|
NOTICE
The Postal Service's Household Diary Study (HDS),
conducted since 1987, provides information about the contents of the mail sent and received by U.S. households. The
Postal Service uses this information to help understand
why and how customers use the mail. The results are used
to:
· Forecast mail volume.
· Plan marketing strategies.
· Provide information for rate-setting purposes.
The HDS is administered at Headquarters by the Office
of Demand Forecasting and Economic Analysis, Finance.
NuStats, the HDS survey research firm contractor since
July 1999, conducts the interviews and collects and analyzes the HDS data throughout the year.
HDS is a two-stage survey. Stage 1 is the Household
Interview. NuStats sends an advance letter, signed by the
postmaster general, to a representative sample of U.S.
households. This letter emphasizes the importance of the
HDS and asks for participation. These sample households
are contacted either by telephone or in person and asked
about the mail they send and receive, their adoption and
use of various communications' technologies, their attitudes about mail service in general, and information relating to their household and personal demographics. Those
respondent households are recruited to participate in HDS
Stage 2.
Stage 2 is the Mail Diary. NuStats asks households that
agree to participate in Stage 2 to record information about
the mail they send and receive for a 7-day period from
Monday to Sunday. Information recorded includes: number
of mailpieces received and sent, industry mail source, mail
characteristics, and attitudes regarding mail received. As
an incentive for HDS Stage 2 participation, households are
offered the options of receiving: $25, a gift valued at $25, or
$25 to donate to the Lance Armstrong Foundation.
In postal fiscal year (PFY) 2000, NuStats interviewed
and recruited 9,692 households to participate in the HDS
Stage 2. A total of 5,314 households returned acceptable
completed diaries to NuStats for a completion rate of 55
percent.
Data gathered in both HDS stages is available in a final
report, "The Household Diary Study - Mail Use and Attitudes." The report is published in hard copy and CD-ROM
and is also available for sale to the public. Order forms for
the latest HDS report may be obtained via the Postal Service Internet at www.usps.com by using the key words
"household diary study" in the Keyword/Search box or by
calling Jackie Butler at 202-268-4515.
For additional information, contact Malcolm Harris,
202-268-3650; FAX 202-268-6841; e-mail mharris@
email.usps.gov.
- Office of Demand Forecasting and Economic Analysis,
Finance, 8-23-01
CONTENTS
The Postal Bulletin is also available on the World Wide
Web at http://www.usps.com/cpim/ftp/bulletin/pb.htm for
customers and at http://blue.usps.gov for employees.
Postal Bulletin Index
Semiannual Index PB 22055 (7-26-01)
The Postal Bulletin is published biweekly;
information is effective for one year unless it
changes a permanent directive or unless otherwise
specified.
NOTICE
Thanks to each of you who responded to our survey. We
received 1,475 comments and ideas on how to make policies and procedures better. Your comments were honest
and helpful. The information from the surveys has been entered into a database, and we will continue to share findings with you in future issues of the Postal Bulletin.
But to get started, here are a few:
· Many of you suggested putting the Fraud Alert information in the same place each time so it is easy to
find and remove. Starting in this issue, we are experimenting with its placement by putting it in the center
of the Postal Bulletin. Placement in the center allows
you to pull it out without tearing the sheets. This will
make it easy to photocopy or keep as a reference.
· Some of you suggested perforations and a 3-hole
punch format for the Postal Bulletin. We are evaluating the cost and delay time that would be required for
those options. We will let you know the decision after
we get all the facts.
· Other responses suggested putting the manuals,
handbooks, publications, and the Postal Bulletin on
the Postal Service Web site. For those who do not
know, many of those documents are already available on our Web site. Check the back page of this
Postal Bulletin for how to access them.
- Policies and Procedures Information,Public Affairs and Communications, 8-23-01
|
