6 Benefits of Outsourcing Print and Mail

The availability of digital solutions continues to shape how customers want to receive bills and communications. As more billers commit to investing in digital bill presentment and payment, channels like text messages and email are gaining popularity. Despite this, our research found that 42% of consumers still want to receive statements by mail. The primary reasons for choosing paper over electronic are 46% prefer a physical copy of the bill for record-keeping, and 42% say their paper copy is a reminder to pay. These findings confirm that whether you’re sending a transactional document or other communications, mail will continue to be a critical touchpoint between you and your customers.

If you’re currently taking care of your print and mail needs in-house, chances are you’re spending too much time, money, and energy on tasks that could be handled more efficiently by a professional service provider.

1. More Time to Focus on Business Needs

Managing the printing and mailing of transactional documents in-house is a full-time job for staff in charge of these tasks. Some of these employees have business-specific knowledge or abilities better served elsewhere. You can maximize their skills by partnering with a print and mail solution provider. When you let the experts handle what they do best, you free up your team’s time to focus on more critical tasks within the business. 

2. Fewer Costs

Three substantial costs can be reduced or even eliminated when you choose to have your print and mail needs met by a dedicated service provider. Outsourcing reduces the costs associated with equipment, inventory management, and postage. The initial capital outlay to set yourself up is significant, but it doesn’t stop there. Equipment needs to be maintained, repaired, and eventually upgraded to stay ahead of customer expectations. You also benefit from not paying the costs of managing and storing inventory because the service provider handles them. With USPS prices increasing again in January 2023, seeking out a print and mail partner with access to competitive postage rates allows you to maximize your savings and take the guesswork out of the cost of mailings.

3. Risk Prevention

The increased frequency of cyberattacks and data leaks is turning up the heat on businesses that handle customer data. A data breach can have serious consequences, impacting your reputation and souring customer satisfaction and trust. Not to mention, a data breach can affect your ability to deliver critical documents like customer bills on time which can have major cash flow consequences. When you handle your own print and mail, you take on the risks associated with protecting customer data and must ensure appropriate mitigation measures are in place. Additionally, you have to stay on top of changing regulations protecting consumer privacy, causing huge headaches no matter the size of your business. A print and mail vendor that prioritizes data security and has all the checks and balances in place delivers peace of mind — a major selling point to outsourcing.

4. Effective Disaster Management

Natural disasters can’t be prevented or controlled. What you can do is ensure you have a robust Disaster Recovery (DR) plan to maintain the production and delivery of business-critical communications. COVID-19 shone a light on some of the inadequacies in these plans. For businesses that take care of their print and mail needs in-house, it exposed the lack of readiness of their print operations. Unfortunately, even businesses outsourcing their print and mail witnessed limitations in their vendor's DR plans, leaving them vulnerable when disasters strike. A reputable print and mail provider has the experience and knowledge to set up an effective DR plan, so you don’t have to. 

5. Better Reporting

Like many organizations doing their printing and mailing, you’re likely relying mainly on manual systems for tracking mailpiece delivery. That’s often cumbersome to do and not very reliable. Customers expect prompt delivery of their bills and statements to pay them on time. When these critical documents get lost in the mail, it puts that in jeopardy. An effective print and mail solution gives you access to reporting and tracking tools that provide real-time updates. This allows you to monitor every print job from start to finish.

6. Improved Quality

A solution provider that specializes in print and mail can often produce higher quality printed material than in-house. This is because most vendors make heavy investments in their print equipment and facilities, allowing them to offer high-speed laser printing in multiple color and paper options. When this is combined with a focus on quality control, you can be confident that only high-quality, professional documents are delivered to your customers. 

Download KUBRA’s Complete Guide To Outsourcing Bill Print and Mail for tips on finding the right print and mail outsourcing partner and see what makes KUBRA’s solution unique.