C. DIRECT MAIL PROMOTION AND RESEARCH

The Postal Service is actively engaged in raising awareness about Direct Mail with advertising agencies and large and small advertisers. The Postal Service launched Deliver magazine in 2005 to showcase direct mail best practices and success stories to advertising professionals. Postal Service marketing executives conducted meetings with senior advertising agency executives to discuss the advantages of direct mail and explore opportunities for agencies to make greater and more effective use of the mail. The Postal Service's Direct Mail Web site on usps.com/directmail was redesigned to make it easier for advertisers, especially small businesses, to learn how to get started with direct mail.

The Postal Service concluded a market research study, the Multi-Channel Catalog Study, that highlighted and quantified the increased traffic and sales generated on Web sites when hardcopy catalogs are received. The study showed that consumers who receive a catalog prior to shopping online are much more valuable customers. The research shows that online consumers who received a catalog from a retailer were nearly twice as likely to make an online purchase at that retailer's Web site. Additionally, they made 15 percent more transactions than those who did not receive catalogs and their spending was 16 percent higher.

The Postal Service conducted a research study to assess the impact of direct mail on driving credit card applications online. The study showed that mail is the overwhelming source for consumers going online to apply for a credit card because it provides them the information they need to decide if the offer is useful and relevant for them. More than 50 percent of consumers prefer receiving this information in the mail while only 24 percent prefer to receive it over the Internet. Further, they are more likely to open and read mail. So, mail drives the online application - almost 40 percent of all the online applications resulted from the customers reading a direct mail message while only 7 percent resulted from customers reading an e-mail message.

The Postal Service also conducted groundbreaking research on the value of mail for consumers and found the Mail Moment is the unique time - 30 minutes on average - when consumers bring mail into their home, sort, review, and act on it. This research analyzed consumer perception of the value related to the Mail Moment versus their experiences with commercial e-mail. The study found that, despite significant declines in personal correspondence resulting from electronic alternatives, consumer use of hardcopy mail continues at a healthy pace.

Data collected during the research indicates that hardcopy mail triggers the following actions that electronic media cannot match:

• 98 percent of households bring in their mail every day.
• Of these, 72 percent bring it in as soon as possible.
• percent sort through their mail immediately. What's more, mail is perceived as more enjoyable and valuable than the Internet:
  • Mail's format is better suited for reading.
  • Hardcopy mail allows consumers to read it in places where they like to spend their time.
  • Mail is perceived to be very private, secure, and personal, much more so than the Internet.

3. Value Added and Special Services

Value Added and Special Services are a unique set of products that can be purchased for a fee, either separately or as an added feature to one or more delivery services like First-Class Mail, Express Mail, Priority Mail, and Package Services. Special Service products are an essential cornerstone of the Postal Service's strategy to increase usage and incremental sales of other core services.

Special Services add value primarily by providing security and accountability with benefits that permit customers to verify mail receipt and delivery, obtain signatures, insure mail contents, and register mail for additional protection. Customers can also track letters and flats and receive vital information through the CONFIRM service. Post Office boxes and Caller Service offer additional alternatives for receiving mail.

A. IMPROVE ACCESS

In 2005 the Postal Service continued to improve ease of use for Special Services, especially by leveraging technology to add value and convenience. For example, customers can now retrieve the delivery status of items sent by Certified Mail or Registered Mail over the Internet, by telephone, or by bulk electronic file transfer for large volumes.

1. RETURN RECEIPT (ELECTRONIC)

Return Receipt (Electronic) is a domestic special service that uses low-cost technologies to provide customers with an alternative to the existing PS Form 3811, Domestic Return Receipt (Green Card). It was launched in September 2004. Mailers purchase Return Receipt (Electronic) at the time of mailing with Certified Mail, Registered Mail, Collect On Delivery, or Numbered Insured Mail services.