The United States Postal Services has announced its 2023 Promotion and Incentive Program, which gives discounts for different direct mail methods throughout the year in an effort to encourage marketers to use new technology and print techniques that improve traditional direct mail engagement and response rates. These discounts, which are available only during specific promotion dates, can generate significant savings, particularly for high-volume mailers. It’s a great opportunity to reduce postage costs, test new ideas, and save money while exploring innovative mailing options that attract new leads and customers. Following is an overview of the 2023 promotions:
Retargeting Promotion – New in 2023
Promotion Dates: September 1st – November 30th
During this period, the USPS is offering a 5% discount to incentivize marketers to send First-Class Mail® postcards to website or mobile app visitors who haven’t converted. This presents a fantastic opportunity for high-volume direct mail campaigns to retarget specific individuals or companies and to reengage with audiences who have previously shown interest in your product or offer. The process involves matching the IP address of a visitor to a website or an app to a customer’s physical address. This deal effectively saves money for businesses that frequently use direct mail and want to retarget their large lead lists.
Reply Mail IMbA Promotion – New in 2023
Promotion Dates: July 1st – December 31st
The new Intelligent Mail® barcode Accounting (IMbA) promotion provides a 3% or 6% discount on mail containing IMbA barcodes scanned on the recipient’s return mail. The program offers a 3% discount on mail with static barcodes and a 6% discount on mail with serialized barcodes. IMbA is an automated accounting system for Business Reply Mail (BRM) that USPS encourages marketers and businesses to adopt during and beyond this promotional period. It streamlines lead generation by alerting you when a customer has returned an offer through USPS before receiving the reply mail. This program simplifies and improves the efficiency of current and future direct mail campaigns.
Tactile, Sensory, Interactive Mailpiece Engagement Promotion
Promotion Dates: February 1st – July 31st
The print industry continues to develop innovations in papers/stocks, substrates, finishing techniques, and inks. Marketers who want to experiment with different materials for marketing envelopes or packages earn a 5% discount during this period. Research suggests that marketing materials that engage tactile experiences and/or other senses lead to potentially significant impacts on brand recognition and message recall. Newly eligible this year are scented mailers.
Emerging and Advanced Technology Promotion
Promotion Dates: May 1st – November 20th
The postal service encourages customers to adopt emerging technologies such as Virtual Reality, Video, Voice Assistance, Near Field Communication, and Digital to Direct Mail in their campaigns to engage their customers in new and exciting ways. This year, there are new mobile shopping integrations, such as the use of QR codes to direct customers to your service. This offer presents another opportunity to create a unique customer experience through direct mail while enjoying a discount.
Personalized Color Transpromo Promotion
This program allows you to incorporate colorful marketing messages into your bills and statements, effectively transforming transactional mail into promotional pieces. By adding visually appealing marketing messaging to these mailings, you can successfully encourage repeat business. Incorporating colorful marketing messages earns a 3% discount. New in 2023, earn a 4% discount if you add Courtesy Reply Mail or Business Reply Mail to further engage with customers.
Informed Delivery Promotion
Promotion Dates: August 1st – December 31st
Informed Delivery seamlessly integrates digital and direct mail marketing for millions of subscribers to this USPS service. By sending a digital preview of your mail piece in advance, recipients can anticipate its arrival and even act on your offer before physically receiving the mail. This significantly enhances the effectiveness of your marketing campaign by providing a faster start and increasing customer engagement. Additionally, the Informed Delivery program offers valuable incentives, including a 4% discount for discount mailers and a new 0.5% discount for eDoc Submitters. By leveraging this technology, businesses can streamline their direct mail campaigns, save money, and save time.
How to Enroll
USPS promotions require advance registration and approval of samples before issuing discounts. It’s important to review the deadlines and promotional periods outlined in the 2023 Promotions Calendar to effectively plan your direct mail marketing campaigns for the year. To get started, create a business account at USPS Business Customer Gateway (BCG).
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