Intelligent Mail Barcode Can Invigorate Your In-plant

On January 26, the USPS will require mailers to have implemented Full-Service Intelligent Mail barcode (IMb) in order to continue to qualify for postal discounts. The IMb barcode is a simple series of lines that contains a vast amount of information—and an opportunity to improve your in-plant.

Implementing Full-Service IMb, or IMb+, provides more advantages than just being able to qualify for postal discounts, but it also requires that you have the right tools in place to take full advantage of it.

So what are some basic rewards of Full-Service IMb? When used to its full potential, it provides unparalleled insight into, and control over, your entire mail process. Imagine being able to see a piece exactly where it is, from when it's received by another department in your company, to when it's delivered to its recipient; being able to automatically account and reconcile mail pieces that might be missing.

Tracking production is just a small part of what IMb allows. Through the data from IMb, you can further align your in-plant with the overall strategies of the organization. Data from IMb+ can be used to improve marketing ROI, reduce returned mail, optimize production management and proactively coordinate customer service activities. Universities can use IMb for mailing fundraising campaigns and tracking their success. Utilities can use IMb for transactional documents and their efforts to encourage consumers to conserve energy. For in-plants of all types, the prospect of eliminating the piles of return mail is promising in and of itself.

Benefits Beyond Mail

With IMb, the USPS has taken an aggressive approach to the problem of returned mail by deploying centers dedicated to destroying return mail and sending digital files containing information on the undeliverable mail pieces. For in-plants, implementing IMb pays dividends beyond mail. Once you've put a system in place to track your mail, you can also use it to track other non-mail items that you produce for your organization, such as catalogues, brochures, manuals and newsletters. These pieces don't have to use the IMb barcode, but a simple barcode can be employed that takes advantage of the systems you've put in place as part of your Full Service implementation.

In addition to the technology, the expertise that in-plants gain through implementing IMb will be useful in increasing overall efficiency, which can make in-plants more valuable to their organizations. Being able to provide insight into marketing, customer service and other departments elevates the role of the in-plant.

The opportunity of IMb—abundant information—also brings challenges. Managing the tide of data that comes from IMb requires having the right systems in place to make sense of it. Implementing Full Service also requires that you submit reports, in the form of eDocs to the USPS Postal One system. Depending on your current setup, this can seem deceptively simple or overwhelming, but what many in-plants don't know is that a strong workflow foundation is required for leveraging the best aspects of IMb.

Automated document factories (ADFs) provide in-plants with the capabilities to take advantage of the most appealing applications of IMb (reducing return mail, improving marketing ROI and optimizing production management). Many in-plants already have an ADF in place. For those that don't, obtaining an ADF is the first step in implementing barcodes.

From there, in-plants are able to build the necessary database, which houses data from IMb tracking, receives and interprets data on IMb status updates, and consolidates and reports on pieces—all of which are necessary for reaping the benefits of IMb. A good workflow solution will streamline your mail operation and give you granular, yet intuitive control over your processes. Putting a control system like this in place will not only quicken the process of implementation as the USPS's deadline nears, it will also have long-term consequences for the health of your mailroom.

As the deadline for IMb nears, in-plants should be inspired to take action by its potential for their operations. The organization-wide benefits that a comprehensive workflow solution can deliver make the investment in IMb Full Service worthwhile by going beyond postal discounts to increase the in-plant's significance as a strategic asset in the larger organization. While many don't fully grasp IMb's importance, one thing is clear to those who do: Full Service IMb is a rare opportunity for in-plants that should be embraced.