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How Hybrid Mail Supports Business Process
Hybrid mail may have been around for years, but it is still not as widely adopted as you would expect, especially given the savings it can bring to a business. While digital technologies have largely changed the way we communicate, companies still rely on post to send regular correspondence to contacts.
Given the sheer volume of post that is processed each month in large corporations, the associated cost and potential savings cannot be ignored. In addition to the price of a stamp, we must consider the resources required to print a document, fold it, include any inserts, put it in an envelope, seal it and frank it, all before it gets near a postbox.
Then there is the investment required for pre-printed stationery such as letterheads, desktop printers and ink cartridges and envelopes in varying sizes. The list goes on.
Outside of the costs, there are further challenges and risks that come with managing mailings in-house. In instances whereby there is no dedicated mail room, the chances of user-error increases. What’s more, maintaining brand identity is almost impossible.
The risk is that this can impact your brand reputation.
Simple changes to improve business processes
Relying on hybrid mail takes the administrative burden of mailing out of the business. Instead, organisations can compose, manage, print and finish an item at the touch of a button and at a fraction of the cost.
Furthermore, companies have the confidence and peace of mind that all communications are processed in a controlled and secure environment.
Given the scale of a hybrid mail service, print and mailing experts also gain access to postage and carrier discounts, which can be passed to the customer.
Despite assumptions to the contrary, there is more to managing a hybrid mailing process than printing a document and stuffing an envelope. To get the cost benefits from postal organisations, we must constantly review the market, keeping abreast of any changes.
It is rare to find a business that has the time to dedicate this attention to a market that in large does not concern them. That’s why relying on experts makes sense.
Hidden savings
The most common reason that companies rely on hybrid mail is to manage bulk distributions. These are typically regulatory and transactional mailings, those that are scheduled and can be planned throughout the year.
Using hybrid mail, companies know that these communications will be processed in an environment that conforms to the strictest compliance and regulatory standards. Ultimately, it provides the peace of mind they are looking for.
The gaps arise when we consider ad-hoc postage and communications that are less visible. These are often overlooked. The presumption is that it is a letter here or there. However, when you look at the accumulation across a business, it can typically be hundreds and even thousands of items each year.
The associated cost suddenly becomes staggering.
Through research conducted by FDM, we found that the cost of producing correspondence in-house was upwards of £1.50 per item. The details of these findings are widely documented in a white paper: “Turn Burdened Costs into Council Savings”.
Within the piece, we calculate that for each mailed item, 20% of the costs are consumables and printing, 31% is postage and just under 50% is resource. The reality is that skilled workers are spending time printing documents, as opposed to concentrating on their core role.
Looking at the total savings that can be made when switching to hybrid mail, we found that organisations can reduce their costs by over £1.50 per letter, or in some cases by upwards of £150k per year when posting 100k items.
Redirecting resource
Hybrid mail isn’t just about saving money.
It is also an opportunity for businesses to alleviate the burden of administrative tasks so that employees can focus on more pressing matters.
When a company chooses to process mailings in-house, the impact it has goes largely unnoticed. The reality being that it becomes an accepted daily task and expense, despite no thought being given to demand and usage.
Investment in technology to print and process items is approved, with equipment purchased across departments and sites without the thought to the wider business. As such, there are often multiple purchases of different equipment that doesn’t necessarily work seamlessly together.
This leads to further problems, not least multiple suppliers, maintenance challenges and charges as well as unnecessary downtime.
In isolation, companies may think that these issues are widely insignificant in the grand scheme of things, however collectively and across an entire business, they can have a huge impact on productivity.
Hybrid mail removes all of the above.
As legislative compliance dictates the way that businesses communicate, accreditations such as ISO 9001 and ISO 27001 provide organisations with the assurances they need in relation to good governance.
Hybrid mail solutions are developed by experts that have the strictest standards in place. This results in the highest quality, consistency and compliance. With full transparency, companies can oversee document production to ensure regulations and quality standards are adhered to.
Full reporting control can also be provided with hybrid mail solutions. This in turn provides a business with an analysis of what has been sent, when, where and to whom. Not only will this provide insight into trends but also gives an audit trail for compliance purposes.
Instant efficiencies
We have yet to meet a business that doesn’t want to benefit from cost savings.
With hybrid mail, you can gain access to instant efficiencies.
FDM’s Hi-mail hybrid mail solution combines with FDM’s postal optimisation solution. Managing everything from a secure, centralised facility, we print batches and pre-sort communications to fit Royal Mail’s final-mile delivery routes, allowing us to qualify for postal discounts.
These savings are then passed on to our customers.
We appreciate that timings can be critical and that’s why we offer our clients a day-definite delivery. As a result, 95% of mail processed through our Inbound Mail Centre is delivered within a 2-day window.
As well as confirmation of delivery, our day-definite service also gives our customers the insight to plan and resource for any enquiries that may be triggered by a communication.
Make the right choice with Hi-mail
Experienced
Hi-mail is built by industry experts with over 30 years of experience in public sector print and mail requirements.
Flexible
Hi-mail has been designed to be flexible and to work around you. Reviewing your document output, we provide the features that you need.
Professional Support
We are very proud to share that our dedicated support helpdesk is rated excellent by our customers with a 99.19% positive feedback score.
Unique Marketplace
Working with more than 60 Local Authorities, we understand your unique marketplace and have built the solution around you.
Data & Reports
With a unique and bespoke reporting system, you can review and analyse your sending habits and use it to achieve even greater savings.
Developer Friendly
We have purposely made the Hi-mail system developer friendly, allowing your IT teams access so that they can create their own unique solutions should they want to.
Features you can benefit from
Address block technology
Unique address block technology to ensure that you get maximum postage discounts.
API driven
Our powerful API driven application makes submission methods flexible and fast.
Flexible uploads
Multiple upload methods give you flexibility and ease of use.
Automate everything
Our platform lets you automate everything so that you can save even more time.
Digital delivery
Send documents via email or to a secure document portal instead of in the post.
Developer tools
Well-documented developer tools allow you limitless customisations.
Active directory
Integrate with Azure Active Directory for simple user management.
Bespoke reporting
Create custom made reports for teams and documents for better visibility.
More about FDM
FDM is one of the UK’s leading print and mail companies, providing comprehensive document solutions for its customers. With more than 30 years’ experience, through innovative thinking and new technologies, it manages the way large-scale, time-critical multi-channel communications are delivered, reducing printing, mailing and postage costs, whilst ensuring data security and integrity.
For more information about FDM, please visit: www.fdmplc.com or contact a member of the team on tel. 020 7055 1600.
