March issue of the Mailing & Fulfillment Service Association PostScripts
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MARCH 2012 8 INSIDE >> MANAGEMENT 16 ASSOCIATION MFSA/PINE Intensive One Day Postal Boot Camp PostScripts MAILING & FULFILLMENT SERVICE ASSOCIATION Postal Reform Moving Forward; Budget Score Raises its Head (Continued to page 10) 22 BUSINESS OPERATIONS How Creative Direct Mail Leads the Multi- Channel March DISASTER RECOVERY ISSUE (Continued to page 6) By Jax Oxton, President & Chief Operating Officer PSI Group On February 7, 2011, at 7:45 p.m., smoke detectors were tripped at Pitney Bowes’ largest mail services presort facility in Grand Prairie, Texas, as a fire that started in another company’s nearby facility rapidly spread. By 4:30 a.m., the fire had grown to a four-alarm blaze and raged through the night, damaging equipment worth millions of dollars. By 9 a.m., the entire facil- ity, which served hundreds of commercial customers, was destroyed. The unexpected can happen to any organization. And while you can’t control the unexpected, you can control the response. In the case of the fire, the company’s response was drawn up months earlier. As a result, service contin- ued without disruption. The morning after the inci- dent, trucks started their routes, picking up mail from customers throughout the Dallas-Fort Worth area. Mail was presorted at a second Pitney Bowes facil- ity in the vicinity as well other sites in the region to ensure rapid induction and delivery. In addition to having a mail service network of 36 operational facilities to redirect workflow, Pitney Bowes had de- signed, documented and tested a formal business continuity plan. When disaster struck, local manage- ment knew exactly what to do to safeguard em- ployees, secure the building, protect customer data, reroute the mail and make requested customer pick- ups and deliveries as scheduled. The company immediately began searching for a new mail presort facility. Frequent communications to customers continued long after the initial disaster. There were no breaches of customer security, and in- surance claims were in the works within 30 days. Five months after the fire, teams continued to follow through on tasks outlined in the formal plan. TIPS FOR CREATING A PLAN THAT ADDRESSES THE THREE KEY PHASES OF BUSINESS CONTINUITY Reprinted from LIFE Foundation As a small business owner you are responsible not only for the welfare of yourself and your family but for many others as well, including partners, employees and customers. Whether you run your business out of your home or from an office, factory or warehouse, a well-conceived insurance and benefits program is es- sential. It can help protect your family and your business if you die or become disabled. It can help you bridge an important gap if one of your key employees dies or leaves the business. It can assist you in attracting and retaining the best talent. And depending on the size of your company, it can even offer an innovative way for you to compensate your most valuable team members. This article discusses the different insurance products available to small business owners and the benefits they offer. Explore this section to learn more about how insurance can protect your business while giving you a competitive edge. One of the first things any business owner needs to consider is how to protect against events that may threaten the future of the business, like the death or disability of a proprietor, partner or key employee. Individual Life Insurance Let’s start with the worst-case scenario, the death of one of the business owners. What will happen to your SMART STRATEGIES TO HELP YOU PROTECT YOUR BUSINESS
Transcript
March 2012
8
INSIDE >>management
16
association
mFsa/Pine intensive one Day Postal Boot camp
Post ScriptsM a i l i n g & F u l F i l l M e n t S e r v i c e a S S o c i a t i o n
Postal Reform moving Forward; Budget score Raises its Head
(Continued to page 10)
22
Business oPeRations
How creative Direct mail Leads the multi-channel march
DISaStEr rEcovEryISSuE
(Continued to page 6)
By Jax oxton, President & chief operating officerPSi group
on February 7, 2011, at 7:45 p.m., smoke detectors were tripped at Pitney Bowes’ largest mail services presort facility in grand Prairie, texas, as a fire that started in another company’s nearby facility rapidly spread.
By 4:30 a.m., the fire had grown to a four-alarm blaze and raged through the night, damaging equipment worth millions of dollars. By 9 a.m., the entire facil-ity, which served hundreds of commercial customers, was destroyed.
the unexpected can happen to any organization. and while you can’t control the unexpected, you can control the response.
in the case of the fire, the company’s response was drawn up months earlier. as a result, service contin-ued without disruption. the morning after the inci-dent, trucks started their routes, picking up mail from customers throughout the Dallas-Fort Worth area. Mail was presorted at a second Pitney Bowes facil-ity in the vicinity as well other sites in the region to
ensure rapid induction and delivery. in addition to having a mail service network of 36 operational facilities to redirect workflow, Pitney Bowes had de-signed, documented and tested a formal business continuity plan. When disaster struck, local manage-ment knew exactly what to do to safeguard em-ployees, secure the building, protect customer data, reroute the mail and make requested customer pick-ups and deliveries as scheduled.
the company immediately began searching for a new mail presort facility. Frequent communications to customers continued long after the initial disaster. there were no breaches of customer security, and in-surance claims were in the works within 30 days.
Five months after the fire, teams continued to follow through on tasks outlined in the formal plan.
tIpS for crEatINg a plaN that aDDrESSES thE thrEE KEy phaSES of BuSINESS coNtINuIty
reprinted from liFe Foundation
as a small business owner you are responsible not only for the welfare of yourself and your family but for many others as well, including partners, employees and customers. Whether you run your business out of your home or from an office, factory or warehouse, a well-conceived insurance and benefits program is es-sential.
it can help protect your family and your business if you die or become disabled. it can help you bridge an important gap if one of your key employees dies or leaves the business. it can assist you in attracting and retaining the best talent. and depending on the size of your company, it can even offer an innovative way for you to compensate your most valuable team members.
this article discusses the different insurance products available to small business owners and the benefits they offer. explore this section to learn more about how insurance can protect your business while giving you a competitive edge. one of the first things any business owner needs to consider is how to protect against events that may threaten the future of the business, like the death or disability of a proprietor, partner or key employee.
Individual life Insurancelet’s start with the worst-case scenario, the death of one of the business owners. What will happen to your
SMart StratEgIES to hElp you protEct your BuSINESS
2 MFSA PostScripts
Mark your calendar >>
annual conFerence Historic grove Park innashville, ncJune 24-27, 2012
Postscripts is published monthly for MFSa members. For advertising information, please contact: Bill Stevenson at [email protected] or 800-333-6272.
March 2012 ISSuE 645Chairman’s Column
Post Scripts
Board of Directors
Chairman of the Board
Mike Kellogg; Century Direct, LLC, Long Island City, NY
first ViCe Chairman
Ted Kulpinski; UniversalWilde, Holliston, MA
seCond ViCe Chairman
Tim Johnson; Impact Proven Solutions, Minneapolis, MN
treasurer
Tom Duchene; TDMS, Huntington Beach, CA
immediate Past Chairman
Ken Gossett; AMI, Alexandria, VA
direCtors
Charles Buchanan; World Marketing-Dallas, Dallas, TXTammy Caserta; Think Patented, Dayton, OHGreg Fischer; Marketing Support Services, Cincinnati, OHJoy Franckowiak; Valpak, St. Petersburg, FLDave Lewis; Prolist, Gaithersburg, MDChris Lien; BCC Software Inc., Rochester, NYWayne Marshall; Edwards Graphics Arts, Des Moines, IAKen Orr; ICS Marketing Support Services, Lansing, MIJohn Palazzolo; Adphos North America, Cincinati, OHWes Powell; TMR Direct, Colorado Springs, COAnita Pursley; RR Donnelley, Johns Creek, GAMike Stewart; Great Lakes Integrated, Avon Lake, OHEric Strand; RESCO, Hudson, WIGary Weinberg; Quality Letter Service, Inc., New York, NY
Mailing & Fulfillment Service association1421 Prince Street, Ste. 410alexandria, va 22314tel: 703-836-9200; 800-333-6272Fax: 703-548-8204email: [email protected]
michael Kelloggchairman of the Board
IS DISaStEr rEcovEry a prIorIty IN your coMpaNy?Disaster recovery—dashed dreams and hope for redemption, all bound up in a catchy little phrase. this catchy little phase evokes feelings of guilt…woulda, coulda, shoulda… when we hear it, read about it or even think about it. Who is truly prepared for redemption after an event that was never supposed to happen? the mere utterance of the catchy little phrase creates the image of a mountain of work to do just in case something bad happens. and you have to keep doing it, over and over, year after year, even when nothing bad happens. it’s like life insurance; the only way to win is for the unthinkable to happen. Who wants to think about that? i’ve got real work to do.
My guess is that if most of us were spurred to honest disclosure, we would admit that we are lacking in key elements of a truly effective and manageable plan to bring our businesses back on line after a catastrophe. the natural corollary to that statement is most of us would be in a world of hurt if and when disaster strikes, and disaster does strike. ask our members in nashville. they’ll tell you. anyone see what vermont and upstate new York looked like last summer? earthquake in new York city, are you kid-ding me? We see the burning building on the evening news and we utter under our breath “there but for the grace of god go i.” guilty.
i view the whole matter as one of priorities. is it a priority? How much of it is a priority is probably a better way to phrase it. the mountain of work is not so big and you can do away with much of your guilt by prioritizing those elements of recovery planning. Determine what will have the most impact on the recovery of your business in the un-likely event that the manure hits the wind tunnel. take a careful look at your business and perform some risk assessment. What “if” something terrible happens? What is most likely to be the impact? How can i avoid the most expensive and/or likely busi-ness downtime by planning around it? Do that first. then, the next bite and so forth until it’s all behind you. till next year.
is it expensive to do? Depends, but i might ask the same question in reverse. What happens if you don’t have an executable plan and you are on the evening news? What happens if you don’t have disability or life insurance? Dumb questions with answers that everyone knows. and yet….
So spare yourselves the burden of guilt. take advan-tage of some of these very smart writers in this issue and get going on this for the good of your business, your clients, your employees, your family and your soul.
Christopher C. Antone is the managing partner of the Dallas offi ce of Jackson Lewis LLP, a national law fi rm representing management on workplace law issues.
If you have any questions regarding employee and HR laws, or for more information or assistance, please contact Chris Antone, at (214) 647-2095 or [email protected]. For more information about Jackson Lewis’ services, visit their website at: www.jacksonlewis.com.
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4 MFSA PostScripts
Cooper has been actively involved in major postal issues for more than ten years. He founded and chaired the Coalition for a 21st Century Postal Serv-ice, which helped organ-ize the mailing industry to pass Postal Reform in 2006. He also serves as Executive Director of Mail Moves America, the or-ganization formed by DMA to fight Do Not Mail leg-islation in the states. He is currently a partner at Williams and Jensen. Prior to coming to Williams and Jensen, he was with the Printing Industries of America.
Ben cooperWilliams and Jensen
Management
poStal rEforM MovINg forwarD; BuDgEt ScorE raISES ItS hEaDFirst, the good news. leaders of the House and Sen-ate as well as the key sponsors of postal reform legis-lation in the House and Senate agree that legislation is absolutely needed in 2012 and that some kind of legislation will pass. Despite that note of encourage-ment, we are still uncertain what this legislation will look like and how long a “reform” will last.
now, the bad news. When we look at the topics that have dominated postal reform discussions for the past several years, most of them center on various retirement payments including the ten year pre-funding of retiree medical (reHB) and overpayments into the civil Service retirement System (cSrS) and the Federal employee retirement System (FerS). in one form or another, these issues and several others share a common bond in the postal reform debate – the budget score.
Budget Score and postal reformnormal people (defined here as those outside the Washington Beltway) would tend to think of a bud-get score in terms of cost to the taxpayer. generally, when you hear comments about “cost to the taxpay-er,” what is really being said is a “negative score.” they are not necessarily the same thing.
the Postal Service (and thus the mailing industry) is subject to several layers of problems on the score is-sue. although the uSPS is funded by postage, it is part of the unified federal budget. Postal Service budget problems therefore become federal gov-ernment budget problems. Shifting overpayments from one place to another are not simply treated as a wash. if the shifting of a payment (cSrS) creates a deficit in one account that has to be filled by taxpay-ers, a negative score is created. in the case of cSrS, a negative score results if funds are moved to the uSPS because the cSrS is under-funded for all other feder-al employees. Moving the money, therefore, exposes a bigger problem that would have to be addressed.
ironically, the same is not true with FerS. Moving the money does not create the same level of problem be-cause the overall funding of FerS seems to be better.the other score problem for the uSPS is the congres-sional Budget office (cBo) does not give the spon-sors of postal reform legislation credit for many of the expense reduction efforts in the bills. the guid-ing philosophy is that if money is transferred to the uSPS (such as FerS), the uSPS will be less inclined to pursue cost reductions that they might have done without the FerS money.
the key difference in the House and Senate approach-es to postal reform is the House bill contains several “hammers,” which force the uSPS into expense reduc-
tions and revenue increases. the expense reduction “incentives” include the implementation of a control authority to run the uSPS, eliminating Saturday de-livery, and a “Brac” commission to close facilities. also, the bill contains provisions that would increase rates for several types of mail, adding to the revenue score. the Senate bill has reform of the federal work-ers comp system, some rate increases, a process for closing facilities and elimination of Saturday delivery after further review, and only after two years; howev-er, the expense savings from these measures are dis-counted so the score stands at a negative $6.3 billion.
it is the score that is contributing to the delays in con-sidering the overall legislation. the challenge now is to figure out a way to deal with the score without cre-ating another, bigger problem. it was the effort to fix the score in 2006 that led to the decision to pre-fund retiree medical payments over ten years.
unfortunately, one of the ways to improve the score in postal legislation is to include rate increases. While everyone in the industry understands the problems that would be created by increasing rates as the way of addressing expenses at the uSPS, the cBo does not take a normal world view. they assume that if rates are increased, more money will come in.
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(Continued to page 5)
MARCH 2012 5
So…how Do we fix this Mess?it is generally agreed that the Senate bill S. 1789 does not go quite far enough in addressing the ills of the uSPS. While no legislation is going to promote laying off thousands of employ-ees in the current economic climate, everyone knows that with almost 80 percent of the uSPS costs going into human capital, something has to give on the postal labor front. S. 1789 attempts to deal with the human cost in two key ways: reforming federal workers comp which is 40% postal funded and promoting early retirement with incentives from the FerS transfer. even these measures are not without controversy. Many Democrats are un-happy about the reform of the workers comp program. the fact that an employee who is on workers compensation at the time of normal retirement age does not have to take retirement, is not persuasive enough. these employees can often earn one-third more on workers comp than on regular retirement. We now have employees in their 90’s on workers comp.
the early out incentives are not particu-larly controversial; however, if the work-ers comp reform is taken out of the bill, the score goes up even more.
H.r. 2309 has several ways of getting to employment related costs. First of all, the control authority allowed under the bill would permit that authority to take what-ever action necessary to bring the uSPS into solvency including terminating exist-ing employment contracts and reopen-ing negotiations on new contracts. these new contracts could not have “no lay-off” provisions. it also allows the elimination of Saturday delivery which will reduce employment. the bill also brings uSPS employee benefits contributions on a par with other federal employees. these changes could make significant reduc-tions in employment and employment related costs. the challenges most in the industry see with the control authority concept is that it is a five person, politi-cally appointed, bi-partisan commission. this has not been a particularly good sea-son for bi-partisan commission results so many are pessimistic about the outcome. among the major problems with the sol-vency authority concept is, there is very little support in the Senate for that pro-posal.
Within the past few days, there has emerged an active effort in the Senate led by Senator Bernie Sanders (i-vt) who has as-sembled a group of 27 Senators supporting a longer time period before Saturday delivery can be eliminated (three years) and a slower process to close postal facilities. if these provisions are added to S. 1789, the budget hill will become steeper. While the sponsors of S. 1789 are not going to be enthusiastic about the Sanders effort, it gets difficult to ignore 27 Senators who act as a group.
unfortunately, there appears to be a trend in the direction of passing less a postal reform bill than a postal patch bill. While such an effort will get the uSPS and the industry over a hump of sorts, it will mean the industry will almost certainly be back dur-ing the next congress dealing with this issue again.
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Reform continued from page 4
6 MFSA PostScripts
business if you die? Many small business owners take out loans to help grow their businesses, and often secure these loans with personal assets. if you have business loans and were to pass away before they were paid off, you might think your family could sell or liquidate the business to cover the debts and pro-vide financial security for them.
in reality, this rarely happens. When the family is forced to sell the business quickly, they may have to sell at a discount or dur-ing market conditions that make the business less attractive. in other cases, the business may be worth very little without the proprietor or partner. individual life insurance can protect your family by providing funds to cover debts, ongoing living expens-es, and future plans in the event that something happens to you.
Buy-Sell agreementslife insurance can also be structured to fund a “buy-sell” agree-ment. this is an agreement among owners to buy a deceased owner’s share of the business at a previously agreed upon price in the event of death, disability or retirement.
Why are these agreements so important? You might think that if you die, your family could maintain their income by running the business themselves or by hiring someone to handle the day-to-day management. the fact is, your loved ones may not have the skills or the desire for the job, and your co-owners may not wel-come the idea of an unintended partner. With a properly struc-tured and funded buy-sell agreement, your business partners won’t have to scramble to come up with the money to buy out your share of the business and you’ll be guaranteed that your survivors will be compensated fairly and promptly.
Buy-sell agreements are typically funded by life insurance poli-cies purchased on the lives of each of the business owners. the amount is usually specified in a contract created with the help of an attorney. You can enter into a buy-sell agreement at any time, but it often makes sense to do so when a business is formed or when new owners are brought into the business. Because busi-ness values can fluctuate, it’s important to review the contract with your accountant at least once per year or to include a cal-culation method in the agreement. also be sure the insurance coverage funding the agreement is up to date.
though not as common as insuring against death, business owners can also insure against the risk of becoming disabled and unable to work. in this case, disability income buyout insur-ance would fund the buy-sell agreement, allowing the disabled owners to be bought out, typically after a one-year waiting pe-riod.
Key person InsuranceKey person insurance is another essential component of a smart business continuation plan. Key person insurance is life or dis-ability insurance purchased by the business on the life of such an employee and payable to the business. When a “key person” dies or becomes disabled, insurance can help make up for lost sales or earnings or cover the cost of finding or training a re-placement.
The Life and Health Insurance Foundation for Education (LIFE) is a nonprofit organization dedicated to helping consumers make smart insurance decisions to safeguard their families’ financial fu-tures.
Strategies continued from page 1
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8 MFSA PostScripts
Management
Wayne Peterson is prin-cipal of the Black Canyon Consulting Group Inc. His career in the printing in-dustry started at age 13. Wayne has served as presi-dent of three fast-growing companies. He has cre-ated and built five strong brands, and lead four highly effective sales and marketing organizations. He founded the Black Can-yon Consulting Group Inc. in 2008. Wayne can be reached at www.blackcan-yonconsulting.com.
Wayne PetersonBlack canyon consulting
group
your DISaStEr rEcovEry plaN ShoulD pay attENtIoN to cuStoMEr rElatIoNSimagine something outlandish. imagine a meteor rocketing out of the sky and landing on your plant. it happens late on a Sunday night when there’s not a soul around, so no one is injured. But you arrive to work on Monday morning to find nothing but a smoking crater where your building stood on Friday. now, imagine that you have the plan in place to re-build all of the physical and technology assets within a 90-day period, and without losing a single custom-er. could your business recover? i suspect you’re nod-ding yes as you imagine it.
now imagine something very different. You arrive at work on Monday morning. Pulling into the parking lot, you see that the building and all of your other tangible assets are still right where you left them on Friday. and your employees are all arriving for work at the same time too. However, over the weekend, you learn that every single one of your customer re-lationships has evaporated. they are all gone. Where would you be in 90 days under that scenario?
it’s an interesting pair of scenarios to compare, don’t you think? and the point of the exercise is this: if your disaster recovery plan (or, in the current jargon, your “business continuity plan”) pays less attention to your customer relationships than it does to your physical assets and infrastructure, the plan is leaving you at real risk.
i write from firsthand experience. on Friday evening, September 17, 2004, a tornado spun off from the remnants of Hurricane ivan. as tornado’s go, it wasn’t an especially big one, only an F2. However, it tore into the plant of my company, where i was responsi-ble for marketing and business development. it tore off more than half the roof. it tossed cars and delivery trailers around the parking lot and into the building. employees got only a few seconds warning that the building was about to be hit. one of them took cover laying on his back and watched the roof peel away.
We were grateful that none of the 22 employees working at the time were injured. that was miracu-lous. But as the storm moved out of the area, it rained steadily for hours through the missing roof, dumping two inches of rain and leaving thousands of gallons of water in the building. in short, it was your worst operational nightmare.
the work required to recover from the physical dam-age was daunting. and that’s a remarkable story in and of itself. But as critical as was the physical recov-ery, something else was much more urgent and vital
to the enterprise. We needed to reach our customers.
By 7 a.m. on Sunday, power had been restored and the first area to get up and running was the front office, especially customer Service. By midday, the telephones were up and so was internet connectiv-ity. and that’s when every cSr reported to work. We launched a major communications effort to get in front of the news. Because it was urgent that our cus-tomers hear the story from us first. the first wave of communication was voicemail messages and email messages to every customer. We crafted a message that gave them the essentials and told them what we expected. nearly all of them heard the story from us as they arrived at work on Monday, and ahead of the rumor mill. We followed that initial wave with a daily news release.
We included photos of the damage and the restora-tion work already beginning. and through all of it, customers heard frequently from their cSr’s. We told them exactly how their particular projects were be-ing affected, and what we were doing to minimize that impact.
in the end, we lost only one customer whose depar-ture could be attributed to the events surrounding Hurricane ivan and our tornado. We ended the year with billings on plan, and ahead of the prior year. We continued to grow. and that was a direct result of paying as much attention to the customer effects as we did to how the physical plant was affected.
So, i have a handful of questions that your plan needs to address if the unimaginable were to strike your company:
• is your customer data, including your custom-er contact data, backed up off site?
• Who is responsible to lead the customer-fac-ing part of your recovery effort?
• What is your plan for communicating with your customers fast, and ahead of the rumor mill?
• How will you follow up the initial communi-cation to keep your customers tightly in the loop?
• Do you recognize the need to reinforce their emotional attachment through the recovery?
it boils down to a very simple, central question: are you prepared to keep your customers or are they the only thing you cannot survive without?
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10 MFSA PostScripts
(continued to page 11)
the disaster site remained closed, pending comple-tion of the final insurance investigation, including the cause and origin review — but Pitney Bowes continued assisting clients on insurance claims pro-cessing.
During that time, the company experienced a 98 per-cent customer retention rate—a testament not only to the teams and plans in place, but also the high lev-els of understanding, encouragement and support provided by customers.
in June 2011, a new, state-of-the-art facility was opened in grand Prairie, texas.
Key phases of Business continuitythere are three key phases of business continuity: the plan, implementation and follow-up.
The Plantop management initiates a comprehensive business impact analysis, which involves cross-departmental teams identifying the business’s most critical systems and processes and the potential impact a disaster would have on each area. a thorough risk assessment also includes an inventory of the entire business, the facilities, and for each facility, the people, equipment, software and relevant data housed there.
Business analysts then imagine as many disaster sce-narios as possible, hypothesizing how to handle each one and prioritizing the risks. the scenarios include the “domino effect,” when more than one thing goes wrong, such as the earthquake in Japan that was fol-lowed by a tsunami then a nuclear disaster. the busi-ness impact analysis helps determine the sequence of activities, identifying which services should be re-stored first.
once complete, a business continuity plan provides a detailed, step-by-step primer on what to do, when to do it, who to bring in and how to follow through. the best plans include simple checklists and priorities that are easy to follow during stressful emergency situations. Since staff turnover is an ongoing issue, the business continuity plan must be written by job function rather than by the employee’s name.
the document further defines emergency response protocols and the “recovery point objective,” or when the mission is complete. this is crucial for the long-term health of a business, particularly service busi-nesses, as the customer is the ultimate arbiter of when service is back to normal.
the business continuity plan should establish com-munications guidelines and service levels that help staff effectively manage customer expectations throughout the disaster and its aftermath. as data integrity is the backbone of many service organiza-tions, sections on it planning and recovery must de-
tail procedures for backing up data and designating alternative sites for housing data. if the need is great enough, as in the financial services industry, dupli-cate systems are often created offsite so they are ready for immediate deployment.
the final part of plan development is annual training. everyone involved, from executives to the on-site implementation team, must review the plan annu-ally. organizational structures and personnel change constantly, and new team members need to under-stand their roles. executive management must sign off on the plan, empowering the management team to rapidly respond to a disaster. the plan must be rig-orously tested under conditions that are as realistic as possible. each facility needs to designate a lead for its business continuity implementation team.
The Implementationonce the business continuity plan is in place and staff members are trained, every situation, no mat-ter how onerous, can be met with confidence. When disaster strikes, implement the plan immediately and focus first on short-term needs.
ten best practices during the implementation phase:
1. ensure employee safety. Follow proper safety pro-cedures for evacuation in the event of a fire or oth-er disaster, making sure that everyone is out of the building and at a safe distance. Perform a head count to verify that no one is left behind.
2. contact local emergency assistance. cooperate with local authorities, and let trained professionals do their jobs without interference.
3. Secure the data center; if it is endangered or com-promised, carry out the it disaster recovery plans.
4. Secure client information and assets. especially important for service providers, getting client infor-mation, materials and product to a safe place must be top priority. in the event of a natural disaster, such as a fire, on-site security can establish a perimeter.
5. contact corporate executives. the on-site team will be in the thick of things from the start. tie in corporate executives immediately. this executive im-mersion promotes organization-wide accountability and enables businesses like Pitney Bowes to tap into their nationwide resources to resolve problems swift-ly. local or on-site management might be in the best position to react to the situation at hand. corporate personnel can gather the necessary resources to help ensure that on-site management has access to those resources.
Jay Oxton joined Pitney Bowes in conjunction with PB’s acquisition of PSI Group, Inc. in August of 2002. His 15 year career in the domestic presort busi-ness, as the President and Chief Operating Officer of PSI Group and PB Presort Services, has been very rewarding. The Presort Services team has grown our business from six loca-tions in 1995 to 36 across the United States. He is currently the president and chief operating officer at PSI Group.
Jay oxton
Continuity continued from page 1
MARCH 2012 11
6. notify customers. the best relationships are built on trust and, in a disaster, that trust can be a source of strength. Share information early and often so there are few surprises and no recriminations on the road back to normalcy. Personal outreach from senior manager to senior manager goes a long way toward instilling confidence.
7. contact recovery partners. reach out to resources that can keep the infrastructure together, if necessary, while the busi-ness continuity team focuses on delivering services and keep-ing customers happy. You may need to engage data warehouse resources, building security firms and key vendors to provide stopgap assistance.
8. Move to a secure location. When the physical plant is no lon-ger operable, or the building site presents dangers to personnel, move all personnel to a preplanned secure location. at this time, off-site data centers take over business critical processing.
9. communicate. this is a mantra that cannot be repeated enough. Foster open dialog between on-site staff and the cor-porate business continuity team. reach out to customers early on and follow up with periodic updates.
10. Begin restoration of services. even while the disaster is un-folding, restore service quickly by following the business conti-nuity plan.
Follow Up and Fine Tuneafter the initial shock recedes and immediate customer needs are met, maintain momentum for the entire recovery process. there’s no point in winning the battle over a disaster to lose the war on recovery. a comprehensive business continuity plan will continue through these post-event projects:
• Physical plant replacement/rebuild. Disasters impact buildings and the materials inside, so the plan must in-clude procedures and budget guidelines for decisions regarding when to replace and when to rebuild. on-site staff must identify the needs for repair or replacement and coordinate efforts with corporate management.
• Keep open lines of communication with corporate staff. cooperation between on-site personnel and corporate representatives can speed up the return to normalcy and demonstrate to employees that everything is under con-trol.
• Maintain ongoing communications with employees and customers. throughout the recovery, they may feel vul-nerable. Provide regular updates on the building repair. let staff know when they will be able to get back into a re-furbished building or where they will be relocated. Keep customers reassured that their products and data are se-cure and service will continue.
• Focus communications on major customers. identify a designated point of contact to ensure consistent and reli-able communications. Funnel all questions and answers through these staff contacts.
• File insurance claims quickly. Work hand-in-hand with in-surance companies so claims can be processed in a timely, accurate manner. Keep careful records of the status and repair of all materials. as necessary, help customers with any additional backup they may need for insurance claims.
• Provide customers with confirmation of recovery and de-struction. When you manage data and other secure items for customers, it’s critical that there be no security breach. that extends to confirming what materials were complete-ly recovered and which were destroyed.
• conduct a review of the incident. Publish the detailed findings as a lessons learned document for the business continuity planning team. Share the executive summary with senior management and provide customers with les-sons learned to allay any remaining anxieties.
• reflect, refine and revise. though you can be satisfied that your business continuity plan was well implemented and avoided costly, long-term impact to your company, it’s al-ways wise to adjust the written document, incorporating real-life lessons into a previously hypothetical plan.
• Know your contractual obligations. review each contract and clearly communicate your obligations to team mem-bers.
• remain vigilant. Your business came through the disaster with flying colors, thanks to a well planned, well executed business continuity plan. But don’t rest on your laurels — be ready for the next time.
preparing for the unexpectedSuccessful business continuity planning is a long-term corpo-rate commitment. Planning takes much advanced work, assess-ing risk, identifying resources and generating detailed protocols. But as the incident at Pitney Bowes’ mail services center in the Dallas-Fort Worth area demonstrated, a fully trained staff, which is accustomed to making decisions, complying with a formal business continuity plan meant the difference between effec-tive response and a complete breakdown in customer service.
Continuity continued from page 10
12 MFSA PostScripts
ManagementSocIal MEDIa aND crISIS MaNagEMENt: 10 coMMoN MIStaKESWritten by gideon F. For-mukwai, Ma, ceM reprinted from Disaster recovery Journal
if your organization is already on its social media journey, you may want to think of yourself as a traveler. it can be an exciting time out there on the road, but it can also be a challenging time - especially if unforeseen problems arise and you make mistakes. it is hence only natural that the following question surfaces as you explore the use of social media in crisis management: What can i do to avoid costly mistakes upon developing and imple-menting social media strategies that are geared toward improv-ing my organization’s crisis management? this article attempts to answer your question by highlighting 10 common mistakes made by organizations that are using social media today.
Mistake #1 lack of Social Media guidelinesSome organizations have joined the social media bandwagon without thinking their efforts through. Sadly, these organiza-tions often find themselves in a precarious situation as they have put the cart before the horse. the required approach is to establish guidelines or rules of engagement prior to embark-ing on the social media journey. With social media guidelines or policies that are tailored to fit your organization’s needs in place, it is a lot easier to prevent problems should a crisis occur.
Mistake #2 lack of Senior Management SupportWithout senior management support it will be impossible to de-velop and implement a social media strategy that can effectively support your organization before, during and after crisis.
Mistake #3 undefined Missionevery successful voyage needs a defined goal that justifies the inherent risks. Similarly, when embarking on using social media to bolster crisis management, your organization must establish specific goals. these goals can be social, economic and politi-cal in nature. in the course of our practice we have encountered companies that are using social media without having taken the time to integrate social media into their strategic goals.
Mistake # 4 No roadmapthese days, most drivers use a global Positioning System (gPS) if they do not know the way. a few years ago, it used to be printed maps. and farther back in time, many travelers carried a com-pass. thanks to these and other navigation devices, we have been able to get to our desired destinations. unfortunately, some organizations employ social media without a plan or a roadmap to guide them through the process and subsequently wonder why getting to where they want to be is so hard or even impossible.
Mistake #5 who Is the conductor?every ship needs a capable captain. However, when it comes to embarking on an organization’s social media journey, some-times even large companies fail to designate a qualified manag-er who will spearhead the development and implementation of crisis management related social media strategies. Just because someone has an it or corporate communications background does not mean that he or she understands social media and the subtleties of public engagement in a social media environment.
neither does it mean that the individual considered for the job has the appropriate leadership or project management experi-ence. a thorough skills assessment and resulting training may therefore be required before a particular manager is in the posi-tion to lead with competence.
Mistake #6 who Is the tour guide?While the captain or project team lead is busy charting the course, ensuring ongoing senior management support and al-locating necessary resources, other project team members must work on project details so the voyage can be successful. these team members function as tour guides who support and facili-tate the necessary internal process.
Mistake #7 “Insource” vs. outsourceno organization produces everything it needs to operate itself. Whether you are working at a government agency, a nonprofit organization or a corporation, your organization does what it is are good at and necessarily outsources certain services and functional areas. it is important to realize that because an em-ployee knows how to contribute to Facebook or upload a video to Youtube does not imply that she or he has sufficient expertise in essential areas such as stakeholder management, message development, etc. engaging qualified external social media consultants may therefore be another helpful and in fact critical step on your organization’s journey to increased crisis readiness.
Mistake #8 unspecified landmarksthe fact that some organizations have not thought through im-portant processes, technicalities and deliverables of social me-dia usually brings about a comparable result. Determining ap-propriate milestones or landmarks up front makes taking stock and continuously assessing what still needs to be accomplished possible. So establish a timeline and link it to specific objectives on your organization’s way to becoming more crisis resilient through the use of social media.
Mistake #9 Biased EmphasisMany organizations are paying too much attention to social media tools and the technology and particular techniques of getting information distributed via social media. Social media must hence be about how organizations continuously listen to and engage with their stakeholders, how they strive to better understand and cater to their stakeholders’ informational needs, and how they communicate with specific stakeholders utilizing carefully developed messages and technologies that enhance sharing.
Mistake #10 lack of Initiative (procrastination)if your organization has yet to embrace social media as an im-portant piece of its crisis management strategy, the time to act is now. Further delaying will put your organization at risk because the question is not whether a crisis will hit, but rather when it will happen.
This article was written by Gideon F. For-mukwai, MA, CEM and a Senior Consultant at C4CS, LLC and Oliver S. Schmidt, Managing Partner of C4CS, LLC. For more information go to http://www.thei-cor.org/art/pdfs/courses/cmc3030.pdf.
MARCH 2012 13
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MfSa call for ENtrIES--awarDS for ExcEllENcE 2012Hard work, creativity and innovation deserve credit. and, there is no better way to accept that credit than in front of peers and industry colleagues. Honoring excellence and innovation in the mailing industry, the MFSa awards for excellence recognize out-standing examples of mailings, campaigns, projects, and educa-tion. celebrating success within the industry, this award com-petition is your chance to showcase what your organization has achieved in the past year. the awards program culminates at the MFSa annual conference, held in ashville, nc, in June 2012, at the grove Park inn resort & Spa.
aWarD categorieShenry hoke, Sr. awardthe Henry Hoke, Sr. award is given to the best single direct mail piece or campaign for a client with substantial creative input by the member.
chairman’s Self-promotion award the chairman’s Self-Promotion award recognizes a member’s best single piece mailing for self-promotion.
John howie wright cupthe John Howie Wright cup is awarded for the best campaign of two or more mailings for self-promotion that share a creatively related concept, with the understanding that individual pieces of a campaign may not be entered as stand alone pieces.
chairman’s web Site awardthis award recognizes the best member company World Wide Web site.
Ed Sisk Excellence in Education awardthis award recognizes excellent employee educa-tion, communication, and training programs.
Mailing Industry Ingenuity awardthis award is given in recognition of creative prob-lem solving in any three areas of business opera-tions: management; lettershop/production; and data processing/laser/personalization.
fulfillment Ingenuity awardthis award salutes a company which has developed a particu-larly inventive problem-solving solution involving a fulfillment project.
company Newsletter awardrecognizing the importance of company communications, this award is given to the best company newsletter that is used for external purposes.
For more information, go to www.MFSAnet.org.
MARCH 2012 15
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You’ve helped create a beautiful multi-channel campaign for a client. You’ve printed it using that fancy new vDP. the piece is printed with Purl’s and Qr codes, the email template is ready, and the website is done. now it’s time to mail it.
You have the staff and the equipment – but are they prepared? Do you know all the current postal regulations – like tabbing requirements? What about iMb? What steps can you take to save money? Do you know what missteps would cost you dearly?
Your value as a mailing partner is being able to assure your customers their mail piece is receiving the highest level of ser-vice while paying the lowest possible rate. How do you accom-plish this? Discounted Mailing is all about understanding the rules and regulations of the uSPS.
this intensive one-day workshop (March 29, 2012) at the pINE headquarters in Southborough, Ma, is a great way to educate new employees about the wonderful world of mailing and postal regulations. it’s a must-attend event for any compa-ny that is expanding into mailing services. learn to do it right.
Here is a list of what will be covered during the Boot camp – but the instructor customizes each workshop to suit the needs of the audience needs.
• Meet your un-controllable Business Partner – the uSPS• Discounted Mail – the incredible Bulk • Speaking Postal – BMc, ScF, ncoa, caSS, DPv…Huh? • Mail – in a class by itself [overview of the different classes]• Yes, size does matter• What’s all the fuss about addresses? • those funny little lines – what do they do? [Barcodes and
the iMB]• What do you mean mail isn’t sorted by hand anymore? • Data, Data, Data – without it the Pony express would still
be in business [the driving force behind successful mail]• Presort, Schmesort – Why do we have to do all the work• Win an award vs. Pay less postage – it’s your choice?• Help, please help! i know someone is out there!
these workshops are facilitated by g.P. “george” Heinrich – aka the Postal Professor, who has been in the mailing industry more than four decades. the workshop cost for a member of MFSa or Pine member is $250 for the first attendee, and ad-ditional attendees are $125.
For more information, go to www.MFSanet.org.
MARCH 2012 17
18 MFSA PostScripts
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Employment News
Reprinted from Jackson Lewis
Disputes between employers and departing employees over the ownership of social media accounts are on the docket of a number of federal district courts throughout the nation. em-ployers in these cases are asserting ownership over company twitter and linkedin profiles claiming, among other things, that they contain “trade secrets.” employees dispute these conten-tions by pointing out that there is nothing “secret” about social media profiles and that employers have no inherent property interests in twitter and linkedin accounts.
in PhoneDog v. Kravitz, 2011 u.S. Dist. leXiS 129229 (MeJ) (n.D. cal., nov. 8, 2011), for example, a federal court in california de-nied a motion to dismiss where the employer sought damages for each twitter follower that a departing employee took with him. the employee was given use of and maintained a twitter account for the employer’s business during his employment. When he left, he changed the twitter account handle and con-tinued to use the account. PhoneDog and its former employee do not have a written agreement pertaining to ownership of the disputed twitter account. the company alleged several claims against the departing employee, including misappropriation of trade secrets, conversion, and tortious interference with pro-spective advantage.
another example is eagle v. Morgan, 2011 u.S. Dist. leXiS 147247 (rB) (e.D. Pa., Dec. 22, 2011). a federal court in Penn-sylvania denied a motion to dismiss a suit over an employee’s linkedin account. the disputed linkedin account was devel-oped by company personnel and used for company business. as in PhoneDog, the parties do not have a written agreement as to ownership of the account. these cases are headed into prolonged discovery and extensive litigation. they may have been avoided had the parties entered into clearly written agreements at or near the inception of the employment relationship. Such an agreement was upheld in ardis Health, llc v. nankivell, 2011 Wl 4965172 (nrB) (S.D.n.Y., oct. 19, 2011). a federal court in new York granted a preliminary injunction requiring an employee to give her employer access to social media sites pursuant to obligations under the parties’ written non-Disclosure and rights to Work Product agreement.
employers who profit from their employees’ use of social media should carefully analyze these issues. in many cases, a properly drafted agreement delineating the property interests in employ-ee work product will save employers from time-consuming and expensive litigation over ownership of social media accounts.
QuEStIoN of SocIal MEDIa owNErShIp NEED Not BE a proBlEM for EMployErS
MARCH 2012 19
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Reprinted from FEMA
the preparedness program is built on a foundation of manage-ment leadership, commitment and financial support. Without management commitment and financial support, it will be dif-ficult to build the program, maintain resources and keep the program up-to-date. it is important to invest in a preparedness program. the following are good reasons:
• up to 40% of businesses affected by a natural or human-caused disaster never reopen. (Source: insurance informa-tion institute)
• larger businesses are asking their suppliers about pre-paredness.
• insurance is only a partial solution. it does not cover all losses and it will not replace customers.
• news travels fast and perceptions often differ from real-ity. Businesses need to reach out to customers and other stakeholders quickly.
• an ad council survey reported that nearly two-thirds (62%) of respondents said they do not have an emergency plan in place for their business.
preparedness policya preparedness policy that is consistent with the mission and vision of the business should be written and disseminated by management. the policy should define roles and responsibili-
ties. it should authorize selected employees to develop the pro-gram and keep it current. the policy should also define the goals and objectives of the program. typical goals of the preparedness program include:
• Protect the safety of employees, visitors, contractors and others at risk from hazards at the facility. Plan for persons with disabilities and functional needs.
• Maintain customer service by minimizing interruptions or disruptions of business operations
• Protect facilities, physical assets and electronic information• Prevent environmental contamination• Protect the organization’s brand, image and reputation
program committee and program coordinatorKey employees should be organized as a program committee that will assist in the development, implementation and main-tenance of the preparedness program. a program coordinator should be appointed to lead the committee and guide the de-velopment of the program and communicate essential aspects of the plan to all employees so they can participate in the pre-paredness effort.
program administrationthe preparedness program should be reviewed periodically to ensure it meets the current needs of the business. Keep records on file for easy access. lastly, where applicable, make note of any laws, regulations and other requirements that may have changed.
prograM MaNagEMENt lEaDErShIp aND coMMItMENt
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gEt coNNEctEDWith MFSa’s new community site, members have access to resource libraries containing archived documents, a glos-sary of popular terms, blogs, a member directory, an event calendar and discussion Forums. Discussion Forums provide a way to post questions and thoughts to the MFSa commu-nity. the posts are archived online and emailed to community members.
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22 MFSA PostScripts
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today marketers really miss the boat if they neglect to use a multi-channel approach to reach their audience. although the mailbox is no longer the only way to reach consumers, it remains a great first step to get your foot in the door. once you’re in the door, however, your next mission is to keep and hold consumers’ attention -and that’s where your creativity comes in.
creative direct mail adds new dimensions to traditional direct mail. instead of your relationship ending when the consumer or donor reads your mail, you now have an opportunity to build a relationship with that person before they try to contact you. thanks to social media and Qr codes, creative direct mail of-fers a variety of ways to make additional contacts. take a look at these ideas to start brainstorming.
create a conversation. Marketing is all about building relation-ships, and how better to build a relationship than to start a con-versation? today’s social media gives you a myriad of ways to converse with consumers or donors, but you have to lead them to the venue where conversation happens with your direct mail piece. Where do you hold these conversations?
• Facebook• twitter• Youtube• Blogs
in your mailing, direct people to your company’s Blog, Face-book, twitter or Youtube channel. You can even use these famil-iar icons on the envelope of your mailer to get their attention. Younger people feel very comfortable interacting via social me-dia, so you will seem accessible and friendly to them.
try Qr codes. according to JumpScan, in the fourth quarter of 2011, Qr code scanning jumped by an amazing 1,200%! Mil-lions of people are scanning those little black and white coded squares that pop up on everything from cereal boxes to restau-rant coupons to fine art displays in museums. But don’t just slap a Qr code on your next mailing and think you’ve got it made. Develop a strategy for strengthening loyalty to your brand. Here are some ideas for using Qr codes in your next mailer.
• offer coupons or discounts• link to an informational video• encourage scanners to rate their experience with a survey• allow scanners to “like” your products, services, or charity• give directions with interactive custom maps to your
business
Deliver Informative content. You’ll gain credibility and author-ity by offering consumers and donors informative content with your direct mail. if you’re a non-profit organization soliciting funds, use your creative direct mail to tell potential donors what makes your organization unique and worthy of their money. non-profits have been hit hard by the recession, because peo-ple are less willing to give when their budgets are tight, so you have to really make your case about why their limited charitable donations should go to you. likewise, if you’re a business, offer
compelling, meaty reasons why your products or services are su-perior to the competition’s.
• offer cold, hard facts. “in 2011, our non-profit ballet group offered free performances to 2,400 school-aged children, many of whom had never seen a live dance performance.”
• educate. “a study by Stanford university shows that a combination of calcium and vitamin D may reduce the risk of melanoma in women by half.”
• Be Helpful. “in addition to giving you a quote for replac-ing your rain gutters, we’ll give you a seasonal checklist of home maintenance chores.”
Put yourself in the shoes of those receiving your direct mail. What would endear a business or non-profit to you? How would you like to interact with your organization? as you answer these questions, be creative. With so many new avenues for reaching people, there has never been a better time to develop a multi-channel approach.
Cindy is EU’s resident creative strategy and cross media expert, with over nine years of experience in the direct marketing industry. Her expertise in design, marketing, and production technology made Cindy a pivotal link in the implementation of EU’s cross media ser-vices over three years ago.
how crEatIvE DIrEct MaIl lEaDS thE MultI-chaNNEl March
Align with a direct mail component part supplier with fiscal stability. We control our costs and weare financially responsible. We own our buildings, trucks, and equipment. We review productionperformance regularly which is the basis for the pricing we give. That is why in an industrydominated by price chasers, Tidewater Direct remains a price leader. You can be sure that themanufacturing price you receive from us today will be the price you would get tomorrow.
24 MFSA PostScripts
INDuStry StatIStIcS
New Members
according to a recent survey commissioned by two Sides, a non-profit organization cre-ated to promote the responsible production, use and sustainability of print and paper, americans have declared their preference for paper-based media in a digital world. in brief:
• 70% of americans, including 69% of 18- to 24-year-olds, state they “prefer to read print and paper communications than reading off a screen.”
• Most of those surveyed (68%) believe that
paper records are more sustainable than electronic record storage.
• the majority of respondents (67%) say pa-
per is more pleasant to handle and touch than other media.
Most people think the u.S. paper recycling rate is between 20 and 40 percent,” riebel ex-plains, “but american Forest and Paper asso-ciation data show that more than 63 percent of all paper used in the united States in 2010 was recycled.
Reprinted from Print in the Mix
Edwards and company, established in 1866, offers insurance including property, casualty, employee benefits and life. ed-wards and company is located at 140 greene avenue, Sayville, nY, 11782. ronald D’alessandro, vice president, can be reached at 631-472-8400 or by FaX at 631-472-8486.
goodkind consulting group, offers consulting to the indus-try on Mailing operations, Postal issues and Management Per-spective. Helping management find solutions for streamlin-ing mailing operations utilizing best industry practices for the most efficient operations. educate and help resolve Postal is-sues. Provide resource recommendations to solve individual company issues. review company directions for fresh manage-ment perspective. goodkind consulting group is located at 3108 lynnwood Drive, Bellevue, ne, 68123. Dan goodkind, president, can be reached at 402-880-4673.
towne allpoints, Inc., established in 1953, offers barcoding, campaign management, consulting, co-mingled mailings, creative, data processing services, database management, desk top publish-ing, e-mail blasts, file maintenance, fulfillment-lit-erature, fulfillment-product, fulfillment-premiums,
full color digital printing, hand assembly(custom packaging), machine inserting, ink jet addressing, laser printing-continuous, merge/purge, national change of address usps licensee, on-de-mand printing, packaging & shipping, tipping/affixing, tabbing and warehousing/distribution. towne allPoints is located at 3441 West Macarthur Boulevard, Santa ana, ca, 92704. Debora griffith, evp/general manager, can be reached at 714-540-3095 or by FaX at 714-708-4028
white Eagle printing, offers on-demand printing. White eagle Printing is located at 2550 Kuser road, Hamilton, nJ, 08691. eric Bielawski, president, can be reached at 609-586-2032 or by FaX at 609-586-8052.
aMErIcaNS StIll prEfEr prINt aND papEr coMMuNIcatIoNS
MARCH 2012 25
Member News
1-877-569-8227LABELSOURCELTD.COM
R E G I O N A L S T O C K I N G L O C A T I O N S
USPS APPROVED SUPER T
(THE CLEAR ALTERNATIVE)
The Super T is a paper product that will notinterfere with the graphics of the mail piece.It is more transparent and eliminates theheadaches associated with Clear Tabs!
The Super T is available in 1” and 1 1/2”
LABEL SOURCE SUPER T JAN 2012 AD 1/4/12 3:46 PM Page 1
Sourcelink, chicago, il, announced that rich cicha, director of client postal solutions, was officially appointed as a Postcom Board Member. this important board position provides cicha with complete visibility into changing postal regulations and pending changes that impact Sourcelink’s clients. cicha contin-ues to be an advocate for the mailing industry and this new posi-tion brings tremendous value to Sourcelink and the marketing community. Since joining Sourcelink in october of 2011, cicha has made great strides in establishing direct and third-party re-lationships with Sourcelink’s proprietary Multitrac mailing so-lutions software. rich has also assisted with top-level strategy as Sourcelink’s subject matter expert on Postal and logistics affairs.
grayhair Software, Inc., Mount laurel, nJ, releasee a reporting engine that ex-pands the versatility and depth of the ser-vices offered in its SelectSolutions™ cloud platform. this unique approach to pre-senting the information retrieved from clients’ mailing campaigns keeps gray-Hair at the forefront of the direct market-ing industry. the new reporting engine includes access to grayHair’s current industry-leading mail tracking reports as well as on-demand access to a new set of interactive reports providing visual analy-sis that will change how users see their mail data.
pitney Bowes Inc., Stamford, ct, an-nounced the appointment of christopher Johnson to the position of vice president, product management of the volly™ se-cure digital delivery service. Johnson joined Pitney Bowes after heading an in-dependent digital media consulting com-pany that focused on accelerating digital revenue growth for major brands. Previ-ously, Johnson was senior vice president of programming and product strategy for ugo entertainment, now a unit of news corp.
Satori Software, Seattle, Wa, launched easytrack, a mail stream monitoring add-on service for its Bulk Mailer and Mail-room toolKit mailing preparation solu-tions. Mailers and their clients can now benefit from increased visibility into the uSPS mail stream to more accurately pre-dict mail delivery windows and identify possible delivery issues. uSPS automa-tion equipment scans First-class Mail® and Standard Mail® letters and flats as they pass through.
Bell and howell, rochester, nY, introduced prepaid DSF2 pro-cessing through the data services department. Mailers now have the ability to purchase blocks of DSF2 service credits, for faster job submission and easy budgeting. Bell and Howell is one of only 14 companies that are official DSF2 licensed service providers. DSF2 service appends Walk Sequence information to address records, giving mailers the ability to sort mailpieces in sequential order for each individual carrier route. Providing the uSPS® with this data allows mailers to take advantage of associ-ated postage discounts in the form of Walk Sequence Saturation or High Density rates, which can result in significant savings. this service also enhances list data, providing details on addresses such as address type (residential, educational, business, season-al), mailbox location (curb, door, central) and more.
26 MFSA PostScripts
Chapter News
Northwest chapterPresident: Mark Weeks; international Direct response Servicesthe next meeting is scheduled for thursday, april 12 at the red lion inn airport, Seattle, Wa, at 5:30pm. More information on the topic coming soon! For more information, please contact MFSa at 703-836-9200.
pacific chapterPresident: tom Duchene; tDMS For more information, please contact MFSa at 703-836-9200.
New England chapterPresident: Shannon campbell; rezolve groupFor more information, please contact MFSa at 703-836-9200.
Southwest chapterPresident: robbie cramer, Direct logisticsthe 2012 SW chapter conference is schedule for april 12-15 in Fort Worth, tX. Stay tuned for more information. For more information, please contact MFSa at 703-836-9200.
chesapeake chapterPresident: Ken gossett; aMiFor more information, please contact MFSa at 703-836-9200.
rocky Mountain chapterPresident: Jim albany; newmark PrintingFor more information, please contact MFSa at 703-836-9200.
ohio valley chapterPresident: tammy caserta; think PatentedFor more information, please contact MFSa at 703-836-9200.
great lakes chapterFor more information, please contact MFSa at 703-836-9200.
Southeast chapterPresident: Scott coggin; DatadirectFor more information, please contact MFSa at 703-836-9200.
philadelphia chapterPresident: John rafner; eFiFor more information, please contact MFSa at 703-836-9200.
great plains chapterBoard Member: Mike colestock; Japs-olson Board Member: connie o’Keefe; the John roberts companyBoard Member: craig Schiller; action Mailing ServicesFor more information, please contact MFSa at 703-836-9200.
New york chapterPresident: Joseph W. gomez, fmidirect,inc the next meeting is scheduled for March 21 at the 101 club. William Schnaars of uSPS will be speaking on the State of the uSPS. For more information on meetings or member information, contact Jim Prendergast at 212-217-6824 or visit www.mfsany.org.
MCS is the only solution provider withintegrated design, service and support.
Demand the best!
Inkjet, Camera and Digital Solutions!
Solutions to Increase Profits & Throughput:
MARCH 2012 27
Your Tracking Data. Transformed.Introducing EasyTrackUse EasyTrack to gain valuable visibility of a mailing as it passes through the USPS® mail stream. Automatically collect raw scan data and assemble it into actionable information. Accurately predict delivery dates, pinpoint the location of a single mail piece and improve your business.
Proactively identify and resolve potential delivery problems
Coordinate direct mail programs with more accurate delivery dates
Ensure vendors are performing as contracted
Improve customer satisfaction — easily share charts and reports
Improve your mailing operation
Call 1-800-553-6477 to learn more about the EasyTrack add-on service.
www.satorisoftware.comSimply Powerful Data Quality Solutions
claSSIfIEDS golD partNErSthe following supplier members have become gold Partners with MFSa due to their level of support.
adphos North america, Inc. Bell and howellEfI hewlett packardinterlinkoNEKirk-rudy, Inc.label SourceMailers haven llcMcSthink Inkpitney Bowes rr Donnelley logisticsSatori Softwarexerox
For information about becoming a gold Partner, contact MFSa at 800-333-6272.
lower postage costs and reduce undeliverable Mail caSS™ and Pave™ gold certified MailerS+4 will eliminate dupli-cate records, verify addresses and presort your mail. optional Move update processing is available for both u.S. and canadian address-es. Save up to 65% on postage with MailerS+4. to request a free trial, go to www.MelissaData.com/ps-mp4.
Join your MfSa chapter todaychapters provide educational and networking opportunities and
are a great resource of information that affect the mailing and fulfillment industry. the 12 region-al chapters are governed by local volunteers and function under the umbrella of the national headquarters. they serve their specific regions, each with its own opportunities and challenges. More information can be found online at: http://www.mfsanet.org/chapters.
NEED hElp – call fulfillment 911... the MfSa fulfillment hotline recently retired MFSa Director of Fulfillment Services, tom Quinn, now offers all MFSa members the opportunity to get 30 minutes of fulfillment consulting at no charge. Whether your questions be on operations, warehouse layout, software, sales, or marketing, you are only a phone call or email away from getting the answers. to contact tom, please call him at 770-632-9253 or [email protected].
NEED hElp – call postal 911... the MfSa postal hotlineSpeak with postal professor, george Heinrich, for advice on postal regulation, mail acceptance, or operational issues. this is an MFSa membership benefit – the first 30 minutes is complimentary. george can be reached at 303-325-3048, 8 am – 6 pm Mountain time. need help with a postal regu-lation? remember the MFSa listserve or contact leo raymond at 800-333-6272 ext. 203.
