Broaden Your Business

Before You Grab The Mailbag…

As you might have gathered from these managers' experiences, handling mail is more than just slapping on stamps and throwing the letters in the postbox.

"Mail is a lot more complicated than people think," says Balsamo. "It requires a huge learning curve for people who have never been in the business. When I took over mail services at the University of Illinois [prior to Walgreen's], I didn't know anything about mail other than what a stamp costs. It probably took me 12 months before I felt comfortable with the rules and regulations. No matter what, you're bound to make mistakes along the way, but if you do your homework and go to the postal forums and learn the equipment and rely on your network of people in the industry, that'll go a long way."