Expand Direct Mail Impact with USPS Informed Delivery​

What Is Informed Delivery? How will an Informed Delivery campaign boost my marketing results?

USPS Informed Delivery is a digital notification service that lets residential customers preview their mail even before it hits home. This optional service — already used by more than 50 million customers and growing — delivers images of regular mail headed for the customer’s mailbox. USPS customers who sign up will receive a daily digital preview that can be viewed on smartphones, computers, or tablets. They can also track incoming packages and interact with mail on a secure online dashboard. This creates an opportunity for marketers to make their direct mail campaigns have a digital component with a clickable link, also known as the Informed Delivery Ride-Along Image.

USPS Informed Delivery is quickly becoming a significant addition to the direct mail marketer’s toolbox by adding multiple digital touch points to increase response and significant cost savings via postal Informed Delivery promotions from USPS.

Our guide will help you understand what Informed Delivery Campaigns are, how they work, the benefits to marketers and review two unique case studies that show the power of Informed Delivery and when leveraging messaging across all channels:

How does the Informed Delivery Service work for consumers?

USPS creates images for each piece of mail before scheduling for delivery. Informed Delivery assigns a unique delivery point code to each physical address. Customers then receive an email directly in their USPS.com customer account or users can access them through their Informed Delivery Dashboard. Multiple residents can sign up for Informed Delivery at the same address so that family members or roommates can view incoming mail. USPS ensures that the first 10 mail attachments are visible in the USPS mobile app for better mail management. Informed Delivery customers can view the remaining mail in their dashboards.

Informed Delivery users receive scanned images of the exterior of incoming letter-size mailpieces (processed through automated equipment).*

Images and package tracking information is available via email notification, online dashboard, or mobile app.

If a mailer conducts an Informed Delivery interactive campaign, supplemental content will be shown (for letters/postcards of flats).

Interactive campaigns include custom images, known as Representative and Ride-along Images, and a target URL that directs the user to a digital experience.

Informed Delivery users receive scanned images of the exterior of incoming letter-size mailpieces (processed through automated equipment).*

Images and package tracking information is available via email notification, online dashboard, or mobile app.

There are over 50M email-enabled users (represents over 27% of US addresses) with almost 24,232 campaigns by USPS that are running as of September 2022. These campaigns target the existing subscribers of the platform to maximize results and performance.

USPS reports that their daily Informed Delivery emails have a 60-65% average open rate. These numbers represent a clear and winning opportunity for marketers to enhance impressions quickly.

0 M
Email-enabled users
0

running campaigns by USPS as of September 2022

How can a USPS Informed Delivery campaign benefit Marketers and Businesses?

The Informed Delivery service allows marketers to quickly connect with customers that are already participating for a better omni channel presence. This physical-to-digital pathway enhances customer engagement and allows for trackable interactions. Informed Delivery allows companies to track user impressions, explore insights, and increase interactions with your brand by increasing response and ultimately, profitability. The benefits of multiple touchpoints across channels are well-known to most marketers and with Informed Delivery you can have access to a second touchpoint on a second channel with little effort and cost.

marketeers-and-business
Surveys show that an amazing
0 %
of customers are satisfied or very satisfied with the service and
0 %
would recommend it to friends, family, or colleagues.

How can a USPS Informed Delivery campaign benefit Marketers and Businesses?

The Informed Delivery service allows marketers to quickly connect with customers that are already participating for a better omni channel presence. This physical-to-digital pathway enhances customer engagement and allows for trackable interactions. Informed Delivery allows companies to track user impressions, explore insights, and increase interactions with your brand by increasing response and ultimately, profitability. The benefits of multiple touchpoints across channels are well-known to most marketers and with Informed Delivery you can have access to a second touchpoint on a second channel with little effort and cost.

marketeers-and-business
Surveys show that an amazing
0 %
of customers are satisfied or very satisfied with the service and
0 %
would recommend it to friends, family, or colleagues.

How does the feature work?

USPS leverages existing mail imaging processes to provide users with a digital preview of mail arriving soon.
Consumer Sign Up

Consumers sign up on usps.com* after email address is provided and identity is verified.

Mail images during processing

Mail is sent. USPS uses existing processes to gather digital images of the exterior of letter size mailpieces that are processes through automation equipment.

Images matched to delivery points

USPS automatically matches mailpiece images to informed Delivery users based on an 11-Digit Delivery Point ZIP Code.

Notification emailed to user

USPS notifies informed Delivery users of mail arriving soon in an email and/or dashboard view.

User receives mailpiece

USPS delivers physical mailpieces through regular delivery.

How can Informed Delivery add extra power to your direct mail programs?
Bob Dixon, Product Technology Director with USPS, explains how it works in this video.

Leverage the Informed Delivery Advertising Platform’s additional features to maximize direct mail campaign performance.

Informed-Delivery-Ride-Along-Images
Informed Delivery Ride-Along Images

Ride along or representative messages offered by the USPS Informed Delivery feature allow users to provide bonus content. All campaigners need to do is submit these extra images when they start operating on their campaign. There is a wide range of things you can feature in these bonus messages. Some great examples include:

Additionally, brands can add a URL of their choice to the hyperlinked image and send web-based content to users through them. This will provide customers with additional content and unlock more engagement opportunities.

Leverage Tracking and Digital Marketing with an Omnichannel campaign

Tracking URL’s can be set up and remarketing campaigns can be developed based on informed delivery audiences.

Leverage Postal Savings on Informed Delivery Campaigns

During the Informed Delivery promotional
period, USPS offers a 4% discount
for qualifying first-class,
standard/marketing mail, and non-profit, letters, postcards, and flat size mail pieces. 
Advertisers save big by utilizing this sale. We think this is a major reason why you should consider incorporating the USPS Informed Delivery feature into your omni channel setup.

How do I start a new Informed Delivery campaign?
Bob Dixon, Product Technology Director with USPS, explains how it works in this video.

There were nearly 281k + weekly user registrations for the feature in 2021, don’t hesitate to learn more now.

The USPS Informed Delivery option is a great initiative for users who want to increase their customer engagement, target multiple users via single mail, deliver bonus messages, and more.

0 k+
Weekly User Registrations in 2022

There were nearly 281k + weekly user registrations for the feature in 2021, don’t hesitate to learn more now.

The USPS Informed Delivery option is a great initiative for users who want to increase their customer engagement, target multiple users via single mail, deliver bonus messages, and more.

Maximize your Informed Delivery Campaign performance with American Litho!

American Litho’s predictive modeling and analytics tools can help elevate the effectiveness of your Informed Delivery campaign by identifying the recipients most likely to take action.

Working with Amerilytics, our proprietary data analytics suite, we will help you plan a highly targeted campaign that maximizes customer engagement with profitable results.

As a leader in direct mail marketing and a long-time partner of the USPS, American Litho is well-versed in Informed Delivery and can use our powerful direct mail engine to prime the mailbox with this awesome digital marketing tool.

Contact us to get started with setting up and optimizing an Informed Delivery campaign.

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