Discussion - Member to Member Sales - Research Center
Discussion - Member to Member Sales - Research Center
Some time back, I read about a startup in San Francisco:
1) you would forward all of your mail to them;
2) they would open & scan your mail, forwarding the scans;
3) you could choose to have any piece physically delivered;
4) the remainder hit the shredder.
Or, something like that, eh?
I also remember the USPS throwing fits.
From the InBox (with some formatting modified):
===
Announcing USPS Informed Delivery.
Exclusively for our New York area customers.
Informed Delivery lets you see important mail - before it arrives.
As reported in VANITY FAIR and on the TODAY Show, Informed Delivery is now available at selected homes in New York and Southern Connecticut, at no cost, when you register here.
Why register for Informed Delivery?
Our new test service lets you:
- See important mail arrive while you're traveling
- See your mail when you're not first to the mailbox
- Retrieve a return address from last week's mail
- Access mailed offers and coupons at the store
- Keep a record of mail you receive
Follow this link to get Informed Delivery at home. Your first alert is just days away. There is no cost. And you can end service any time.
Informed Delivery mail images help USPS automate deliveries to you, every day. Now, those same images give you anytime, anywhere updates on your mail. Access Informed Delivery via email or browser, on a smartphone, tablet or PC. And we'll ask your feedback on new features to make Informed Delivery even more valuable and convenient.
Go here to start Informed Delivery at your home. It's easy, fast, and there is no cost.
With best wishes,
United States Postal Service
Questions? Find answers at http://informeddelivery.com/learnmore/?id=cmdc25
===
Q/ Can you ask them to deliver just the stamp-bearing corners?
Cheers,
/s/ ikeyPikey
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The USPS has been photographing every piece of mail since shortly after the anthrax scare started. Just like those license plate readers that could be used to track your position everywhere you drive or shop. When I was working for the government and they investigated employee gambling (football pools) they pulled up emails from several years back - they are permanently stored in a database, and we are talking low level employees here.
Point is they have the pictures already so it is just a matter of sending them to you. Nothing new.
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"... and getting the letter carriers' union to agree ..."
I am reasonably certain that these sorts of terms-of-service changes are not subject to union review or approval, but the first guy to FOIA the NALC contract could prove me wrong ...
"... If adopted more widely, the service would have to lead to more elaborate graphic design of covers ..."
Well-spotted!
Cheers,
/s/ ikeyPikey
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this post
From everything I have read, including the first post, the USPS itself is only offering to forward images and you do not have the ability to opt out of delivery. They are going to deliver all of your mail so it will add to, rather than detract from, postal duties.
You only have the option of non-delivery when you utilize the San Francisco mail forwarder mentioned. And that is no different than the hundreds of private mailbox locations around the country that already exist. They receive the mail directly from the Post Office.
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"... no different than the hundreds of private mailbox locations ..."
AFAIK, just about none of these will open your mail, even if you ask.
OTOH, when my city-bred brother (z"l) first lived in a small town in New England, and the snow came & shut the roads down for days at a time, he was both delighted & horrified when the local postmistress (owner of the general store, operator of a postal counter) called & told him what mail had arrived & offered to open & read it. He was too charmed, and too taken aback, to say 'no', so she told him the amount of his electric bill, the amount of his Sunoco credit card bill, and that his mother wanted to know ...
"... management may sometimes informally consult with the unions on significant service changes ..."
Gonna take a friendly, good-natured step out on a limb here, and guess that you've never worked for the USPS.
Cheers,
/s/ ikeyPikey
Login to Like
this post
I tried to enroll for this today and gave up. They want a litany of verifying information. It is understandable they want to be sure you are the addressee and not some criminal wanting to see this for nefarious purposes. They were asking a series of multiple choice questions, the amount of our property tax bill, the date of our home purchase, etc. Multiple questions many close together, I will need to get our tax records if I want to complete the process. It'snot easy.
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I tried to sign up that way over a period of several months, and it failed for me every time. I think they have someone else in mind.
However, I was able to register in person at my local post office.
Login to Like
this post
I think as long as your picture ID matches your mailing address, and if you have something else, like a utility bill you can present, you'll be fine.
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this post
Yeah that is what I will need to do. Since posting my last message I got three emails from USPS, they want me to reset my password.It seems they did not like the responses to the personal questions they sent me to identify me. So even if I get enrolled for this, I may have difficulties logging in to check on it.
I vowed last time I went there to never visit my local PO outlet again. Everyone in there is like a stereotype of a nasty PO employee. Guess I will have to.
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this post
If I'm recalling correctly, I could've gone to another post office in the area to do the identification. I think *somewhere* in the links related to the online registration process, it gave you the option to find out where to go locally in person, and showed basically every branch in the area. (Since I was trying to get my PO box address enrolled, I went to the branch where it's located.)
Good luck with this!
I have found it handy, so that I know what's waiting for me in the po box and how urgently I need to get there.
Also, I think (again, if I'm recalling correctly) that there's a link at the bottom of every email notification you receive that you can click if you end up not actually receiving that piece of mail, which is a nice option if you experience delivery problems.
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this post
All of which has me thinking which threads (on SOR etc) would benefit from USPS auto-scanning.
For example, all of those covers-from-my-recent-mail types of threads.
And PostXing, where folks often scan & post & 'fave' the postcards they receive.
In fact, it only now occurs to me how useful Informed Delivery might be for my infrequently-visited post office box ... instead of wondering whether/not its been too long ... instead of being disappointed when there is little/nothing there ...
Cheers,
/s/ ikeyPikey
Login to Like
this post
I signed up the other day. And today I now know I have 4 bills coming! But this is a service that really is not new. I mean they been scanning and photographing mail for a few years right? They just now found a real use for the service.
Login to Like
this post
Some time back, I read about a startup in San Francisco:
1) you would forward all of your mail to them;
2) they would open & scan your mail, forwarding the scans;
3) you could choose to have any piece physically delivered;
4) the remainder hit the shredder.
Or, something like that, eh?
I also remember the USPS throwing fits.
From the InBox (with some formatting modified):
===
Announcing USPS Informed Delivery.
Exclusively for our New York area customers.
Informed Delivery lets you see important mail - before it arrives.
As reported in VANITY FAIR and on the TODAY Show, Informed Delivery is now available at selected homes in New York and Southern Connecticut, at no cost, when you register here.
Why register for Informed Delivery?
Our new test service lets you:
- See important mail arrive while you're traveling
- See your mail when you're not first to the mailbox
- Retrieve a return address from last week's mail
- Access mailed offers and coupons at the store
- Keep a record of mail you receive
Follow this link to get Informed Delivery at home. Your first alert is just days away. There is no cost. And you can end service any time.
Informed Delivery mail images help USPS automate deliveries to you, every day. Now, those same images give you anytime, anywhere updates on your mail. Access Informed Delivery via email or browser, on a smartphone, tablet or PC. And we'll ask your feedback on new features to make Informed Delivery even more valuable and convenient.
Go here to start Informed Delivery at your home. It's easy, fast, and there is no cost.
With best wishes,
United States Postal Service
Questions? Find answers at http://informeddelivery.com/learnmore/?id=cmdc25
===
Q/ Can you ask them to deliver just the stamp-bearing corners?
Cheers,
/s/ ikeyPikey
Login to Like
this post
re: USPS Informed Delivery
The USPS has been photographing every piece of mail since shortly after the anthrax scare started. Just like those license plate readers that could be used to track your position everywhere you drive or shop. When I was working for the government and they investigated employee gambling (football pools) they pulled up emails from several years back - they are permanently stored in a database, and we are talking low level employees here.
Point is they have the pictures already so it is just a matter of sending them to you. Nothing new.
Login to Like
this post
re: USPS Informed Delivery
"... and getting the letter carriers' union to agree ..."
I am reasonably certain that these sorts of terms-of-service changes are not subject to union review or approval, but the first guy to FOIA the NALC contract could prove me wrong ...
"... If adopted more widely, the service would have to lead to more elaborate graphic design of covers ..."
Well-spotted!
Cheers,
/s/ ikeyPikey
Login to Like
this post
re: USPS Informed Delivery
From everything I have read, including the first post, the USPS itself is only offering to forward images and you do not have the ability to opt out of delivery. They are going to deliver all of your mail so it will add to, rather than detract from, postal duties.
You only have the option of non-delivery when you utilize the San Francisco mail forwarder mentioned. And that is no different than the hundreds of private mailbox locations around the country that already exist. They receive the mail directly from the Post Office.
Login to Like
this post
re: USPS Informed Delivery
"... no different than the hundreds of private mailbox locations ..."
AFAIK, just about none of these will open your mail, even if you ask.
OTOH, when my city-bred brother (z"l) first lived in a small town in New England, and the snow came & shut the roads down for days at a time, he was both delighted & horrified when the local postmistress (owner of the general store, operator of a postal counter) called & told him what mail had arrived & offered to open & read it. He was too charmed, and too taken aback, to say 'no', so she told him the amount of his electric bill, the amount of his Sunoco credit card bill, and that his mother wanted to know ...
"... management may sometimes informally consult with the unions on significant service changes ..."
Gonna take a friendly, good-natured step out on a limb here, and guess that you've never worked for the USPS.
Cheers,
/s/ ikeyPikey
Login to Like
this post
re: USPS Informed Delivery
I tried to enroll for this today and gave up. They want a litany of verifying information. It is understandable they want to be sure you are the addressee and not some criminal wanting to see this for nefarious purposes. They were asking a series of multiple choice questions, the amount of our property tax bill, the date of our home purchase, etc. Multiple questions many close together, I will need to get our tax records if I want to complete the process. It'snot easy.
Login to Like
this post
re: USPS Informed Delivery
I tried to sign up that way over a period of several months, and it failed for me every time. I think they have someone else in mind.
However, I was able to register in person at my local post office.
Login to Like
this post
re: USPS Informed Delivery
I think as long as your picture ID matches your mailing address, and if you have something else, like a utility bill you can present, you'll be fine.
Login to Like
this post
re: USPS Informed Delivery
Yeah that is what I will need to do. Since posting my last message I got three emails from USPS, they want me to reset my password.It seems they did not like the responses to the personal questions they sent me to identify me. So even if I get enrolled for this, I may have difficulties logging in to check on it.
I vowed last time I went there to never visit my local PO outlet again. Everyone in there is like a stereotype of a nasty PO employee. Guess I will have to.
Login to Like
this post
re: USPS Informed Delivery
If I'm recalling correctly, I could've gone to another post office in the area to do the identification. I think *somewhere* in the links related to the online registration process, it gave you the option to find out where to go locally in person, and showed basically every branch in the area. (Since I was trying to get my PO box address enrolled, I went to the branch where it's located.)
Good luck with this!
I have found it handy, so that I know what's waiting for me in the po box and how urgently I need to get there.
Also, I think (again, if I'm recalling correctly) that there's a link at the bottom of every email notification you receive that you can click if you end up not actually receiving that piece of mail, which is a nice option if you experience delivery problems.
Login to Like
this post
re: USPS Informed Delivery
All of which has me thinking which threads (on SOR etc) would benefit from USPS auto-scanning.
For example, all of those covers-from-my-recent-mail types of threads.
And PostXing, where folks often scan & post & 'fave' the postcards they receive.
In fact, it only now occurs to me how useful Informed Delivery might be for my infrequently-visited post office box ... instead of wondering whether/not its been too long ... instead of being disappointed when there is little/nothing there ...
Cheers,
/s/ ikeyPikey
Login to Like
this post
re: USPS Informed Delivery
I signed up the other day. And today I now know I have 4 bills coming! But this is a service that really is not new. I mean they been scanning and photographing mail for a few years right? They just now found a real use for the service.
Login to Like
this post