Monday, Dec. 16 is the busiest mailing day of the year, and with nearly 100,000 places to buy stamps or ship a package, the U.S. Postal Service has expanded access to its products and services to make holiday shipping easier than ever.
“We have created easier, more convenient access to products and services when and where our customers want them,” said Pacific Area Vice President Dean Granholm. “During the holidays and the rest of the year, we are encouraging our customers to take advantage of these options and skip the trip to the Post Office.”
It’s not about brick-and- mortar Post Offices anymore, as Postal Service products move online and into retail outlets, grocery stores, office supply chains and pharmacies. Responding to changing customer needs and a business plan that calls for expanding access to Postal Service products, stores including Costco, Office Depot and select Staples outlets are offering shipping and mailing services. Many also offer retail hours that extend beyond normal Post Office hours.
Customers can find many locations to purchase stamps or postal services by visiting usps.com, clicking on “Find USPS Locations” and typing in a ZIP Code. The locations of Self-Service Kiosks and other convenient services are available at this drop-down menu. While at usps.com, customers can also use Click-N-Ship to print barcoded shipping labels with or without postage and schedule a free pickup by their regular mail carrier.
Customers can also get instant access to the most popular tools on usps.com from their mobile device. With the free Mobile App, customers can find locations, calculate shipping prices, manage pickups, and much more – all from the convenience of their smartphone. For more information on the Postal Service mobile apps, customers can visit https://www.usps.com/mobile/info.htm
But better hurry, holiday shipping deadlines are approaching. The key shipping dates for Dec. 25 arrival are:
Dec.16 – Global Express Guaranteed®
Dec. 20 – First-Class Mail
Dec. 21 – Priority Mail®
Dec. 23 – Priority Mail Express™
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Please Note: For broadcast quality video and audio, photo stills and other media resources, visit the USPS Newsroom at http://about.usps.com/news/welcome.htm.
For reporters interested in speaking with a regional Postal Service public relations professional, please go to http://about.usps.com/news/media-contacts/usps-local-media-contacts.pdf.
A self-supporting government enterprise, the U.S. Postal Service is the only delivery service that reaches every address in the nation: 152 million residences, businesses and Post Office Boxes. The Postal Service receives no tax dollars for operating expenses and relies on the sale of postage, products and services to fund its operations. With more than 31,000 retail locations and the most frequently visited website in the federal government, usps.com, the Postal Service has annual revenue of more than $65 billion and delivers nearly 40 percent of the world's mail. If it were a private-sector company, the U.S. Postal Service would rank 42nd in the 2012 Fortune 500. The Postal Service has been named the Most Trusted Government Agency for seven years and the fourth Most Trusted Business in the nation by the Ponemon Institute.
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