Is It Time to Outsource Your Customer Communications?

09 Aug Is It Time to Outsource Your Customer Communications?

By Shelly Anderson

If your organization is like most today, it is experiencing rising operating costs. That, coupled with the impact of the pandemic, is forcing many businesses to adjust to a new way of working.  Companies are studying budgets more closely, looking for items that need trimming or line items that can be eliminated altogether. With the shift to remote and hybrid working environments, one area under strong consideration is moving in-house printing and mailing operations to an outside print and digital service provider.

Making matters even more complicated, the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) is also caught in the crunch of rising costs and the need to keep its prices down. As the USPS works toward greater efficiency, the rules and regulations get more complex in terms of qualifying for rate discounts and defining each class of mail. If something gets overlooked in the pressure to get bills out on time, volume mailers can lose their postal discounts, or they may find they’ve been missing out on a valuable new service.

The benefits of outsourcing

An outsourced print service provider is dedicated to finding and implementing state-of-the-art solutions for producing bills and statements and preparing them for mailing, so you get maximum postal discounts and the quickest delivery possible. Just as your core business is providing your unique services to your customers, a service provider exists to serve your specific customer communications needs.

Although the digital printing technologies we use today are more user-friendly compared to technologies of only five or ten years ago, purchasing and installing this equipment and training staff to run it can add up to a significant initial investment. Because these technologies are frequently upgraded, there is also an ongoing expense. Additionally, with work from home the new norm, customers are counting on receiving their bills, statements and notices quickly and securely no matter where they’re located. A service provider will have the technology needed to send secure electronic email notification options for customers working from remote locations and offer you e-presentment solutions that make it possible for a business to move quickly to electronic delivery.

Another key advantage is that outsourcing the production of your customer communications gives you access to an expert in the field aware of new and developing methods and practices in printing and mailing. For example, at DATAMATX, we regard our job as not only providing these basic services, but also finding and implementing industry best practices. We stay informed of new developments in hardware and software and our membership in industry associations keeps us aware of what others are doing—including the latest issues within the USPS.

Additionally, it is our job to keep abreast of privacy and security compliance regulations and other specific requirements of our clients and their industries, which is why we continue to maintain rigorous, relevant, industry-recognized certifications to ensure your sensitive data is safe.

By using a qualified third-party print and digital service provider, you won’t need to spend precious time and resources shopping for non-core technologies and hiring experts in fields outside of your own. You’ll be free to set and reach your own operating goals and guidelines without having to justify infrastructure and capabilities that may go beyond your immediate needs. You won’t need to worry about how to finance a high-volume printing and mail operation or how to keep it busy enough to justify its cost; and your invoices and statements will go out on time every month, at the lowest possible cost, securely, and with the quickest delivery possible. That is, after all, the real bottom line.