Could new email postal system save charities money on direct marketing?
Howard Lake | 31 December 2007 | Blogs
While email is an essential tool for fundraisers, we still rely on printed direct mail to source and communicate with many donors. Yet direct mail can be expensive, and postage costs are going up next year.
Viapost is a new postal service that might just help. It enables people to email their letters to a central printing company nearest their recipient where it is printed out, folded and inserted, and then delivered ‘the final mile’ by the Royal Mail to the recipient. By sending letters via email, or ‘Post Over Internet Protocol (POIP)’, the system can cut down on the physical delivery costs of moving mail around the country.
Letters costs 24p to send, but are delivered the next day. And that covers single or double-sided, and colour. Viapost say the figure will remain the same when they launch the facility to deliver mail internationally.
The system works using a free downloadable driver for your PC. When you come to print your letter you will get the option of printing/sending via Viapost.
It sounds a very attractive idea for charities keen to reduce their mailing costs and impact on the environment.
Viapost is launching soon and you can register your interest.
www.viapost.com
About Howard Lake
Howard Lake is consultant editor of UK Fundraising. He founded the site in 1994 and successfully sold it in 2022. As director of Giving X Ltd he is exploring growing giving on a massive scale.
He is the founder of Fundraising Camp and co-founder of GoodJobs.