Tag: Canada

Microcom, IBM to automate license-plate renewals in Canada

Posted by | Nov 20, 2007 | |

Microcom Corp. and IBM have announced plans to let drivers renew their license-plate registrations at self-service kiosks throughout the province of Ontario, Canada.

James Larson, president and chief executive of Microcom, says the project will put drivers in the fast lane.

“The kiosks streamline the renewal process and help drivers avoid the agony of standing in long, slow-moving lines,” he said.

IBM sought Microcom’s help to engineer a solution that helps them automatically validate and issue serial-numbered registration stickers at ServiceOntario kiosks. The machines, deployed in about 70 locations throughout the province, are touted for being part of the largest self-service kiosk network of its kind in North America.

Microcom designed and manufactured a media printer/dispenser equipped with a laser barcode scanner for the terminals. Once a customer enters required information, the barcode-reader authenticates a registration sticker and dispenses it to the user.

The Ministry of Transportation is looking to leverage self-service technology in response to growth.

“They simply are looking to find smart and efficient ways to help tackle the increase in customer volume, while at the same time decrease costs,” Larson said.

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Spring Global Mail welcomes decision to liberate international mail market in Canada

Posted by | Nov 19, 2007 | |

Spring Global Mail welcomes proposed changes by the Canadian Federal Government, which will lead to greater competition and enhanced service in the provision of international mail services for Canada. This follows the Canadian government’s recent decision to introduce legislation that will provide an exception to the Canada Post Corporation Act, whereby letters being mailed to destinations outside of Canada will be explicitly removed from Canada Post’s exclusive privilege. Under the new legislation, Spring Global Mail will be able to continue providing cost-effective, valued added services, meeting the international mailing needs of its Canadian customers.

Commenting on the decision as a matter of fairness, competition and common sense, Lou Laforet, vice president Europe and Americas at Spring Global Mail said: “Spring is extremely pleased that the government has acted in favour of the international mailing industry. We are extremely grateful to all our customers for their loyalty to Spring and their patience during this period of uncertainty. We finally have the certainty that Spring and its customers have been waiting for.”

In reaction to the Government’s new, pending legislation, Canada Post has advised Spring Global Mail that it will not continue to pursue legal proceedings against the company, relating to the its international mail activities in the Canadian market, pending the necessary formal vote in Parliament necessary to complete the legislative process.

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Online bargain hunters clogging up mail depots

Posted by | Nov 17, 2007 | |

Canadians empowered by a strong dollar and faced with long lines at border crossings have turned to the Internet as a way to do their holiday shopping in the United States.

But a consumers’ agency said this week that online shoppers are already facing a “bottleneck” that will only make delays longer as the Christmas season approaches.

Canada Post reported seeing cross-border parcel traffic increase 15 per cent in October compared to the same month last year, and noted a similar jump in September.

Francois Legault, a spokesperson for Canada Post, said the jump is likely related to an increase in online shopping at U.S. stores.

“We have noticed that the parcels that we have received, the majority of them are from U.S. retailers,” Legault told CTV.ca.

After the loonie hit parity with the U.S. dollar, reaching a value of USD 1.10 at one point last week, Canadians began flocking across the border to take advantage of lower prices and stronger buying power.

But in the lead-up to the Christmas season, the number of parcels and mail received from south of the border has jumped as well.

The Canadian Border Services Agency reported seeing a notable increase in the amount of packages sent to Canada from the U.S.

Canada Post and the Canadian Border Services Agency routinely increase their staff to handle the extra traffic during the holiday season.

Your package is in the mail

Mail flowing from the U.S. is checked by border services at one of three mail centers, located in Vancouver, Toronto and Montreal, before being returned to the chain of delivery.

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Canada Post Seeks to Help Canadian Businesses Garner More Value for Their Mail at 'Make a Great Statement' Executive Forum

Posted by | Nov 15, 2007 | |

In Canada and the U.S., more than 19 billion paper bills are mailed out by businesses every year. And what many businesses are now realizing is that those 19 billion statements they’ve been mailing out to their customers every month actually present an overlooked wealth of opportunities to build loyal relationships with their customers, and gain an advantage over their competitors so that they can attract new customers.

Speaking to Senior Marketing executives at the Make a Great Statement Executive Forum in Toronto, Cheryl Persad, vice-president of Enterprise Sales at Canada Post said, “85 per cent of Canadians say they prefer to receive bills and invoices by physical mail, and 72 per cent of Canadians feel that mail is the best way to receive important information. And for communicators, mail not only reaches 100 per cent of Canadian households, but 86% of Canadians open and read their mail the same day they receive it.”
Businesses are discovering that statements can be an effective part of their organization’s integrated communications plan… statements are a regularly-scheduled, one-on-one meeting they can have with their customers every month. Each statement can be a personalized, relevant, customized marketing tool that companies can use to retain customers, increase customer satisfaction and even increase revenues, through cross-selling and up-selling opportunities.

To help identify what makes a Great Statement, Canada Post commissioned a study to look at more than a hundred statement designs. The study asked six firms that specialize in statement design to come up with a comprehensive list of best practices and characteristics of what they thought made a well-designed statement. The six firms identified 76 key features, which can be clustered into three broad themes: relationship builders, brand enhancers and cost-savers.

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Canada Post Launches Virtual City in Second Life with Retail Partners

Posted by | Nov 5, 2007 | |

Canada Post aspires to hit Second Life in a big way: By launching a virtual city, where users can come and shop.

The virtual city of Maple Grove has a distinctly Canadian feel, according to DM News. Virtual residents can send packages or buy stamps, cards and gift cards and convey them anywhere in Canada.

Additionally, Maple Grove will include a collection of stores offering discounts to virtual residents.

Stores include North American retailers like Everything Olive and Toys “R” Us, which partnered with the Canadian post office on its lookbook catalog.

Further, instead of creating its own island like many other brands, Maple Grove has opted to join the Second City mainland, since the post office “is the center of many communities across Canada,” CP’s SVP Laurene Cihosky told DM News.

The city launched on Saturday with a six-hour virtual live music festival.

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