Bulk Mail Minimums

[kdw75]

We have recently started doing our own bulk mailings. Everything has worked great, except the minimums told to us by the post office. They say that there isn't any way to bulk mail 100 pieces for example. Yet we can call up our previous mail service provider, and they will happily bulk mail 100 pieces. How are they able to do this? I had thought that they put it together with other mailings, but from what the USPS told us, you couldn't do that without combining the lists.

 

[kansasquaker]

They're commingling the mail with other mail jobs. Your PO is correct in that you can't prepare a mailing with less than 200 pieces. And if you are just getting into mailing you won't have the volume to commingle jobs (let alone the processes and equipment). So you're pretty much stuck sending those jobs out. Of course you can always use stamps . . .

Here's an article that explains the concept of commingling:

What you don't know about this mail optimization tool could cost you time and money : Page 2 of 2 : Target Marketing

 

[Digital Press Guy]

Co-mingling preprinted mail is certainly one answer. Variable data printing software can also allow you to mix and match various jobs in the printing process itself. This allows you to get better volume discounts. While VDP is usually thought of for personalization it can also provide many workflow advantages.

 

[MailGuru]

Co-mingling preprinted mail is certainly one answer. Variable data printing software can also allow you to mix and match various jobs in the printing process itself. This allows you to get better volume discounts. While VDP is usually thought of for personalization it can also provide many workflow advantages.

Yes, but, you have to be mindful of what's going to happen in the binding/finishing area. For instance, if you combine 3 lists into 1 variable mailing, you have to ask yourself, are they all going into the same envelope with the same additional inserts? If they are post cards, are they all the same size and weight?

There are a couple of things you can do. One, is co-mingling, which, requires a very special arrangement with the Postal Service. Not many mail service providers have a co-mingling arrangment with the post office. In such instances, contact your local UPS rep. UPS has a division called "UPS Mail Innovations", which specializes in picking up mail from many different businesses and co-mingling as well as distribuition to destination USPS postal service locations. If this is a regular daily fulfillment operation, you can hold today's file until you receive tomorrow's file, then, combine the two to meet the minimum.

Also, without knowing more about the piece you are mailing, there may be other alternatives. For instance that DMM regulation actually reads "....200 pieces or 50 pounds". If you are mailing a flat, that weighs 9 oz each, you would only need 89 pieces to meet the minimum.

I hope this helps.

Best

-MaillGuru

 

[kdw75]

Yes, it was helpful. I hadn't every heard of co-mingling. We have a case right now, where we are mailing two different postcards, and they are the same size, and on the same paper. One of them is around 1K pieces, while the other is 98 pieces, so I should be able to merge the lists.

 

[MailGuru]

Yes, it was helpful. I hadn't every heard of co-mingling. We have a case right now, where we are mailing two different postcards, and they are the same size, and on the same paper. One of them is around 1K pieces, while the other is 98 pieces, so I should be able to merge the lists.

Yep, that would be a perfect opportunity to learn something new. Set your art for 2 "layers" or, you can set the "visibility property" to be "false" for the second postcard. Keycode your mailing list with an "A" in a certain column for the 1,000-pc post card list, and, a "B" in the same column for the 98-pc mailing list. Now, go ahead and do your postal sort with both lists combined. When you output your sorted file for printing, make sure you include the keycode column ("A" or "B") on output. Now, when you go to merge, set your merge software to default to the art for post card "A" UNLESS the column contains a "B", in which case, you switch the visibility property for the second layer to "true" and, it prints that post card instead of the first one.

Like Digital Press Guy said, variable image can be used for workflow purposes as well as personalization.

Best

-MailGuru

 

[kdw75]

That is pretty much the idea I had formulated. Though putting it into play was a little more difficult, as I never spend the time to thoroughly learn FusionPRO, which we bought a few months back.

 

[MailGuru]

That is pretty much the idea I had formulated. Though putting it into play was a little more difficult, as I never spend the time to thoroughly learn FusionPRO, which we bought a few months back.

Learning and implementing something new always takes more time than expected. But, once you've got it down.............

Best

-MailGuru