q ag n 'B F A B4 weet 3 MnOnaee vp>D $833 ah 26% Inlerhome ove 42 ess: 14 few +99 \ SS 2h 1A ImerimSysim Vet rr 100.4 42% 42 " Wi <4 \h 1d MAELO 19% F| y aties arsl -t_ 14- Mail Automation Gives Small Businesses A Big Hand (NAPSA)—Managers of small and medium size businesses who want to deliver ways to offset a postal increase have come up with somefirst class ideas. One important way they’re doing this, and saving their businesses money, is by preparing their mail for postal automation. According to Pitney Bowes, the leader of mail and document management solutions, this eliminates steps at the Post Office, and therefore enables the USPS to offer postage discounts. Fortunately, there are systems available that can meet the needs of any size mailer, ultimately saving a business time and money. Qualifying For A Discount In order to qualify for a discount, a business must have 00 piecesof first class or 200 pieces of standard mail. Letters and flats must be a certain size and should be in presorted order. Accuracy in both the ZIP codes and addresses are also conditions for automation discounts. Included in Pitney Bowes’ wide range of solutions are products and services that help meet these automation requirements, such as the SmartMailer software and ForwardTrak Net. Hidden Benefits Of Priority Mail Priority Mail rates will increase an average of 13. percent, how- ever, businesses will discover there are bright spots to using this special service. According to Pitney Bowes, someof the hidden benefits of Priority Mail include overnight local delivery and an efficient flatrate envelope that costs only $3.8 regardless of weight. In addition, there are no extra charges for either Saturdayor res- BIG AND SMALL BUSINESSES find that automation is a firstclass idea to save time and money on postal expenses. idential deliveries. This means that businesses can ship heavy flat-rate envelopes, save money and get them delivered locally on any day except Sunday. And while delivery confirmation can be used for several classes of mail, the big newsis that electronic confirmation for Priority Mailis free. Another popular special service from USPS is Certified Mail because it provides high levels of security and tracking. One benefit of electronic filing of Certified Mail is that employees no longer have to maketrips to the Post Office to purchase this special service. It also can eliminate the need for a Return Receipt. Although there has been an increase in postal rates, Pitney Bowes encourages businesses to learn about how they can offset the rise in prices by following some of these money and time saving solutions. For more information, visit their Web site at www.pb.com.
