NEW YORK – Small businesses already working to hold down costs amid a recession now have to contend with higher postal rates.
The price of a first-class stamp went up 2 cents to 44 cents May 11, the latest in a series of increases this year by the U.S. Postal Service and private shippers including FedEx Inc. and United Parcel Service Inc. The price increases have motivated small-business owners to think about how they can send letters, cards and packages more cheaply.
They’ve made Stacie Krajchir think about whether to mail or ship at all.
Krajchir’s Los Angeles-based public relations firm, The Bungalow, routinely sends product samples to magazine editors. In the past, PR companies would shower samples on journalists. Now, though, Krajchir’s staff is likely to call editors first to see how interested they really are.
“Are they working on a story and looking at different products to include in a story?” Krajchir said. If so, her company will send them samples.
Like other small-business owners, Krajchir has also found that being creative can keep mailing and shipping costs down. So instead of sending packages to different editors at a single magazine, she’ll consolidate the shipments into a single box.
And when someone requests samples, she’ll ask whether they have a delivery service account. Often, the recipient is willing to pay.
Many small-business owners have also found that delivery services and the Postal Service can help cut costs.
Any company opening an account with a delivery service should be able to negotiate a price, especially if it has a large number of letters or packages to mail. Remember, there’s a lot of competition, and, especially in a slow economy, the delivery companies want your business.
Technology also helps. It is easy to send printed material by e-mail or through file transfer Web sites. These methods eliminate not only postage costs, but also printing and labor expenses. There are also Web sites that can help businesses compare delivery services’ prices.
Small businesses are also saving by switching to Web-based or e-mail billing rather than snail-mail invoices.
Tamara Wilson’s PR firm does so much work via e-mail, including newsletters and billing, that her monthly postage bill is now about $200 instead of the $2,000 or $3,000 she used to spend.
“I’m not only saving that money, I’m saving my clients’ money,” said Wilson, president of Wilson Public Relations in Seattle. She said she passes the savings along to her clients, who are also scrutinizing costs during the recession.
When she does mail out press kits, which are traditionally folders with information about a company, product or service, they’re no longer on paper. They’re on flash drives that cost a lot less to mail.
Sometimes, though, Wilson will spend more on mailings for strategic reasons. For example, she’ll send envelopes with eye-catching stamps that she buys online. The price premium is worth it if her mailings get noticed.
She’s also having invitations to an upcoming event hand-delivered. She believes sometimes personal service can have a greater effect than mail or an e-mail.
Owners who have employees need to be sure that staffers understand the need to find cheaper ways to ship. That means teaching them not to use the most expensive overnight service. If a company uses stamps rather than postage meters, employees should know to use a 44-cent stamp and a 17-cent stamp on a 2-ounce letter – not two 44-cent stamps.
Unless all your employees understand mailing costs, there can be a surprise when the next bill arrives from your delivery service.
