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As a wholesale supplier, we understand that our customers prefer to market our products with their own brand. To do so is simple:
No, the title isn’t a typo. Thanks to Alternate Postage from the U. S. Postal Service® (USPS®), you can build the power of social networking by mail around your or your customers’ brand.
To get started, simply supply customers, stores and/or vendors with prepaid postage on Single-Piece First-Class Mail® letters or postcards. These mailpieces flow between two or three parties without any recipients paying any added postage because that’s all covered by the sponsoring business. Think of it as a mail version of social media.
Alternate Postage in Action
Let’s say your customer is opening a new restaurant. An Alternate Postage postcard is a perfect way to announce the grand opening and promote a special offer. That first batch of customers can mail those postcards to their friends to spread the word and bring more hungry patrons in to eat! This spread-the-word-by-mail-method works effectively in virtually any business-to-consumer (B2C) or business-to-business (B2B) market.
The postage is funded by the sponsoring business establishing a Centralized Account Payment System (CAPS) with the USPS. Prepayment is available through three tiers; the sponsoring business’s account is debited as the alternate pieces are mailed, based on barcode scanning and selected payment tier.
The creative possibilities are endless for the letter or postcard design. Once the mailpiece is tested and meets all USPS requirements, it’s ready to make a difference! Note that there are three key elements all mailpieces must include:
Also, the 2017 USPS Earned Value Reply Mail promotion covers a discount on Alternate Postage (aka Sharemail) pieces entering the mailstream during the promotional period in addition to Business Reply Mail (BRM) and Courtesy Reply Mail (CRM) letters or cards. Click here to download the 2017 USPS Promotions White Paper to learn more about the USPS promotions.
To learn more about this amazingly alternative mail opportunity, contact your USPS Marketing Consultant at alternatepostage@usps.gov. Then contact us at marketing@wsel.com for amazingly unique envelope and label marketing ideas.
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Renee M. Berger was the Marketing Manager at Western States. As an integral part of the management team, she worked with a large number of customers and prospects, as well as inside and outside sales. In addition to her work, Renee expands her creative outlets with pro-bono work for nonprofit organizations, marketing, social media coaching, painting, illustration, and photography. |