overview

OverviewBusiness Letter services

IntroductionAustralia Post offers lower postage rates to customers sending larger volumes of mail. Bulk mail services are available to customers who want to send large quantities of mail articles to addresses in Australia, the postage rate depends on the service chosen, size of the articles and the preparation work the customer does.

In this moduleThis presentation introduces you to bulk mail services and the bulk mail process, and provides an overview of Australia Post’s requirements for bulk mail preparation, sorting and lodgement.

Learning outcomesBy completing this presentation, you will be able to:• determine which Bulk Mail service is appropriate for your needs• list the steps in the bulk mail process• understand Australia Post’s bulk mail requirements (at a high level)

Introduction

More information

For more detailed information about Bulk Mail Services refer to the Guide to Bulk Mail and the individual bulk mail service guides, available on the Australia Post website (auspost.com.au).

Prices for bulk mail services can be found in the Post Charges booklet and are available on the Australia Post website.

These guides are also available at any Australia Post outlet.

What are bulk mail services?Bulk mail services are:

• a proven cost effective business channel to reach customers

• a way to save on postage costs

• a way to give businesses a professional image with customers

• flexible enough to meet a variety of business needs

How bulk mail services work

Australia Post offers lower postage rates to customers who prepare and lodge articles in accordance with bulk mail conditions.

To qualify for the savings, you generally have to perform some of the work Australia Post would normally do, such as sorting articles, printing barcodes, stacking them in mail trays and lodging them with supporting documentation.

The postage rate depends on the service you choose and the preparation work you do.

What are bulk mail services?Is bulk mail right for you?

You need to ask yourself the following questions to ensure you can meet Australia Post’s specifications and therefore qualify for lower prices.

Do you have enough articles to meet the minimum quantities?

The minimum is generally 300

What size are the articles? There are minimum and maximum sizes for each service

What weight are the articles? Prices correspond to the weight ranges within each service, up to the maximum weight allowed (g)

Can you machine address them, and apply barcodes? Most bulk mail services require machine addressed articles, and PreSort Letters and Acquisition Mail need to be barcoded

Can you sort them according to Australia Post’s sort plans?

Sorting articles will reduce the cost of most bulk mail services

Can you prepare the articles in-house and manage the lodgement?

Check if your computers, printers and software are suitable – if not, consider using a mail service provider

What are bulk mail services?If you need assistance

You can get help with bulk mailing from a range of businesses that specialise in designing, printing, preparing and sorting mail. These businesses, typically called ‘mail houses’ can help you with a single part of a bulk mailing, or you can hire them to handle the entire mailing, from creation to mail lodgement. Mail houses can help you with:

• Purchasing or renting an address list • Managing your address database

• Designing and printing your articles • Sorting your articles

• Lodging your mail with Australia Post

Bulk Mail Partners

The Bulk Mail Partner (BMP) program is a quality initiative that encourages mail houses to produce and lodge high quality mail, and establishes processes to make the interface with Australia Post more efficient. BMP recognises mail houses who have invested in processes to make mail lodgement more efficient and effective.

For a list of Bulk Mail Partners in your state, visit: www.auspost.com.au/bulkmailpartners

What are bulk mail services?Terms and conditionsWhy are discounts given?Australia Post can only offer lower postage rates to customers who prepare and lodge articles in accordance with bulk mail terms and conditions. These terms and conditions ensure the mail can be machine processed in the most efficient manner. This enables Australia Post to transfer some of the savings to customers in the form of lower postage rates.These terms and conditions are set out in service guides for each service.

To qualify for the savings, customers need to comply with the respective terms and conditions for each service.

What are the implications of not meeting terms and conditions?If you do not meet the terms and conditions for a specific service then:

• lower postage rates cannot be guaranteed• the lodgement may be rejected• the lodgement may be charged at a higher rate

What are the bulk mail services?

Unaddressed Acquisition Print Charity PreSort Clean Impact Imprint/ Reply Mail Mail Post Mail Letters Mail Mail Metered Mail Paid

Delivers unaddressed leaflets, catalogues etc to letterboxes in an area at very low cost

Delivers addressed (non-personalised) articles to reach prospects and acquire new customers

Delivers approved regular publications such as magazines or newspapers

Delivers small PreSort Letters at lower prices for approved charitable organisations

Delivers machine-addressed articles which are barcoded and sorted

Delivers machine- addressed smaller articles without the need to barcode or sort them

Delivers creatively shaped articles – great for direct mail campaigns

Delivers letters at a lower price than regular Full Rate mail, with no minimum volume

Makes it easy for your customers to respond

The bulk mail process is followed for each Bulk Mail Service. The diagram below shows each step in the process. For more information about the bulk mail process, you can also review the Guide to Bulk Mail.

Bulk mail process overview


1. You need to choose which bulk mail service is right for your specific needs. To do this, you need to consider the following points:

• article size, weight and type• barcodes and correct addressing requirements• sort requirements• minimum volumes allowed• expected delivery times• application requirements• costs• other specific requirements, such as design

Specific requirements and conditions for each service are outlined in the Service Guides.


2. You may need to apply for certain bulk mail services. Registration or application forms need to be completed and submitted correctly to meet Australia Post’s bulk mail requirements.

More information about the application process for each service is covered in the Lodgement modules in this program.

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3. Bulk mail articles need to be designed and produced to meet Australia Post’s bulk mail requirements.

More information about the specifications for bulk mail articles for each service is covered in the Preparation modules in this program.


4. Bulk mail articles need to be correctly addressed and barcoded (in some cases) to meet Australia Post’s bulk mail requirements.

More information about the correct addressing and barcoding specifications for bulk mail articles for each service is covered in the Preparation modules in this program.


5. If required, bulk mail articles need to be correctly sorted, and comply with sort plans to meet Australia Post bulk’s mail requirements.

More information about sorting and sort plan specifications for bulk mail articles for each service is covered in the Lodgement modules in this program.


6. Bulk mail articles may need lodgement document forms and other supporting documentation to meet Australia Post’s bulk mail requirements.

More information about lodgement forms for bulk mail articles for each service is covered in the Lodgement modules in this program.

What are bulk mail services?Bulk mail services comparedThis chart compares each bulk mail service and summarises Australia Post’s requirements. Each requirement is explained in more detail on the next few pages.

What are bulk mail services?Customers need to ask themselves the following questions to ensure they can meet Australia Post’s bulk mail requirements and therefore qualify for lower prices.

What weight articles can I send?What size articles can I send?


What is the minimum volume of articles I need?Do I need to print barcodes on the articles?Do I need to sort the articles?


How does the cost per article compare?Do I need to apply for this service?How fast is the delivery?

What are bulk mail services?

More about size categories

The postage rate depends on the size of the bulk mail articles. Different sizes are accepted for each service.

Small• Unaddressed Mail• Acquisition Mail• Print Post• PreSort Letters• Clean Mail• Impact Mail• Full Rate Mail• Charity Mail• Reply Paid

Small Plus• PreSort Letters• Acquisition Mail• Clean Mail• Impact Mail

Medium• PreSort LettersLarge• Unaddressed Mail• Print Post• PreSort Letters• Full Rate Mail• Reply Paid


Checking size categoriesA Letter Gauge is available from Australia Post. This tool is used to check the size of mail articles. If an article is larger than the large letter size on the gauge, it will not comply with bulk mail requirements. In this event, customers are encouraged to enquire about Parcel Post contracts.

Service guides

The following service guides are available:• Unaddressed Mail service guide• Print Post service guide• PreSort Letters service guide, including Charity Mail• Acquisition Mail service guide• Clean Mail service guide• Impact Mail service guide• Reply Paid service guide

You can access these guides on the Australia Post website, auspost.com.au. They provide all the information customers need to prepare, sort and lodge their bulk mail articles, as well as any specific conditions or requirements which need to be met.


The key points covered were:

• Australia Post offers lower postage rates to customers sending larger volumes of mail.

• Bulk Mail services offer lower prices to customers who need to send at least 300 articles at a time to addresses in Australia.

• To qualify for these cost savings, customers generally need to perform some of the work Australia Post would normally do, such as designing and producing articles to meet bulk mail requirements, sorting articles, printing barcodes, stacking articles in mail trays and lodging articles with supporting documentation.

• The postage rate depends on the service chosen, the size of the articles and the preparation work the customer does.

• The bulk mail process is outlined in the Guide to Bulk Mail services.

• The requirements, terms and conditions for each bulk mail service are outlined in the Service Guides.

Summary

You now need to complete a short assessment to check your understanding of the information covered in this module. This assessment consists of 8 multiple-choice questions and should take you approximately 10 minutes to complete. To pass the assessment, you need to answer at least eight of these questions correctly.Attempt this assessment as many times as you need to. If you do not pass, it is recommended that you review this module again.

Assessment

a. Print Post b. Unaddressed Mailc. Clean Maild. Reply Paide. Acquisition Mailf. PreSort Letters

Assessment

1

Correct answer = BRachael’s most economical choice of Bulk Letters services is Unaddressed Mail.

A pizza shop has opened. Rachael, the manager, wishes to promote the menu and free delivery services to residents in the surrounding suburbs. She needs to be as economical as possible.What bulk mail service would best satisfy Rachael’s mailing needs?

a. Print Post b. Unaddressed Mailc. Clean Maild. Reply Paide. Impact Mailf. PreSort Letters

Assessment

2

Correct answer = APrint Post is the most suitable for Carolyn’s mailing needs.

Carolyn is the president of the National Quilters Guild. There are 1,000 members dispersed across Australia. Carolyn wants to publish a quarterly newsletter and post it to her members.What bulk mail service would best satisfy Carolyn’s mailing needs?

a. Print Post b. Acquisition Mailc. Clean Maild. Reply Paide. Impact Mailf. PreSort Letters

Assessment

3

Correct answer = CClean Mail is the best fit for Allan’s needs because:• there are over 300 articles• they are machine addressed• they are not barcoded• they are all small envelopes

Allan owns a newsagency, and he has 400 charge account customers. He needs to post these accounts out monthly. Allan’s wife prints and envelopes the mail. She can produce machine addressed labels for her DL envelopes, but can’t barcode.What bulk mail service would best satisfy Allan’s mailing needs?

a. Print Post b. Unaddressed Mailc. Clean Maild. Acquisition Maile. Impact Mailf. PreSort Letters

Assessment

4

Correct answer = FPreSort Letters is the most appropriate choice because the Mail Service Provider can append barcodes, and there are over 300 addresses, PreSort Letters is the most appropriate choice.

Chris owns a Car Dealership. He wants to acquire new customers and has purchased a list containing 3,000 names and addresses. He wants to direct mail to these potential customers. He intends to use a Mail Service Provider, who has explained that he can append barcodes to the addresses in the list.What bulk mail service would best satisfy Chris’s mailing needs?

a. Print Post b. Unaddressed Mailc. Clean Maild. Reply Paide. Impact Mailf. PreSort Letters

Assessment

5

Correct answer = DMark would achieve his outcome by providing a Reply Paid service.

Mark runs a small gift shop. He wants to create a catalogue with an order form attached. He would like customers to be able to send their orders back to him, however Mark wants to pay the postage for his customers.How could Mark provide this service to customers?

a. Print Post b. Unaddressed Mailc. Clean Maild. Acquisition Maile. Reply Paidf. PreSort Letters

Assessment

6

Correct answer = DJill would be best advised to use Acquisition Mail.

Jill runs a boutique winery. She wants to grow her mail order business. She plans to mail to at least 30,000 prospects, and wishes to associate her brand with an addressed mailing. Jill also wants to reach prospects and acquire new customers. What bulk mail service would best satisfy Jill’s mailing needs?

a. Acquisition Mailb. Unaddressed Mailc. Clean Maild. Reply Paide. Impact Mailf. PreSort Letters

Assessment

7

Correct answer = ESharon would be best advised to use Impact Mail.

Sharon owns an Art Gallery. She needs to attract the press to the opening of her new show about the Great Barrier Reef. She wants to send an invitation in the shape of a turtle. What bulk mail service would best satisfy Sharon’s mailing needs?

a. Choose, Apply, Prepare, Address, Sort, Lodgeb. Choose, Prepare, Address, Sort, Lodgec. Choose, Prepare, Apply, Address, Lodged. Choose, Apply, Address, Prepare, Sort, Lodge

Assessment

8

Correct answer = AThe bulk mail process is Choose, Apply, Prepare, Address, Sort and Lodge

What steps make up the bulk mail process?

Please select the answer that identifies all the steps in the correct order