The Postal Service raised rates recently. But for some mailers, the rate increase itself may not be the biggest problem.
USPS also changed the way mail qualifies for some of its lower rates.
That matters because a mailing that looks like it should cost only a few percent more based on the new rate chart can end up costing considerably more once the list is processed.
We just saw a pretty dramatic example.
A nonprofit mailing we had previously mailed for about $1,200 in postage came in at roughly $2,000 for the exact same mailing.
Same organization. Same mailing. About $800 more in postage, or roughly a 67% increase.
The change affects commercial Marketing Mail too, but it can be particularly obvious with nonprofit mail because nonprofit postage started at such a low price. Moving a meaningful number of pieces out of the lowest qualification levels can create a huge percentage increase even though the published per-piece rate changes don’t look especially alarming.
So if you’re budgeting a mailing based on what the same job cost last time, be careful.
Looking at the new postage rates isn’t enough. The geographic makeup of your list, and how many pieces now qualify for each rate, can materially change the final number.
We should have recognized the significance of this change sooner. We’re paying much closer attention to it now.
If you have a mailing coming up, especially a nonprofit mailing, it makes sense to have the list processed and the postage estimated before you finalize the budget.
