Comments on: Pricing and Price Caps http://blog.uspsoig.gov/?p=2675 Wed, 08 Sep 2010 03:07:47 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.0.1 By: lemonade diet recipe http://blog.uspsoig.gov/?p=2675#comment-5263 lemonade diet recipe Sun, 11 Jul 2010 13:16:52 +0000 http://blog.uspsoig.gov/?p=2675#comment-5263 The blog is helpful for price niche. The blog is helpful for price niche.

]]> By: scbmkt http://blog.uspsoig.gov/?p=2675#comment-4077 scbmkt Tue, 02 Mar 2010 16:49:53 +0000 http://blog.uspsoig.gov/?p=2675#comment-4077 I can't imagine that there is anything more inefficient than driving the same route day after day regardless of the amount of mail to be delivered on that route. That would be like Fedex or UPS stopping at your house everyday regardless of whether or not they had a package to deliver to you. It seems to me the USPS could change mail delivery to a Monday, Wednesday, Friday schedule and save a tremendous amount of money from reduced fuel cost and vehicle maintenance, not to mention the positive environmental impact. If the volume of traditional mail is falling, the model for the USPS needs to change and become more efficient. Simply raising rates to deal with budget shortfalls is not a good strategy of long term viability. I can’t imagine that there is anything more inefficient than driving the same route day after day regardless of the amount of mail to be delivered on that route. That would be like Fedex or UPS stopping at your house everyday regardless of whether or not they had a package to deliver to you. It seems to me the USPS could change mail delivery to a Monday, Wednesday, Friday schedule and save a tremendous amount of money from reduced fuel cost and vehicle maintenance, not to mention the positive environmental impact. If the volume of traditional mail is falling, the model for the USPS needs to change and become more efficient. Simply raising rates to deal with budget shortfalls is not a good strategy of long term viability.

]]> By: Skippy http://blog.uspsoig.gov/?p=2675#comment-3764 Skippy Wed, 06 Jan 2010 02:31:09 +0000 http://blog.uspsoig.gov/?p=2675#comment-3764 If there is going to be a cap on raising postage rates, there also should be a cap on the rates for PO Boxes, especially at the non delivery offices. People are giving up their PO Boxes at the small offices and going to rural delivery, which is a more costly option on our part. You might be gaining a few bucks on revenue by raising the rates, but you are raising your expenses a lot more at the same time. The people who are coming in everyday for their mail are the ones less likely to pay their biulls online, and use our other services while they are there. If there is going to be a cap on raising postage rates, there also should be a cap on the rates for PO Boxes, especially at the non delivery offices. People are giving up their PO Boxes at the small offices and going to rural delivery, which is a more costly option on our part. You might be gaining a few bucks on revenue by raising the rates, but you are raising your expenses a lot more at the same time.

The people who are coming in everyday for their mail are the ones less likely to pay their biulls online, and use our other services while they are there.

]]> By: postal servant http://blog.uspsoig.gov/?p=2675#comment-3763 postal servant Tue, 05 Jan 2010 19:50:49 +0000 http://blog.uspsoig.gov/?p=2675#comment-3763 Not raising prices this year was a mistake that will haunt us for years. Their is a cost to delivering mail to each mail box 6 days a week, no matter if there is one letter or 20 letters, there is a cost even if there is no mail to every box. The route has to be driven the same each and every day. Currently we are not covering those costs and the reason is the Cola cap. We need to re-think our pricing. Appox 90% of the mail is advertising so we need to quantify the value of our customers to the advertisers and charge accordingly, forget, discounts there should be a premium for access to our customers. This is no different than companies charging advertisers for mailing lists, it just that advertiser think because we are the postal service, a government service, they should get access to these customers for nothing. We are the best value for advertisers to reach there customers in whole or in targeted groups, we should be expanding our reach with 7 day delivery and eliminate the surcharges so the advertisers get easily understood pricing. We have the equipment and the highly trained personnel to process there advertising, we need to recovery these costs not give the advertiser reason not use us. Not raising prices this year was a mistake that will haunt us for years. Their is a cost to delivering mail to each mail box 6 days a week, no matter if there is one letter or 20 letters, there is a cost even if there is no mail to every box. The route has to be driven the same each and every day. Currently we are not covering those costs and the reason is the Cola cap. We need to re-think our pricing. Appox 90% of the mail is advertising so we need to quantify the value of our customers to the advertisers and charge accordingly, forget, discounts there should be a premium for access to our customers. This is no different than companies charging advertisers for mailing lists, it just that advertiser think because we are the postal service, a government service, they should get access to these customers for nothing. We are the best value for advertisers to reach there customers in whole or in targeted groups, we should be expanding our reach with 7 day delivery and eliminate the surcharges so the advertisers get easily understood pricing. We have the equipment and the highly trained personnel to process there advertising, we need to recovery these costs not give the advertiser reason not use us.

]]> By: postalvet http://blog.uspsoig.gov/?p=2675#comment-3762 postalvet Tue, 05 Jan 2010 18:15:15 +0000 http://blog.uspsoig.gov/?p=2675#comment-3762 Just stop paying all those high wages to managemnt. The post office was never a place to come and "get rich"!!! the post office is a public SERVICE!!!! STOP THE WASTE AND EVERYONE WINS!!! Just stop paying all those high wages to managemnt. The post office was never a place to come and “get rich”!!! the post office is a public SERVICE!!!!

STOP THE WASTE AND EVERYONE WINS!!!

]]> By: Observer http://blog.uspsoig.gov/?p=2675#comment-3759 Observer Tue, 05 Jan 2010 03:15:36 +0000 http://blog.uspsoig.gov/?p=2675#comment-3759 Suppose the Postal Service wants to deal optimally with its financial situation, and it has 4 options to use. The idea of using the best mix of 4 is relatively simple. But now suppose one of those options is precluded from being used, by a price cap. It must now choose a mix of the three remaining options. The result will be suboptimality, caused by the price cap, except in the unlikely event that prices would not have been used anyhow. Suboptimal solutions are always worse than optimal solutions. But, you say, the price cap was supposed to help. Those able to explain any help it provided should write in. Keep in mind that the new law was supposed to give the Postal Service wherewithal that it did not have before. It did not. It may have reduced wherewithal. The picture is not a pretty one. We accept suboptimality and a Postal Service without strength to fight. Congress sure is helpful. Suppose the Postal Service wants to deal optimally with its financial situation, and it has 4 options to use. The idea of using the best mix of 4 is relatively simple. But now suppose one of those options is precluded from being used, by a price cap. It must now choose a mix of the three remaining options. The result will be suboptimality, caused by the price cap, except in the unlikely event that prices would not have been used anyhow. Suboptimal solutions are always worse than optimal solutions.

But, you say, the price cap was supposed to help. Those able to explain any help it provided should write in. Keep in mind that the new law was supposed to give the Postal Service wherewithal that it did not have before. It did not. It may have reduced wherewithal.

The picture is not a pretty one. We accept suboptimality and a Postal Service without strength to fight. Congress sure is helpful.

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