Discussion - Member to Member Sales - Research Center
Discussion - Member to Member Sales - Research Center
I live near a post office that is on the list of holiday-themed town names. I want to offer a Christmas card mailing service, which includes mailing the cards with the Holly, Michigan postmark. While researching this idea online, I discovered the Mailer's Postmark Permit and eventually this group!
I was all set to go to Holly this weekend to apply when I read something online that the return address must be in the zip code of the mailing post office. Can anyone confirm this? For my business, I would be sending cards on behalf of people all over the US.
I've read posts where people have said they have permits from several towns, so I didn't think it would be a problem. I know that I would have to physically take the cards to mail them from Holly, but does the return address matter? I'm trying to get as much information as possible before going in case they don't even know what the MPP is.
Thank you for your help!
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You might want to visit the Mailers Permit Postmark Club website at
http://www.shaulisstamps.com/mppc/
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Thanks for your response. The links were removed from that webpage, so I thought maybe the contact info wasn't valid anymore. I googled a bit to find some other resources, but didn't find any info on the return address quandary. I also emailed Postal Explorer but didn't receive a response. In any case, I'm going to go to Holly and ask their advice in person. Worst case scenario, I submit the cards for the Christmas re-mailing program and they do all the work with the regular postmark.
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http://www.shaulisstamps.com/mppc//applicationforMPP.pdf
See the end of page 5 in this PDF....
I would suggest you print the entire PDF and take it with you to the P.O. and ask to see the postmaster.
I had to explain a lot of it to the postmaster at my local P.O.!
Randy
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Unfortunately, the gentleman I spoke with didn't seem to know about the MPP. *sigh*
He mentioned that they have a special Christmas postmark they use. I don't know if it would be prettier than my plain MPP, therefore more valuable to my customers.
I offered to leave my paperwork and let him investigate it. I think he felt better about it after that. Honestly, I started this whole thing because I wanted to make it easier on the post office by canceling my own mail.
He said he would call me this week. I assume it will go through, unless they have the authority to deny it based on the fact that I would use it for my customers and not myself. If that's the case, I can always take it up there and mail it the old fashioned way, I guess.
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Oh, and Randy, thanks for the info. I did take that application with me. I think it helped, but I could tell the man was afraid this was some kind of con job. I'm not in any hurry, so I left the info with him.
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If the post office has a pictorial Christmas cancel, that's perfect. It's "official" where a mailers postmark will be questioned by people who don't understand what it is.
An interesting aside... a few years back I took my Christmas cards ( like 50) to a Pennsylvania post office with my family name. Had them all carefully hand cancelled. Ithought this was very cool. Then I waited for response and... nothing! So I asked around and not a single recipient even noticed! The average dullard never even looks at the envelope.
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Sure enough, the man left a voicemail saying the fee would be $225. He cited DMM 604 3.4.
I'm not usually one to give up the fight, but I honestly think the pictorial postmark is what I want anyway. I'm going to go to my local PO at lunch today to try to get an MPP there. If it works, I may have to call Holly just to let them know.
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"a few years back I took my Christmas cards ( like 50) to a Pennsylvania post office with my family name. Had them all carefully hand cancelled. Ithought this was very cool. Then I waited for response and... nothing! So I asked around and not a single recipient even noticed! The average dullard never even looks at the envelope."
I'm going to have to try that! A town founded by my Grandfather's Grandfather with our family name is about 90 minutes from here and I'm the closest one to it in my family. It will be interesting to see if ANYBODY notices.
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"I'm going to have to try that! A town founded by my Grandfather's Grandfather with our family name is about 90 minutes from here and I'm the closest one to it in my family. It will be interesting to see if ANYBODY notices. "
Here's a cover from that day, December 20, 2012. And there's a story... back when I was a youthful collector in 1976 I discovered the town in my zip code directory. I sent a few covers and got back a nice letter from the postmaster telling me I was welcome to visit. I finally got around to it in 2012. I was told that postmaster was long retired. I would have loved to see the look on her face when I showed up with the letter!
And here's yours truly outside the post office. Yea, the sign looks like someone's merit badge project, but it is what it is!
And as I said, not a single recipient even noticed that nice red postmark.
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sopraffina,
It may take a while to get your MPP - I've never heard of anyone applying for and getting it the same day.
Mine took almost 3 months to get final approval!
(This was a few years back)
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08:57:10pm
Hi all,
I live near a post office that is on the list of holiday-themed town names. I want to offer a Christmas card mailing service, which includes mailing the cards with the Holly, Michigan postmark. While researching this idea online, I discovered the Mailer's Postmark Permit and eventually this group!
I was all set to go to Holly this weekend to apply when I read something online that the return address must be in the zip code of the mailing post office. Can anyone confirm this? For my business, I would be sending cards on behalf of people all over the US.
I've read posts where people have said they have permits from several towns, so I didn't think it would be a problem. I know that I would have to physically take the cards to mail them from Holly, but does the return address matter? I'm trying to get as much information as possible before going in case they don't even know what the MPP is.
Thank you for your help!
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re: Mailer's Postmark Permit questions
You might want to visit the Mailers Permit Postmark Club website at
http://www.shaulisstamps.com/mppc/
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10:31:27am
re: Mailer's Postmark Permit questions
Thanks for your response. The links were removed from that webpage, so I thought maybe the contact info wasn't valid anymore. I googled a bit to find some other resources, but didn't find any info on the return address quandary. I also emailed Postal Explorer but didn't receive a response. In any case, I'm going to go to Holly and ask their advice in person. Worst case scenario, I submit the cards for the Christmas re-mailing program and they do all the work with the regular postmark.
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re: Mailer's Postmark Permit questions
http://www.shaulisstamps.com/mppc//applicationforMPP.pdf
See the end of page 5 in this PDF....
I would suggest you print the entire PDF and take it with you to the P.O. and ask to see the postmaster.
I had to explain a lot of it to the postmaster at my local P.O.!
Randy
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10:10:36am
re: Mailer's Postmark Permit questions
Unfortunately, the gentleman I spoke with didn't seem to know about the MPP. *sigh*
He mentioned that they have a special Christmas postmark they use. I don't know if it would be prettier than my plain MPP, therefore more valuable to my customers.
I offered to leave my paperwork and let him investigate it. I think he felt better about it after that. Honestly, I started this whole thing because I wanted to make it easier on the post office by canceling my own mail.
He said he would call me this week. I assume it will go through, unless they have the authority to deny it based on the fact that I would use it for my customers and not myself. If that's the case, I can always take it up there and mail it the old fashioned way, I guess.
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10:12:11am
re: Mailer's Postmark Permit questions
Oh, and Randy, thanks for the info. I did take that application with me. I think it helped, but I could tell the man was afraid this was some kind of con job. I'm not in any hurry, so I left the info with him.
Login to Like
this post
Approvals
re: Mailer's Postmark Permit questions
If the post office has a pictorial Christmas cancel, that's perfect. It's "official" where a mailers postmark will be questioned by people who don't understand what it is.
An interesting aside... a few years back I took my Christmas cards ( like 50) to a Pennsylvania post office with my family name. Had them all carefully hand cancelled. Ithought this was very cool. Then I waited for response and... nothing! So I asked around and not a single recipient even noticed! The average dullard never even looks at the envelope.
2 Members
like this post.
Login to Like.
09:18:09am
re: Mailer's Postmark Permit questions
Sure enough, the man left a voicemail saying the fee would be $225. He cited DMM 604 3.4.
I'm not usually one to give up the fight, but I honestly think the pictorial postmark is what I want anyway. I'm going to go to my local PO at lunch today to try to get an MPP there. If it works, I may have to call Holly just to let them know.
Login to Like
this post
re: Mailer's Postmark Permit questions
"a few years back I took my Christmas cards ( like 50) to a Pennsylvania post office with my family name. Had them all carefully hand cancelled. Ithought this was very cool. Then I waited for response and... nothing! So I asked around and not a single recipient even noticed! The average dullard never even looks at the envelope."
I'm going to have to try that! A town founded by my Grandfather's Grandfather with our family name is about 90 minutes from here and I'm the closest one to it in my family. It will be interesting to see if ANYBODY notices.
Login to Like
this post
Approvals
re: Mailer's Postmark Permit questions
"I'm going to have to try that! A town founded by my Grandfather's Grandfather with our family name is about 90 minutes from here and I'm the closest one to it in my family. It will be interesting to see if ANYBODY notices. "
Here's a cover from that day, December 20, 2012. And there's a story... back when I was a youthful collector in 1976 I discovered the town in my zip code directory. I sent a few covers and got back a nice letter from the postmaster telling me I was welcome to visit. I finally got around to it in 2012. I was told that postmaster was long retired. I would have loved to see the look on her face when I showed up with the letter!
And here's yours truly outside the post office. Yea, the sign looks like someone's merit badge project, but it is what it is!
And as I said, not a single recipient even noticed that nice red postmark.
Login to Like
this post
re: Mailer's Postmark Permit questions
sopraffina,
It may take a while to get your MPP - I've never heard of anyone applying for and getting it the same day.
Mine took almost 3 months to get final approval!
(This was a few years back)
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