Postal Advocate has the expertise and technology to help companies manage their shipping and mailing processes and look for best practices to optimize operations and reduce spending. We have developed a business model that provides visibility of mailing equipment and spends across organizations resulting in an average client savings of 57%. Learn how we became the leading manager of the largest mailing fleet in the US and Canada and what we can do for you.
Items We Covered:
1. Shipping and Mailing Visibility
2. Process for Validation of Spends
3. Equipment Savings Process
4. Eliminating Vendor Fees and Overcharges
5. Inventory Management
6. Carrier Management
7. Free No Obligation Mailing Analysis
2. Lynsie Murphy- Background and Experience
• Account & Business Development
Manager at Postal Advocate Inc.
– The only mail audit and recovery firm in
the US and Canada
– Manage a portfolio of over 160,000 pieces
of mailing and shipping equipment for the
largest US companies.
• Over 5 years of account management
experience with a proven track record of
success and exceeding targets.
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Not affiliated with any mailing vendor - Unbiased advice.
Lynsie.Murphy@postaladvocate.com
3. Helping multi-location
organizations streamline
their mailing costs
Over 160,000 pieces of
equipment, managed
by Postal Advocate
Recovered over
$18,000,000
in lost postage, vendor
overcharges and fees
ENTERPRISE-WIDEMAILAUDITANDRECOVERY
OVER $66,000,000 IN CLIENT SAVINGS
$1.9M
57%
Average Client
Savings
Average Equipment
Savings
HOW WE DO IT
• 175+ years of industry experience
• Comprehensive web-based tool
providing visibility of all mail
and equipment spend
• Time Savings - Assistance
in fleet management
visit www.postaladvocate.com or call (888)977-MAIL(6245)
4.
5. Sign Limited Agency
Agreement/Kick-Off Call.
Provide copies of vendor
invoices, AP export,
location list,
equipment inventory list.
Present savings opportunities
and get client approval.
Postal Advocate provides
ongoing support,
manages renewals, billing
and vendor compliance.
Provide enterprise visibility of
all spend, costs and
documented savings
through enterpriseAdvocate.
Provide client log-in.
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HOW IT
WORKS
Work with current vendor to build population
report, contract terms/start/end dates,
postage volumes, costs.
Analyze spend, check for contract
compliance, billing errors, vendor
fees/overcharges, lost postage.
Identify savings opportunities.
Submit vendor credit requests,
lost postage forms and
eliminate avoidable fees.
Negotiate pricing. Create catalog.
Work with locations -
asset validation, rightsize, termination…
Full implementation of savings.
visit www.postaladvocate.com or call (888)977-MAIL(6245)
Conduct Analysis
NO COST – AUDIT PHASE CONTRACTED CLIENT
6. Mailing Spend Visibility
• Most organizations lack complete information on their mailing spends including:
– Equipment Inventory – Model, Serial Number, Description, Install Dates
– Lease Details – Contract Number, Term, Amount, Items Covered and End of Lease Dates
– Postage Spends – How much postage does each site use and what are the balances sitting in prepaid and
advance accounts.
– Other Mailing Costs – Meter Rental, Maintenance, Rate Change, Supplies.
– Avoidable Fees – Late Fees, Finance Charges, Equipment Insurance, Loyalty Programs, Transaction
Frees, Reset and Advance Fees
• Lack of detail leads to significant overspending. Our average savings is 57%
because we are managing this detail
• Most organizations are spending thousands in fees and overcharges unknowingly.
• Lack of controls lead to lost postage.
• The Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) has established new lease rules
(ASC 842) that require companies to record operating leases on the balance sheet as
a liability vs. only declaring the expense on the income statement.
– Must include the full future discounted value of the remaining lease obligations.
– Public companies – Started 12/15/18
– Non Public companies – Starts 12/15/19
– Will require that you have full visibility to all leases
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7. September 17, 2020 7
STEP
1
RAW DATA
Provide any current mailing vendor reports and or an export from your
accounts payable system of the transactions paid to the main mailing
vendors (We will provide the list of vendor names).
STEP
2
STEP
3
RESEARCH
Postal Advocate will work with your vendors, enter data
into vendor websites, collect postage volumes and fill in
all needed information.
ANALYSIS
Full analysis of equipment savings, fees,
overcharges and lost postage. This includes
details on the current portfolio, leases and
equipment utilization.
STEP
4
CONSOLIDATION
We will create a detailed equipment inventory, add
end of lease dates, postage volumes, lease spend,
fees, and spend ratios to provide complete visibility.
SAVINGS SUMMARY
Quantify the current and future savings.
This process has created an average of 57%
cost reductions for our clients. Ongoing
visibility through our enterpriseAdvocate™
web platform.
VISIBILITY
STEPS TO VISIBILITY
8. enterpriseAdvocate™ – Multi Location System - Dashboard
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The data above is for demonstrative purposes only. Data does not represent true spends and costs.
9. enterpriseAdvocate™ – Multi Location System - Dashboard
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Highlights
• Simple access to all mail spends.
• Visibility to fees and savings.
• All account numbers are stored in one place.
• Simple to drill down to an individual location or invoice.
The data above is for demonstrative purposes only. Data does not represent true spends and costs.
Spend Ratio
What are we
spending on the
equipment
compared to the
postage used.
11. Validate Equipment Spends with Locations
We typically find 5-15% of a mailing fleet is not needed and can be returned.
• Bills often sent to accounts payable with limited review.
• Locations not surveyed about the equipment at the location.
• Little understanding of the equipment listed on bills and reports.
• Vendors have little incentive to validate suspect equipment because of lost
revenue.
• Equipment may be sitting in storage with charges accruing.
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Criteria for Validation:
• Meters not filled for over 6 months.
• Expired leases.
• Maintenance and meter rentals.
• Equipment over 5 years old.
• Folders, inserters, openers, shipping
and tracking systems.
12. Postal Advocate
Validation Process
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1. Find suspect equipment and
charges.
2. Contact the location to validate
needs. (See below).
3. Implement changes and
cancellations.
13. Account Management Process
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• Upcoming Renewals and
Potential Savings
Opportunities – Reach
out to the location and
set up time to go over
requirements
• Send options to the
location for review
• Answer any questions
they may have
• Follow up on selection
• Once the decision is made,
Postal Advocate will contact
the vendor and request
paperwork
• If we are switching vendors,
we will also put together the
cancellation notification for
sign-off and processing
• Send the paperwork to the
signer for final review and
sign-off
• Submit the signed agreement
to the vendor for processing
• Follow up on delivery
• Follow up with the
location on the delivery
and installation
• Confirm that the old
machine has been
picked up or returned
• Answer any questions
or concerns
14. Equipment Savings Process
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Customized Renewal Email
Postal Advocate Equipment Savings Stats
Implement renewals, terminations and new equipment needs.
Analyze current pricing and terms.
Set Standardized equipment rates and updated MSA’s.
Work with locations to define needs and show options.
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5 Document all new equipment, savings and notes.
15. Renewal Email
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Detailed Location Information
Company Defined Purchasing
Process.
Compare Current Equipment
and Costs to new options.
Detailed description on all
equipment.
Web, PDF and Video links for
more information.
19. Eliminate Mailing Vendor Avoidable Fees
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Monitor future invoices to validate they do not return.
Create online accounts on the vendors websites.
Link every location, account, meter and postage refill.
Document all savings and notes.
Identify avoidable fees and develop plans for their removal.
✓
✓
✓
✓
✓
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While simplifying the billing and payable process
Postage
Refill Fees - Rentals $0-20 each
Postage Advance Fees Included or up to 1% of the Advance
Postage Advance Late Fees 0-15% of the Advance
Postage Advance Finance Charges 15% or higher APR
Overlimit Credit Charge Varies by Vendor
Annual Fee Rewards Program Varies by Vendor
Lease
Late Fees Varies by Vendor and Lease Value
Insurance - Leases Only
Varies by Vendor and Lease Value -
Automatic enrollment unless proof
insurance is provided.
Mailing System Fees
Postal Advocate Avoidable Fees
Savings Stats
20. Eliminate Mailing Vendor Overcharges
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Continue to monitor future bills looking for overcharges.
Document all savings and notes.
Identify transactions being overcharged.
Format requests for refunds/credits.
Validate refunds have been received.
✓
✓
✓
✓
✓
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We look at every invoice to make sure you are paying the correct rates.
Typical Vendor Overcharges
Invoices notgiving national accountdiscounts.
Meter,maintenanceand ratechangecharges when included on a lease.
Bills for equipmentfromclosed sites.
Resetand advancepostagefees thatshould beincluded.
Loyalty points thatgo undredeemed or cashed in for personal use.
Postal Advocate Credit/Overcharges
Savings Stats
21. Recover Lost Postage from Dormant Accounts
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Validate that funds have been received back.
Document all savings and notes.
Create online visibility to every postage account and refill.
Format vendor requests to validate funds.
Fill in refund request forms.
✓
✓
✓
✓
✓
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We track down postage from terminated or forgotten meter accounts.
We have found
almost $6,000,000 in
the last 24 months
mostly residing with
the mailing vendors.
22. PC Postage – Fastest growth segment of the mailing
industry
• Inexpensive compared to postage meters and typical costs range from $10-30 per month.
• Cloud based and can be accessed from any device.
• Easy to deploy and use – Within 10-15 business days, you can receive your login
credentials, a scale and starter labels. There are simple online tutorials to get you started
quickly.
• Visibility to all history and package tracking statuses.
• Some systems have multiple carrier options to process UPS®/FedEx®
• Significant postage savings –some newer postage meters may come with a PC Postage
subscription to get these rates. (Some newer mailing systems include PC Postage to get these discounts).
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Mail Type Stamps Postage Meter PC Postage Savings % Savings
1 Ounce Letter $0.55 $0.50 $0.50 $0.05 9%
1 Ounce Certified Mail with Return Reciept $6.85 $5.60-6.80 $5.60 $1.20-1.25 18%
5 Ounce First Class Parcel $4.39-4.81 $4.39-4.81 $3.18-3.63 $1.18-1.21 25-28%
10 Ounce First Class Parcel $5.19-5.66 $5.19-5.66 $3.82-4.33 $1.33-1.37 23-27%
15 Ounce First Class Parcel $7.35-12.20 $7.35-12.20 $4.94-5.53 $2.41-6.67 33-55%
Priority Mail 1LB $7.35-12.20 $7.35-12.20 $6.95-9.91 $.80-2.29 4-19%
Priority Mail 5LB $9.80-34.80 $9.80-34.80 $7.81-28.84 $1.99-5.96 17-25%
Priority Mail 10LB $13.10-59.90 $13.10-59.90 $9.38-50.38 $3.72-9.52 16-40%
Priority Mail Express $25.60-56.10 $25.60-56.10 $22.74-49 $2.86-7.10 11-13%
Prices lower than available through postage meters.
23. PC Postage
• Most common remote mailing solution
• Subscription model
• Print from any computer with an internet
connection and a printer
– 4 x 6 - Shipping labels
• Regular paper (To be taped to the item or
use labelope)
• Avery type labels (Purchased from office
supply provider)
– Postage stamps
• Directly onto envelope (Along with
destination and return address)
• Stamp Sheets (Most common) – Purchased
from PC Postage provider
• Vendor provided label printer
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24. Postal Advocate No Risk Savings Model
We will do a detailed no cost or
obligation analysis outlining
savings potential
Fee Options
Essentials – 35% of Savings
Premium – 45% of Savings
Premium Plus – Contracted
Management Fee
All Options Receive
– Detailed savings statements
and invoices documenting
each transaction.
– Online visibility to all savings
and fees.
– No cost web based
inventory management
system.
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25. Free No Obligation Mail Analysis
• Completed in 2-3 weeks
• Outlines, spend and specific savings opportunities
• Minimal customer involvement
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Savings Summary # of Sites Meter Rentals
Maintenance
Agreements
On Call
Maintenance Lease Total Postage Spend Ratio
0.00
Item Current Year 1 Year 2 Year 3 Year 4
Combined
Savings
Equipment Costs
Avoidable Fees
(Late Fees, Finance Charges, Equip Insurance, Loyalty Plans)
Contract Violations and Overcharges
(Supply, maitnenance and meter discount, returned equipment)
Lost Postage
Total
Savings
26. What we need for the mail analysis:
1. Letter of Authority – Giving us the
approval to research your mailing
spends.
2. Any mail equipment reports you
may have – Current or Historical.
3. Accounts Payable Export of Mailing
Vendor Transactions – Postal
Advocate will provide a listing of
vendor names.
4. Providing PDF copies of specific
invoices requested from the
Accounts Payable Export – We will
try to limit this.
5. Meet with us to review the results
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27. Summary
✓ Visibility: We will provide you a web dashboard to all mail spends, applications and
pricing.
✓ Savings: We will be monitoring your account looking for savings in equipment and fees.
✓ Recovery: We will find and recover any lost funds or overpayments from
dormant/orphaned accounts.
✓ Simplicity: We will make mail related spends easy to manage.
✓ Support: We represent the best in the industry and will act as your advocate on all mail
related questions.
✓ Risk Free: You only pay us when we can document specific savings.
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