0816_TOEFL-Test-and-Score-Manual-1997

110 ● 201 Great Ideas for Your Small Business
GREAT
Use Online Mailing Solutions
On March 31, 1999, the U.S. Postal Service outlawed
IDEA
the mechanical postage meters used by most small
businesses. The Postal Service’s decision to ban mechanical meters was
aimed at eliminating about $100 million a year in postal meter fraud. I
remember lugging that darn postage meter to the post office and waiting
in line to load it up.
Now, you can manage mail from your desktop. You can download
postage online in less than a minute for a small fee. You can buy and print
stamps with customized images for holidays or special promotions.
Industry leader Pitney Bowes is working hard to create solutions for
business owners.
“Our products are designed to help customers communicate with their
customers, both physically and digitally,” said Lisa Somer, senior director,
small business marketing for Pitney Bowes.
She said if you are sending about 60 pieces of mail a month, it
makes sense to use a postage meter. The smallest models cost about
$20 a month.
A postage meter isn’t just convenient, Somer said, but may qualify your
business for discounts of up to 5 percent on certain packages.
In addition to being able to download postage, Pitney Bowes has a cool
product called AddressRightNow. It’s an online list management service
for smaller-volume or infrequent mailings.
The service lets you upload your mailing list to Pitney Bowes for
updating based on the change of address information submitted to the
U.S. Postal Service. It works like this: You upload your mailing lists to
Pitney Bowes’s secure web site. The address verification service scans the
lists for changes, makes corrections and formats addresses to meet U.S.
Postal Service standards.
This is important because more than 45 million Americans change
their address every year, according to the Postal Service. This makes it
tough to keep track of customers and clients. Being able to verify an address
before a mailing not only saves you money, but helps you meet new Postal
Service quality standards.