How to get cheaper the postal rates

You might be wondering why we would even be talking about postal rates in this day and age. With every business  pushing you get your invoices and bills by email, your own business no doubt doing the same, and even your clients reaching out to you by phone or email; physical mail seems both old fashioned and redundant these days. Well all these articles we have written would say otherwise. Instead of hashing over old ground, have to read of those and then find out how we can get you cheaper postal rates.

• Are you addressing people/businesses directly? 
  If you have a mailing list from your own clients, or have bought one from a specialist, then direct mail is a far more cost effective way of distributing promotional material. If you are going in ‘blind’ and are targeting everyone then mail box distribution company is a more suitable method.
• Is there more than 300 addresses on your list? 
  300 is the minimum to get any volume discount from NZ post, and the cheaper rates need at least 500 or 1000 addresses. Less than 300 then you may find it’s just as cheap to buy prepaid envelopes instead.
• What is it you are sending out? 
  There are different rates depending on the size (width, height, thickness, weight) of the item, if it’s a flat sheet like a card, a sealed envelope/package, or something a bit more funky. Generally speaking the thinner, flatter, and smaller the item the cheaper it is to send. That being said, NZ Post has rates for sending items like magazines, and folded items, so it depends on how you prepare it posting that will affect the rate and which we can help you with.
• Have you checked that the addresses are valid? 
  Most of the bulk mail rates require a ‘Statement of Accuracy’ or SOA, which is a process where the addresses check by special software to make sure they are valid. NZ Post uses machines to sort mail, but it only works with valid address, so if a human has to hand sort them so they will charge more because of that. This is where we at Copy Express come in because we have the tools to validate your address and help you find and fix the faulty ones
• Do you have sufficient time? 
  Even in an ideal world, if everything happens as it should, it can still take several days to prepare and then send out items in bulk mail to NZ Post’s standards for those cheap rates. If you are looking for a quick turn around time for some marketing material then you will have to take the higher costs to send it out using the non-SOA rates or the standard postal charges.
• Can the addresses be machine printed and have the permit stamp? 
  Again the cheapest rates depend on NZ Post being able to feed the mail through specialist machines that can read the address on the item so it can sort it correctly. There are strict rules of how the address must be formatted and where the permit postmark must be placed, and even what colour and artwork can be placed where. It doesn’t mean you can’t be artist with what is sent out, it might just change the rate at what it is charged at. This is where talking to us will help you find the best solution to get what you want marketing whise at the best rates.

This has been a small introduction to the world of bulk mail. A way of getting message out for a price cheaper than just sticking a stamp on it. We have only just started scratching the surface on what can be done, so if you want to find out more, book a meeting with us at Copy Express and we can help you find the right marketing solution to your needs.