.

With self care, simple causes of knee pain often can clear up on their own. Click here for tips to keep your knees healthy. Click here for information developed by the National Institutes of Health on how to keep your knees healthy.

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VOTE BY MAIL

CUSTOMER FOCUS

INCREASED VOTER PARTICIPATION

VOTE BY MAIL WINS IN HAWAII’S SPECIAL ELECTION

While Republican Charles Djou wound up with the most votes in Hawaii’s Congressional special election May 22, there was a second clear winner — the concept of voting by mail ( 5/13).

As reported in the Honolulu Advertiser newspaper the day after the election, “Voters of the 1st Congressional District made it clear: When given the choice, most of the people in the district prefer to mail their ballots.”

According to Hawaii’s Office of Elections, 54 percent of the 317,337 registered voters in the district cast their votes by mail during the three-week-long special election. That voter turnout was substantially higher than the 13.3 percent recorded in 2003, when a polling place special election was held.

Behind the scenes and out of the spotlight, though, it was Hawaii’s postal employees who helped make it all work, according to Honolulu District Marketing Manager Gary Gardetto.

“Our sales team, support managers and operational managers stepped up to ensure the success of this election,” said Gardetto. “But the most credit should go to our clerks and carriers, who ensured that ballots were delivered and collected efficiently and accurately.”

Of the 171,417 people who voted in this special election, fewer than 2,400 people (about 1.3 percent) chose the walk-in option of casting traditional ballots at Honolulu’s city hall. Election officials reported there were no glitches in the vote-by-mail special election.

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A HALLMARK IN FIRST-CLASS MAIL SERVICE

A HALLMARK IN FIRST-CLASS SERVICE

IMb TECHNOLOGY TO BOOST FIRST-CLASS MAIL VOLUME

Hallmark postcards with the Intelligent Mail barcode.

Starting next week, USPS and Hallmark will introduce a new line of postage-paid greeting postcards.

The postcards use Intelligent Mail barcode (IMb) technology, allowing customers to buy them with pre-paid postage — also referred to as “Alternative Postage Payment.”

The postcards come in packs of eight. There are two sets, each with eight unique designs. The sets will be available in 2,000 Hallmark Crown Stores across the country.

Hallmark research suggests that making First-Class Mail easier to mail encourages consumers to send more greeting cards. With pre-paid postcards, customers won’t have to buy postage — or be concerned about how much postage is needed.

Barcode sorters performing IMb scans during normal mail processing will track the number of postcards entering the mailstream to calculate Hallmark’s total postage payment.

“Alternate Postage Payment is a breakthrough product that uses technology to create convenience for consumers and revenue for USPS and its business partners,” said Steve Monteith, manager of Transactions and Correspondence Mail. “When sorters read the IMb code, the prevailing rate for First-Class Mail postage will be applied.”

Alternate Postage Payment postcards also feature three other technology elements — a legend that includes a permit number, a new facing identification mark to orient, separate and trigger an image capture of both sides of the mailpiece, and an imprint that reads, “No postage necessary if mailed in the United States.”

Monteith says employees should follow normal processing and delivery procedures for these postcards. “To ensure timely processing, employees should not obliterate barcodes or other information within the address block,” he said.

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