Canada Post building regional interest in epost 2.0
Canada Post is continuing to build interest in its expanded digital mail platform, epost, within Canada’s regions. The Corporation launched the second generation of the 12-year-old digital communications service in September within the Waterloo-Kitchener area of Ontario, an area known for its local high-tech industry.
The second generation of epost sees its capabilities extended beyond its origins in the online billing sphere to turn it into a full “digital mailbox” and a basis for a broader communications link between government, business and consumers.
Last week Canada Post was promoting the service in the prairie province of Saskatchewan, where local cable TV and broadband company Access Communications has now signed up to use the service to communicate with its customers.
The Corporation said epost has seen its user numbers growing by 26% over the past two years in Saskatchewan, a province with a population of just over 1m.
Kerry Munro, Canada Post’s group president for the Digital Delivery Network, said: “Now with more local mailers in Saskatchewan along with the range of national ones, epost is a convenient, one-stop destination to manage the bulk of major household bills.”
Only three in 10 Canadians in the prairies get their bills by mail, but Canada Post said of those who have switched to online billing, 48% complain about keeping track of too many passwords for too many websites.
The epost platform aims to promote itself as a single location where multiple bills can be accessed and paid online.
Regina-based Access Communications, a non-profit co-operative with an annual revenue of about $73m, said epost provided an “easy and secure” way to carry out household business online.
Carmela Haines, the vice-president of finance and administration at Access Communications, said: “Offering our communities more convenience and choice is important, especially when many of our customers prefer managing bills online.”
Local attention
Canada Post says it now has more than 7.7m Canadians registered with epost and more than 100 businesses participating in the digital mail service.
A spokesperson for the Corporation told Post&Parcel yesterday that the company’s work to publicise the epost platform regionally was bringing the service to the attention of local businesses, but also local authorities.
“We already have national-level businesses using epost,” said Daria Hopej, “But we’re also looking to get local governments interested in getting involved, and take advantage of the authentication capabilities to provide access to government services.”
Following on from September’s epost schools campaign in the Waterloo region, Canada Post revealed yesterday that nearly 2,000 area residents nominated local schools to receive smart teaching technology and digital teaching tools.
The campaign was open to subscribers of two or more bills through the epost system within Waterloo, who could choose from 124 local schools to receive equipment.
Canada Post said yesterday that six schools received “SMART Board” interactive whiteboards, while 10 schools received Dell Ultrabook computers.
“Just like Canada Post is adapting to a digital future with services like epost, classrooms will continue to embrace technology in order to help students stay competitive in the digital economy,” said Munro.
