Recently the United States Postal Service announced it will be seeking permission to increase postage by an average of 4% on most classes of mail in January 2012. This announcement comes less than 120 days since the last increase was implemented in the second quarter of this year. Postage is clearly the largest single cost of sending debt collection letters, so how can your company adapt in the face of another potential major increase?  Here are some thoughts:

1.      Make sure your letters have the Intelligent Mail Barcode (IMB) on them. Use of the new IMB will allow you to track your letters through the USPS system and will provide you with immediate address change information. Prior to the IMB coming online, it could take as long as 90 days to obtain the latest address changes from the USPS.

2.      Use USPS address “hygiene”/correction software to avoid mailing to bad addresses. If you mail your letters using a presort vendor, this will be done automatically, as those vendors are required to perform this service.

3.      Similarly, run your addresses against Bankruptcy and Deceased databases to cut down on wasted mailings.

4.      Consider changing the look of your letters. Simple changes to the letter makeup or appearance can have a sizeable impact on response rates, lowering the cost of sending follow-up mail.  A good print and mail vendor can assist you in making these changes.

5.      Outsource the letter generation if you are doing them yourself – there are firms that specialize in printing & mailing letters in volume so you can enjoy both the benefits of higher collective mail volume and lower postage rates, while at the same time freeing up your organization to focus on your core competency: collecting delinquent accounts.

6.      If you are already outsourcing your mail production, shop the service. You may be surprised how much you can save by using a competitive service provider.

7.      If you feel you must continue generating your own letters (even for the time being), use a presorting vendor to obtain discounts on your postage.

Picking the right mail vendor to help reduce your costs is an important task.  Do it right: ask for references and check them thoroughly. If you start now, you can take a big chunk out of another pending debt collection letter cost increase.

Chris Deedy is the founder and President of Envelopes and Forms, Inc., a full service commercial printing, envelope manufacturing and print & mail service provider based in Atlanta, Georgia, since 1984.  Chris is a long-time resident of Atlanta and is well known in the regional mail industry. Envelopes & Forms recently published a free whitepaper, 10 Tips for Getting the Most out of Your Collection Letter Strategy. Download your free copy here.