USPS to Propose Repeat Mobile Barcode Promo

The U.S. Postal Service (USPS) is, for the second year, planning a summertime promotion for direct mailers that use two-dimensional barcodes, USPS VP of domestic products Gary Reblin told Direct Marketing News on Jan. 31.

Reblin said last year's barcode promotion — which gave mailers a 3% discount on qualifying Standard and First-Class mail letters, flats and cards — was so successful that the USPS's board of governors urged that another promotional program be developed for this year.

The details of this year's promotion will be put before the USPS's board of governors on Feb. 8 for its approval, Reblin said. He declined to discuss specifics, as he said doing so would be premature prior to the board's approval.

However, he did say this year's mobile barcode discount promotion will have some different features from last year's. “We've studied best practices; we're going to take what we learned from the last one and be more specific.”

Reblin said the overarching goal is to “create long-term success for the mail” by getting people more engaged with their mail. “People can be a little wary of investing in the mail,” he said. “This is a great opportunity to incent people to try different things.”

Reblin said the Postal Service “recognized a trend in the marketplace” as QR codes became more popular in marketing last year, prompted the promotion, which took place in July and August of last year.

“What we wanted to do, like any good marketing company does, is help your return on investment,” he said.