The week that was: 13 April 2012

Rounding up the top stories of the week from the pages of Post&Parcel…

Canada Post simplifies direct mail for local business use

Canada Post has launched a bid to attract more small and medium-sized businesses to use the mail for local advertising purposes.

The “Precision Targeter” tool allows businesses access to Canada Post’s extensive address database, combined with national census data, to more precisely target saturation mail campaigns to the best delivery routes for a certain message.

Separately, Canada Post also marked the start of construction on its new $200m mail processing plant near Vancouver International Airport this week. The facility will provide a gateway for growing e-commerce volumes from Asia Pacific countries into Canada from 2014.

Union protest against US postal reform proposals

Postal unions in the United States stepped up the pressure on US lawmakers to oppose legislative proposals designed to rescue the US Postal Service this week, with a series of protests.

The US Senate is expected to attempt debate the 21st Century Postal Service Act (S.1789) when it returns from its Easter recess next week, but unions want to see more comprehensive reform proposals that do not result in major plant closures.

This week also saw the US Postal Regulatory Commission looking into ways to shorten its review process for major USPS service changes. And, the GAO issued a report urging Congress to find ways to pay for the Postal Service if it wants to maintain current mail standards.

Price rises on the way for UK e-commerce delivery

UK parcel delivery company Yodel is risking angering its retail customers and consumers by hiking its prices for the delivery of e-commerce packages.

The loss-making company said it will be making changes to its services and pricing so that operations could be “sustainable and profitable”. It has been finding the “explosive growth” in Internet shopping difficult to keep up with, especially in the run-up to Christmas.

In a thought piece for Post&Parcel, GFS director Simon Veale warned that many companies in the UK’s parcel delivery sector are looking to raise prices and also potentially limit e-commerce volumes they are prepared to deliver, in order to protect their reputations.