Tag Archives: Hybrid Mail

Hybrid mail
Hybrid Mail, Print and Mail Services

6 reasons to use hybrid mail whilst businesses are locked down

With COVID-19 effectively putting the UK on an unprecedented lockdown, businesses have been preparing themselves to maintain business as usual.

Our print-2-mail hybrid mail solution services are providing much-needed support to businesses whose employees are working from home but still need to print and mail important customer letters and transactional documents.Hybrid mail

Why now?

The coronavirus is forcing many to work from home.

The problem is how do businesses continue to maintain contact with their employees and customers?

Companies who choose our Print-2-Mail service do so because it significantly reduces their costs while optimising key staff who create critical business documents, uploading them on to the Print-2-Mail portal saving time and worry.

After the recession in 2008, companies were forced to look for cheaper mailing alternatives.

And although there was a big swing toward electronic communications, companies needed an alternative for mailing smaller volumes of letters.

Businesses continue to mail out letters.

Hybrid mailThe running costs of managing the process in-house makes it expensive. It is one of the first areas a company looks at when streamlining its printing requirements.

Automating the process of print and mailing offers companies the flexibility to send paper communications alongside digital.

Hybrid mail is ideal for emergency and ad hoc customer mailings including payslips, invoices, statements, remittances, newsletters and marketing.

Hybrid mail is the perfect back up solution for your everyday needs.

Businesses have greater flexibility to upload letters at any time of the day.

The current stay-at-home measures from the government afford access to our hybrid mail portal by key employees which mean businesses can continue to mail out important letters.Hybrid Mail

What are the 6 key benefits:-

  1. No installation is required (you will need to download a print driver) A username, password and an internet connection are all that is required to upload documents directly from your desktop and you can be up and running in a matter of minutes.
  2. With no setup charges or licensing fees, hybrid mail can save upwards of  30% on office print and mailing costs. Hybrid mail costs less than a 2nd class stamp and includes the paper, envelope, printing folding, inserting and posting
  3. Ease of use – Hybrid mail is simple to use there are four easy steps create the documents in word and hybrid mail does the rest.
  4. Hybrid mail is ideal for companies that have branches located across the country. Departments can access specific documents and templates which means there is complete control over what is sent out and by whom.
  5. Documents that are uploaded by 4 pm on a working day are printed and mailed the same day this means you don’t have to panic about that forgotten mailing. Hybrid mail does the rest.
  6. Hybrid mail allows you to store any number of document templates, you also benefit from postcode validation, user and department spending caps, custom signatures and document archiving for future reference.

The important thing to consider with hybrid mail is that no matter the size of the organisation or how many documents you send out a day you WILL benefit from our hybrid mail solution.

Hybrid mail is a 21st-century mailing solution designed to take care of those ad hoc letters – whether it is an accountancy business, a firm of solicitors, a dental practice, a fitness company or an organisation that sends most information electronically but still has residual letters and bills to send out, hybrid mail is a cost-effective alternative to printing in-house.

For more information click here

Contact us here

Related posts:

  1. Hybrid mail solutions. How to mail out your letters on a budget!
  2. Print and mail service. What to look out for in a print and mail services company.
  3. How to benefit from print and mailing services
  4. How to save money with hybrid mail. From desktop to doormat.
  5. How to transform your mailings using Hybrid Mail
The future of print marketing in a digital world
Blog

Print or digital? Do we really need to make a choice?

Whilst holidaying in Spain I couldn’t help but notice what seemed to Print or digital? Do we really need to choose? be a resurgence in books and newspapers.

There were tablets and kindles in use but inwardly I thought umm not all bad news for print.

The world today is defined by how we receive and digest information from news, opinions, interviews, advertising in print or digital format.

multichannelPrint media, television, online mobile and social media are all part of our everyday lives that help us gain access to the information we need or want.

Digital Print Management has also seen a resurgence in print specifically hybrid mail or our branded Print-2-Mail.

The recession forced many companies to re-think how and what they printed and how to save money doing it.

The cost of printing and mailing inhouse is an obvious area to outsource step in Print-2-Mail a mailing desktop solution that delivers the same service but 60% less than the cost of doing it in house.

Much of the information we now receive is sent through email or made available online and consumers are demanding how they want to receive their information.

Multichannel servicesAutomating the process of print and mailing documents and providing an online version for those customers that only wish to receive it in an electronic format is all made possible through multichannel distribution of documents.

Customers are wanting to access personal and confidential information on different devices as well as having the choice of receiving a paper version as well.

multichannelFrom a single data file sent by the customer, documents can be printed and mailed to those recipients that want a paper document and made available online to those who only want to view it online;  if they want both they can have both.

Print works best when used with other media from magazines, direct mail, social media, television, newspapers and print can also bridge the gap between paper and digital using QR codes, Augmented Reality and NFC (Near Field Communication)

Print and digital innovations only increase the effectiveness of print media as well as improving the customer experience so next time you are thinking print or digital ditch the idea and make sure you use both.

The integration of print and digital is a marriage made in media heaven.

Related posts:

  1. How does print management fit into our digital world?
Blog

How to use hybrid mail to optimise your business-critical documents.

Leave a comment

My most recent posts have talked about the importance of content, personalisation and making it relevant and then how to get the message out there. How to use hybrid mail to optimise your business critical documents

Many businesses consider mailing out letters outdated and unnecessary when it’s easy to email.

But wait a minute…

There are many businesses that have a need to print and mail customer letters, marketing information, legal documents, insurance renewals, bills and invoices even though they use email for the large majority.

The problem is many of your customers might be happy to receive emails but there are always letters that need to be mailed.

How do you manage those pesky few each month?

The print industry has come in for some pretty heavy criticism for not being forward thinking and innovative.

One of its more recent innovations is hybrid mail from the standard print and mail distribution via outsourcing data to a third party and having it printed and mailed to manage your mailings from your desktop at a touch of a button.

Hybrid mail has been around since the 70s and has come to the fore in the last 3-5 years. Whilst there are many large hybrid mail providers in the UK market place, most of their services are designed for the big corporate user and don’t always have the SME in mind.

A significant benefit of hybrid mail is the time it takes to create a mailing, minimal effort, cost-effective printing and mailing out letters from even a few, to thousands of letters. 

How to use hybrid mail to optimise your business critical documents

How does it work?

Hybrid mail fuses electronic and traditional mailing processes. Whatever documents you want to print there is minimal time needed to get them printed and mailed. The process goes something like this:

  1. Upload the document you want to print
  2. Preview your pages
  3. Check your recipients
  4. Order – choose either black and white or colour print, first or second class delivery

You need a hybrid mail service provider who can securely print and mail your letters and a PC/laptop.

Hybrid mail works by enabling users to send individual or multiple page letters and documents created on any computer to a central print site via the internet.

The letters are printed, merged with letters that the hybrid mail provider has produced for other customers that day and sorted into mailsort order ready for posting.

It helps to understand how the system works so you can think about how the service can be used to benefit your organisation and business.

With ongoing requirements even for small mailings, hybrid mail delivers a great service less than the cost of a second class stamp.

How does hybrid mail add value to your business?

Any organisation that is printing and sending letters using a desktop printer will save time and money switching to hybrid mail.

Even organisations with larger in-house operations or using third party suppliers such as print and mailing houses to print their statements, invoices, customer letters, subscription renewals can save money.

How to use hybrid mail to optimise your business critical documents

Hybrid mail is not a complicated process. Unlike print and mailing services the cost is not based on the volume being mailed. Whether you send out one bespoke letter to one recipient or 500 letters to 500 recipients the unit cost is the same.

Some hybrid mail services will offer added value in the form of correcting inaccuracies in customer addresses free of charge through integration with the postal address file. [PAF]

Standardising your letterhead and corporate identity across your hard copy communications will enable you to ensure brand consistency without having to pay for re-design costs.

Some hybrid mail services allow you to set, limit and control spending at an individual user or departmental level which means you have full control over what gets mailed out and how much it costs.

One of the major benefits of hybrid mail is the reduction in your organisation’s carbon footprint.

Letters are printed on presses that are more energy-efficient than a desktop printer on a per-unit basis.

Bulk mailings cost less to transport and deliver across the country.

Quality, security and reliability are issues that users of the service may have concerns about.

Our Print-2-Mail service run on https the same protocol as the banks and your letters are printed in a production facility that is ISO27001 and GDPR accredited.

The reliability of hybrid mail compares favourably to a standard mailing service and is cheaper. A validation process monitors the number of letters in each mailing to ensure 100% that each letter has been printed and mailed.

Can I use hybrid mail for multi-channel marketing?

Hybrid mail helps reinforce your online brand by sending out a follow-up message using direct mail.

It’s cheap, easy to set up fits in with your online content marketing. It’s a great way to push the same message more than once. Why not promote that event or special promotion numerous times through the mail.

The chances are you are promoting your message online many times but your audience isn’t always online, backing it up with a mailed promotional piece reinforces the online content.

Using traditional and digital marketing approaches simultaneously maximises the reach of your message.

Business-critical documents need not be the burden of your organisation any longer. You won’t need to have your accounts personnel stuffing envelopes nor will you need a franking machine.

All you have to do is upload a data file to our portal, and we do the rest

Even if it’s a few hundred letters each month, hybrid mail will work for you, saving time, effort and money.

You can find out more here

Related posts:

  1. How to mail out your letters on a budget using a hybrid mail solution?
Hybrid Mail, Payroll Processing

How to optimise a hybrid mail solution to mail out information to your employees?

Leave a comment

Employees communications

Any employee communication letter can be mailed using print-2-mail

Payroll departments are often besieged with paperwork managing and processing a variety of different employee document streams.

Auto-enrolment forms continue to be a headache for companies along with absence reporting documentation all of which can be manual intensive tasks. But there is a way of mailing out these documents at the fraction of the cost of a 2nd class postage stamp.

How do payroll departments manage to communicate the various bits of information that need to be sent to the employee?

Payslips are a great way of communicating important information to your employees but there are often limitations on space and the amount of detail that can be printed on your payslips.

Emailing information can be time consuming but what if employees don’t read it or the email is misplaced?

Then there is the need to update your employee database with new starters and leavers?

Having a cost effective hybrid mail solution that enables your payroll department to mail out employee communication letters at the touch of a button, without moving from your desk and cheaper than a 2nd class stamp including stationery, envelope, printing and mailing will save the department’s resources in time and money.

How does a hybrid mail solution work?

We are often asked ‘can we just mail out 25 pension statements, a few hundred employee communication letters and what about absence reporting documentation?’ 

The answer is very definitely YES, you can!

Using a hybrid mail solution an organisation is guaranteed to save money on postage, printing and processing.

Hybrid mail is a combination of printing and posting as a bundled service and by combining small mailings for many customers and by optimising DSA (Downstream Access ) pricing is guaranteed to save payroll departments time and money by cutting down on the mundane administrative tasks.

What can I use hybrid mail for?

Any payroll related employee interfacing document as mentioned above.

Variable pages and variable numbers of pages, single sided and double-sided pages, colour documents, any document you need to print and mail out.

There’s no limit to the number of pages so any communication letter that needs to go to employees can be done so with print-2-mail

How secure is it?

The process is very secure and documents are uploaded using an encrypted HTTPS connection (the same standard used for online banking). All your documents are printed in an APACS approved, ISO27001 security production facility.

Stacked MailHow can hybrid mail work for your payroll department?

Aside of the obvious cost savings on processing, printing, fulfilment and postage there are the invisible cost savings of energy, equipment, stationery and consumables.

You can send out from 1 to 1,000’s of letters daily, monthly or when you need to. There are no minimum volumes or minimum usage if you choose to use it for a month and then decide not to continue with the service there is no penalty for doing so!

By using your web browser you can access the print-2-mail web portal by clicking here  fill in your name and email address,  go to ‘branch’ and select “demo” and you will be emailed with your login details.

There’s no software to install and you can use it on a PC or Mac.

By downloading the print driver you don’t even need to create PDF’s. Selecting the print driver launches the application, uploads your documents and converts them to PDF’s.

That’s it, couldn’t be simpler or easier to use.

To read more about how print-2-mail can help your payroll department click here

Follow us on twitter and Facebook, we are also on Pinterest or connect with us on Google+ and Linkedin using the social buttons.

 


 

Related posts:

  1. Print and mail service. What to look out for in a print and mail services company.
  2. How to mail out your letters on a budget using a hybrid mail solution?
  3. 3 Ways to Reduce Postage Costs
  4. How to save money with hybrid mail. From desktop to doormat.
Hybrid Mail, Managing Print Costs, Print and Mail Services

How to mail out your letters on a budget using a hybrid mail solution?

1 Comment

 

We are often asked can we just mail out 300 invoices or 300 of anything come to thing of it?

The answer is very definitely YES, you can!

Sometimes the volume might be more or less but by using a hybrid mail solution an SME is guaranteed to save money on postage, printing and processing.

Hybrid mail is a combination of printing and posting as a bundled service and we can combine small mailings for many customers and use DSA (Downstream Access ) pricing which saves you time and money on postage.

How?

Easy.

Using your web browser you can access our print-2-mail web portal and we provide you with a user name and password. There’s no software to install and you can use a PC or Mac.

If you have a document you want to print and send out, print-2-mail does the rest. The document needs to be converted to a PDF first.

By downloading the print driver you don’t even need to create PDF’s. Selecting the print driver launches the application, uploads your documents and converts them to PDF’s.

The print driver is easy to download as the interface provides a “print driver download”

What can I use hybrid mail for?

Pretty much any document you need to print and mail out.

You can print virtually any type of A4 document, single or double-sided, colour or black on white only. There’s no limit to the number of pages so reports, dissertations even and customer letters are fine.

You can load variable length documents so invoices and statements are no problem. You simply create the document before you load them to the system.

 What do I need?

An internet connection and the most up to date web browser – Internet Explorer 8 for Windows XP or 9 for Windows Vista or Windows 7, Mozilla Firefox 12 or Google Chrome.

When the application opens you have the option to print single and multiple page letters, in black or colour with the option of uploading your company logos.

Simply add your logo to the document as an image and we can print it along with the letter.

The wizard (there are seven steps) has been set up so you can walk through it and process your document quickly and efficiently.

The mailing wizard takes care of incomplete addresses by providing suggestions and it tidies your addresses as well. This is done using the Royal Mail’s PAF database (Postcode Authentication Finder) On completion of the address validation the wizard can create an accurate address file that can be downloaded as a PDF so you can make sure your customer addresses are accurate and complete.

How quickly will my mailing be posted out?

You have two options ‘Same Day” and “Next Day”. For same day all orders placed by 4PM are printed and mailed the same day. For next day, any orders placed up to midnight day 1 are printed and mailed out the next day. 

How secure is it?

The system is very secure and documents are uploaded using an encrypted HTTPS connection (the same standard used for on line banking). All your documents are printed in an APACS approved, ISO27001 security print factory.

How much does it cost?

Until you’ve completed the wizard and finalised your print options, the summary page will summarise the total cost of your mailing at the end of the process so before you print you will know exactly what you will pay. Suffice to say it will be less than the cost of a 2nd class stamp and it includes, the paper, printing, folding, inserting and mailing out!

There is no contractual obligation so if you choose to use it only once then that’s up to you. But we are so confident that you’ll love it that you will wonder why how you managed before.

Now for the really good news…

Apart from calling us initially for a demo that’ll be the last time you’ll need to talk to us so that really is good news!

Which means that you can just get on and print and mail whenever you need to you’ll have control over what you print, when and where you post out.

For regular news and updates please do follow us on twitter, like us on Facebook and connect with us on Linkedin. You can also find us on google+ too! If you happen to like joining circles that is!

 

Related posts:

  1. How to save money with hybrid mail. From desktop to doormat.
  2. Print and mail service. What to look out for in a print and mail services company.
  3. 3 Ways to Reduce Postage Costs
  4. How to benefit from print and mailing services
  5. How to use hybrid mail to optimise your business-critical documents.
Print and Mail Services

How to transform your mailings using Hybrid Mail

Leave a comment

Mailing solutions from your desktop designed to save you time and money!

It seems that direct mail is making a bit of a come back actually paper is making a come back; did it ever go away?

I’d like to go out on a limb here and state that people are probably getting fed up having their inboxes full with unsolicted emails from companies, individuals selling their services, expertise and skills from how to improve your SEO to how you must have the latest business management training and techniques.

Direct mail prospect opening rates have increased from 88% to 91% since 2006 and email acquisition open rates have fallen from 21% to 11% since 2007. (DMA)

In 2010 an average of 91% of prospect direct mail was opened including 96% for personal banking and 95% for stores mail. (Ebiquity Rapport 2010) Open rates for acquisition email 11% (DMA)

Social media and email campaigns are reducing marketers ROI “marketers are failing to maximise user engagement and the ROI of their social media and email campaigns by mis-timing the day and hours of their general release”(YesMail) The companies in this study included Banana Republic, Gap, Diesel, Abercrombie & Fitch and their social media activity was tracked over a three month period on facebook, twitter and YouTube.

If they cant get it right what hope for the rest of us?

SME’s are challenged with trying to attribute resources, time and money to fulfil a worthwhile social media campaign that generates enquiries for their business.

Is it psychological?

Organisations are becoming weary of sending email newsletters and are changing tactic by sending hard copy newsworthy items in the post.

There’s a tangible colourful product in your hand that you can glance through on the way to making a cup of coffee; theres also a sense of well being reading the written word rather than picking your way through an email and of course you can read it anywhere on the train, office, home and in the garden.

Increase in this type of activity is largely attributed to better targeting for example the percentage of mail where customers took action has increased from 4% in 2004 to 5% in 2010. (Royal Mail Consumer Panel 2010)

Enter hybrid mail. A combination of printing and posting as a bundled service. By combining mailings for lots of customers and by optimising downstream access, mailings just got a whole lot cheaper and easier to manage.

Using print-2-mail and effective personalisation can have a dramatic effect on your ROI – that is, good direct mail used in conjunction with intelligent e-commerce.

If you want to find out more about how to transform your mailings but not sure where to start then leave your details here and one of advisors will call you back.

Don’t forget to sign up for news, reviews and follow us too!

[gravityform id=”1″ name=”Arrange a call back!”]

 

Related posts:

  1. How to save money with hybrid mail. From desktop to doormat.
  2. 3 Ways to Reduce Postage Costs
  3. Hybrid mail solutions. How to mail out your letters on a budget!
  4. How to benefit from print and mailing services
  5. How to mail out your letters on a budget using a hybrid mail solution?
Blog

How to save money with hybrid mail. From desktop to doormat.

Leave a comment

Invoices, statements, customer letters, Quick mailings, Debt letters, Holiday Greetings, Bill subscriptions. Hybrid Mail delivers the lot at less than the cost of a second class stamp.

Hybrid mail

Most organisations have an ongoing requirement for mailing out customer letters, mailshots, invoices and statements.

I bet you still have a number of customers that absolutely insist on wanting a paper document.

Those few letters a month to process take time and effort so who is going to do the job?

The never-ending postal increases mean that companies have to be smart and inventive when it comes to mailing customer letters.

E-billing, e-mailshots and paper documents are hierarchical depending on importance.

There are specific documents like legislative financial documents that are required to be processed as paper, or customers who request paper documents only.

Many businesses have an ongoing mailing requirement no matter how small which requires an in-house print and mail solution.

Our desktop mailing solution

Using Digital Print Management’s Print-2-Mail service mailing letters is a whole lot easier!

How?

Print-2-mail helps you retain control of mailing out letters to your customers. You decide when to upload and choose a mailing date. Instead of using your local print driver, you upload to our portal via a print driver.

It’s cheap, it’s quick and easy to use.

Why use hybrid mail?

Hybrid mail is a combination of printing and posting as a bundled service, combining small mailings for lots of customers and by optimising cheaper postage such as DSA (Downstream Access)mailings are cheaper and easier to manage.

How do I save money?

Hybrid mail

  • Increased staff productivity – staff no longer have to load and manage printers or stuff envelopes.
  • Reduced postage costs – we sort your mail, consolidate it so you benefit from significant postal discounts.
  • Reduced in-house equipment costs – general office printer usage goes down, cost of consumables is reduced because you are not using so much.
  • Reduced stationery and consumable costs.
  • Reduced paper wastage – using our postal validation system you can amend missing or incorrect addresses by downloading an address database of your customer mailing and ensure your customer database address details is up to date.
  • Pay as you go – with no setup or licence fee or software installation, print-2-mail enables you to send letters quickly and conveniently in the UK and Europe
  • Improved customer interaction – because the process is so quick and easy to use, your customers will benefit from your latest news; invoices will be printed when you need them
  • 1st and 2nd class mailing options are available and where letters exceed 15 pages they will go into a C4 envelope.

How do I manage what is being mailed?

The Print-2-mail shop is easy to use.
At each step, you can see what it costs and decide on printing in colour or black and white and then choose your postal service.
It manages documents that have variable pages and inserts.
Do you have customers that receive one page and others that have more than one? Print-2-Mail identifies those pages and manages the process seamlessly.
From your dashboard, you can manage users and set budget levels including setting up user permissions and monitor your print and mail spend.

How does print-2-mail work for your business?

Print-2-mail enables you to process your documents in a matter of minutes. We manage any type of mailing from mailshots, debt collection letters, emergency letter mailings, invoices, statements and general communication letters.

Aside from the obvious cost savings on print, fulfilment and postage, there are the invisible cost savings of energy, equipment, stationery and consumables.

It, couldn’t be simpler. If you want to see the benefits of our print-2-mail solution then request a demo now by contacting us or calling on 01234-271156.

Related posts:

  1. How to mail out your letters on a budget using a hybrid mail solution?
  2. Print and mail service. What to look out for in a print and mail services company.
  3. 3 Ways to Reduce Postage Costs
  4. How to transform your mailings using Hybrid Mail
  5. Hybrid mail solutions. How to mail out your letters on a budget!
Managed Print Services, Print and Mail Services, Print Management, Short Run Printing

Are you switching off from digital media?

2 Comments

As the lines between work and home time become increasingly fuzzy and our modern day life so intense, people are being drawn to paper based media as a way of slowing down, relaxing and switching off from all the digital media and noise!

Technology is affecting our lives exponentially; it doesn’t tire easily; is constantly changing, evolving and getting faster!

Change and development are good things without technological development the world wouldn’t move forward.

More and more content is being made available, quicker, richer through every conceivable channel and device known to man from T.V, ipad, PC, smartphone, SMS, mobile phone and so the list goes.

Information is in abundance, anything you want to buy, need to understand or want to look at is viewable at a swipe of the hand or a touch of a button.

But have we gone too far? Are our brains becoming saturated with too much information? Are we coping with managing this information from social media and the internet and the speed in which it moves?

Only you can answer that definitively!

The last two decades the rate of technology has increased year on year; the social media revolution has exploded, proliferating into each and everyone of our lives.

There has been miles and miles of copy written on social media; how it has changed our lives, what impact it has on our businesses.

I believe there is a slow noiseless rebellion in our midst; with lines between work and home time becoming ever increasingly blurred people are looking for a way of escaping from “always being in contact”; always “on” social media; perhaps that refuge is the printed word?

Is it possible that although we once viewed the printed word as a our primary source of news and articles; we are now turning toward it in search of solace and relaxation? Where we switch off from our screens and mobile devices by turning to print to help us relax, tune out and read at our own pace rather than being governed by the speed of the internet.

I, for one can lay claim to the above, I’ve always enjoyed reading books, magazines and the written article why? Because its tactile, the smell and feel of a new book; you appreciate turning over a page and the satisfaction of completing a novel; something you don’t get with an e-reader or mobile device!

Print is a distraction from our ever increasing work-life balance; you become absorbed into the contents without being distracted by an email ping or other distractions. Reading print gives you time to yourself, time to reflect. OK so the same can be said using an e-reader but there is something more fulfilling about reading the printed word as opposed to holding a screen in front of you.

When I started composing this article I became aware when I was out and about in London just how many people were absorbed into books or magazines I hadn’t really given it any credence at that point and then it made me analyse why it might be that people are straying back to print. Could it be a way of getting out of our fast paced modern world to just slow down, relax and reflect.

Time to relax and read

Despite billions being spent on digital technology and there can be no disputing its influence pervading our lives; it has improved our lives everyday; the opportunity to relax isn’t one of its advantages.

There is a general view that online or digital publications should be free rather than paid for; yet we feel comfortable subscribing to a magazine. Is this something to do with print being tactile?

Could it be that printed publications are a way of telling us a little bit more about the person, what their interests are and what it says about them?

Why do you think so much investment is put into the covers of glossy magazines and books? It adds to the uniqueness and attraction to the purchaser.

Does the newspaper or magazine tell us a little bit more about the person who is holding it in a subliminal way?

In our life where time is currency; time is a precious commodity; what is it that we all want but very rarely get enough of time!

There are still a few pleasures in life to be had; a fine wine, delicious food and reading a book on warm summer evening where time becomes irrelevant as you sink into that comfortable chair and enjoy a good read!

Do you still read a book or a newspaper?

Do you enjoy the printed word and reading from a mobile device?

Are publications, books, paper dead? Has technology really sealed the fate of the book?

What are your thoughts?

 

Related posts:

  1. Print and mail service. What to look out for in a print and mail services company.
  2. Hybrid mail solutions. How to mail out your letters on a budget!
  3. How to transform your mailings using Hybrid Mail
  4. The best of 2012. All you need to know about outsourcing in one place.
  5. How to find the right print and fulfilment services supplier?
Print and Mail Services

How to benefit from print and mailing services

Leave a comment

Postage charges increased last April 2012 with a 1st class stamp costing 60p and a second class stamp 50p. In spite of these increases, many businesses mail out a constant stream of marketing letters, invoices, direct mail and obligatory customer letters and printing mailing services have never seemed more expensive.

How to benefit from print and mailing services

If your company or organisation cannot reclaim VAT, your postage costs can only go one way and that is UP.

Businesses that rely on bulk mailings and use the royal mail’s bulk mailing services such as mailsort, presstream, walksort, cleanmail, packetpost, advertising mail, sustainable mail and standard tariff will have experienced rising mailing costs.

Irrespective of escalating postage and mailing costs there are a number of measures that an organisation can undertake to ensure the cost of print and mailing is kept at a reasonable cost level.

How?

By optimising all or some of the following.

Multi-channel distribution 

Multi-channel distribution of business documents – your data file is broken down into those letters that are required to be printed and mailed, electronically sent or documents that need to be printed and then returned to a head office or delivered to regional offices all from one data file. Providing you with a complete printing and mailing service.

How can this work for my business? How to benefit from print and mailing services

Working with a mailing solutions partner who will advise you what the alternatives are and provide guidance on the best method to ensure your mailing is a success.

Whether it is getting those invoices out to your customers on time or a direct mail piece, a print and mailing solutions provider will take your data file containing names and addresses, extract the letters that are required to be printed and mailed, electronically send documents to those recipients and return those documents that are required to be internally distributed back to head office and regional locations.

To find out how to choose the right mailing solutions provider click here

How to benefit from print and mailing services

DSA 

DSA is the term used to describe mail which has been collected and distributed by a competitor of the Royal Mail but is delivered into the Royal Mail centres for final processing onto local offices. The cost savings per envelope depending on weight can be substantial saving companies as much as 0.24p per envelope.

Electronic

Not quite as straightforward to get your customers to accept the fact that you will be communicating with them solely via email and not every one of your customers will want to receive an electronic bill, statement or letter for all sorts of different reasons but as long as you follow the process I’ve outlined here you can see your postage costs reduce substantially.

Beware, your customer’s perception may be a negative one.

If you are wanting to drive your mailing costs down by moving to an electronic system of sending out your documents you need to be aware that some customers will view that you have effectively passed the costs of processing and in many cases, printing to your customer.

If they don’t have an effective accounts payable/invoice processing system then there is the manual processing of your document at the customers end resulting in additional work.

Aside from the print and mailing solutions there are also known desktop mailing solutions.

How does this work?

Easy really if you click here there’s more information on how the system can help you reduce your mailing costs or click here to find out how mailing on a budget can make a difference to your organisation.

Finally…

Avoid the use of C4 envelopes

Avoid having to use 1st class Royal Mail

Maximise your discounts by using downstream access mailing

Use a hybrid mail solution like the one described above.

For more information on hybrid mailing solutions click here

Find us on Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest and connect with us on Linkedin 

Related posts:

  1. 3 Ways to Reduce Postage Costs
  2. Hybrid mail solutions. How to mail out your letters on a budget!
  3. How to save money with hybrid mail. From desktop to doormat.
  4. Print and mail service. What to look out for in a print and mail services company.
  5. 6 reasons to use hybrid mail whilst businesses are locked down
Hybrid Mail, Managing Print Costs, Print and Mail Services

Hybrid mail solutions. How to mail out your letters on a budget!

1 Comment

From PC to Post – Print and Mailing Solutions made easier.

With the privatisation of the Royal Mail in October and the volume of letters delivered over the past five years in decline by 25% and expected to keep going down between 7-8% year on year postal services are on the decline.

The use of electronic methods of communication are on the increase and letter volumes are spiralling downward.

By 2015 it is estimated that the Royal Mail will have lost 40% of its business. (Hooper Report)

Postal trays are empty and the bulk of mail is carried by email servers.

What does the future hold for companies that still have a need to post out obligatory letters and forms or a few letters they might want to send out each week or month?

Although paper usage is declining paper isn’t going anywhere.

Whilst I have one foot firmly in the paper and the other in the paperless/electronic camp the fact is paper remains a recyclable, renewable and reusable substrate.

Recognised as the 7th largest industry in the UK, print provides a positive and meaningful purpose and retains a notable place in our business and domestic lives.

If you want to be able to continue to mail out customer letters there has to be a more cost effective viable mailing alternative!

Hybrid mail solutions

Are a unique online mail management solution for all your letter printing and mailing requirements.

How does it work?

When you generate a letter in-house you need five things, a PC, a printer, an envelope, paper and a way of posting out your letters i.e. a stamp or by franking the envelope.

Hybrid mail takes away the hassle of the above as the only two elements needed are a PC and internet access.

The envelope, paper, printing equipment and the distribution are managed at a secure remote location and the process is completed for less than the cost of a second class stamp depending on whether you are printing in colour or single/double sided print.

It’s like having your own print and mailing services company a click away and it can manage any letter an organisation sends out from an insurance renewal policy, customer marketing letters, post cards in fact any customer interfacing document you regularly send out to your customers.

Hybrid mail will save time, reduce postal costs and minimise your carbon footprint.

How does the mailing solution work?

Hybrid mail services allows you to enter your mailing requirements via a website.

It is an online interface enabling you to upload letter files using pre-determined templates. You can upload your document in word format (.doc, .pdf, .rtf) personalise it by adding logos and key marketing messages, change the layout, proof each step of the way and then the rest is done by the hybrid mail provider.

By taking word documents or PDF’s a mail merge is performed using your uploaded data and letter they are then printed and posted for less than the cost of a stamp.

With no contract or minimum order restrictions this makes the perfect mailing solution for small to large companies.

Hybrid mail offers a great way to reduce your in-house print and mailing costs because right from the press of a button you will know exactly what the mailing will cost. There are no extra costs and no hidden extras.

Is it eco-friendly?

Yes. Using large volume printers which are more efficient and using paper bought from sustainable sources means save money because it reduces paper, printer and toner cartridge usage.

Businesses can expect to make impressive savings with no upfront costs required.

A PC or laptop, a file of names and addresses and the letter or letters you wish to send are all that is required to be up and running!

It couldn’t be simpler!

Our print-2-mail service is easy to use and free to set up. Call us for a demonstration

You can follow us on Twitter, Facebook and Pinterest. Connect with us on Linkedin and Google+ for all our news, features and updates!

 

Related posts:

  1. How to benefit from print and mailing services
  2. Print and mail service. What to look out for in a print and mail services company.
  3. 3 Ways to Reduce Postage Costs
  4. How to save money with hybrid mail. From desktop to doormat.
  5. How to transform your mailings using Hybrid Mail