To say Pressworks does “a lot of political mailings” is a subtle way of stating that they reach millions of mailboxes in the critical state of Ohio every election season.
“Altrans has been a lifesaver to me over these past several weeks. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve scheduled a job, canceled a job, rescheduled that same job for the same day, still not mailed that job…now take all of that and multiply it by about a thousand. I don’t know how they did it, but Altrans came through for us each and every time. We couldn’t do what we do without them.”
Jamison Dumas, Mailing Operations Manager
Political Mail is a “Special Beast”
In the 6 weeks leading up to the November elections, Pressworks printed and mailed nearly 5 million pieces of political mail all over the highly contested state of Ohio. And that’s on top of its regular print and mail business for the typical busy Fall season.
Jamison Dumas, Mailing Operations Manager, explains that October is already a busy month with marketing departments making their year-end pushes. With 2024 being an election year, it took their workload to a whole new level.
Add to that, the particular nature of political mail.
“Political mail is a special beast,” continues Jamison. “It’s very reactive in nature. Much of the messaging is commentary on a recent event or comment so timing is of the absolute essence.”
“It’s not unusual for an order to come into our designers and the customer to ask if we can get it in the mail that very same day. And while we can’t do that, I can’t tell you how many times I have called Altrans at 2:30 asking if they could get a mailing out the door that day and they made it happen.”
Balancing Cost Savings and Deliverability
In addition to political campaigns, Pressworks works with both government agencies and educational institutions, organizations traditionally known for being budget-conscious. Being able to achieve reasonable in-home delivery times along with savings on postage is a clear advantage for Pressworks, something Altrans has helped them achieve by integrating freight services into the mix.
“We’re able to achieve substantial savings by delivering mail pieces by freight to the postal center closest to their final destinations. In many cases, we’re saving as much as 7 to 10 cents per piece,” Jamison explains. “When you have mailings of 10,000 or more pieces, this becomes a no-brainer.”
In the past, Jamison had used mail consolidators to achieve these kinds of cost savings, but that cost savings came at the sacrifice of in-home dates.
“The problem with consolidators is timing,” says Jamison. “While you’re waiting for the consolidator to amass enough pieces for a shipment, your mailer could be missing a critical in-home window, something especially critical for reactionary pieces like political mailers.”
In fact, the last time Jamison worked with a company that wasn’t using Altrans, election season was a nightmare.
“We were working with a consolidator and honestly, we just couldn’t use them for the political mailings due to the quick timing needed,” he explains. “So we found ourselves hiring temporary drivers and renting trucks to handle the logistics in-house just to get it done. Not only was it stressful, we didn’t have the resources Altrans has so we couldn’t maximize the postage savings for our customers like we do here at Pressworks.”
Expert Advice for Mailers
“Look at the numbers and what best fits your customers’ needs. The cheapest option is not always the best option. Neither is the most expensive. If your customers are like ours, they’re going to prioritize in-home delivery dates and you’re not going to find anyone who can turn things around faster than a third party logistics provider like Altrans,” says Jamison. “I’ve worked with a multitude of logistics options and this has been the most seamless process so far. We are in complete control of the in-home delivery dates and the savings are top notch. ”
If you’re looking for a better solution for your customers’ mailings, or are curious about the potential cost savings a third party logistics provider like Altrans could deliver, contact us today for free consultation.
