As you plan out your direct mail programs, you don’t want to think about a hurricane hitting your direct mail facility and demolishing your data, your security and your marketing program in one fell swoop!
And guess what: The 2012 forecast, according to NOAH, is that hurricane activity in Florida and the southeast will jump 49% over last year. Yup, 49%! No surprise, given how crazy our weather swings have been.

We’ve got good news for you. Our data center that houses your precious direct mail data is behind reinforced concrete, top to bottom. This bunker has been certified to withstand a Cat 5 Hurricane. Our outer building and press area are Cat 3 certified. So a bad boy hurricane would have to bust through a Cat 3 building and then, once inside, a Cat 5 data center.

Point is, if you use PrimeNet your mailing programs will go off without a hitch, come rain or shine. Even a direct lightning strike won’t knock us out of the game. Back-up generators will keep the data secure and the presses running.

Plus we have a redundant secure data center in Minnesota, where no hurricane has created more than a sprinkle, and that was Alicia in 1983. You’re safe with PrimeNet.

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The company has added three new high-speed Xerox digital “high-light-color” printers.

The three new HLC180 printers enable PrimeNet to output nearly 800,000 highlighted, digitally customized pieces each 24 hours.

This format gives customers maximum visual impact at minimum cost, and each piece can be addressed with tailored messaging. “We’ve seen customers use this technology on everything from postcards and newsletters, to booklets, flyers, reports, letterhead, invoices, forms, statements and envelopes,” said Mark Keefe, PrimeNet president.

“They understand that custom-blended highlight colors maximize their brand and increase the emotional impact of their documents,” Keefe said, “without adding significantly to cost.”

Some of the benefits of the Xerox HLC 180 digital printer:
• True to its name, the printer outputs 180 pieces per minute
• The printer handles high-resolution for exact imaging. It prints at 600 x 600 dpi color and 600 x 2400 dpi black

PrimeNet is located at 7320 Bryan Dairy Road, Largo, Florida. The direct marketer serves clients nationally and is one of the top 20 full-service, customized direct marketers in the United States.

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Reblin said last year’s barcode promotion — which gave mailers a 3% discount on qualifying Standard and First-Class mail letters, flats and cards — was so successful that the USPS’s board of governors urged that another promotional program be developed for this year.

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High-volume commercial mailers spoke, and the Postal Service listened. Effective this week, businesses mailing First-Class Mail automation, presort letters using “2nd Ounce Free” pricing can mail letters weighing up to 2 ounces at the 1-ounce postage rate. First-Class Mail automation, presort letters are primarily generated by commercial mailers of bills and statements — or transaction mail. 2nd Ounce Free pricing will provide these customers with greater value from their transaction mailings by letting them include an additional ounce that can be used for operational or marketing purposes at no additional cost.

“With 2nd Ounce Free, companies have greater flexibility to offset mailing center costs by including additional promotional offers with bills, invoices and statements,” said Gary Reblin, vice
president, Domestic Products. “2nd Ounce Free also provides business mailers with the option of using higher quality paper stock or larger envelopes to create greater impact.”
Bills and statements delivered via First-Class Mail are opened more than 95 percent of the time and, on average, the receiver spends two to three minutes with each piece1. “This makes transaction mail a highly effective medium for target marketing,” said Reblin. An integral part of the overall commitment from the Postal Service to add value to the mail, 2nd Ounce Free is not a limited time promotion, but a new price for First-Class Mail presort, automation letters. 2nd Ounce Free does not apply to single-piece letters mailed by consumers. “No registration is required, no annual minimum thresholds apply, and no payment rebates are needed, since 2nd Ounce Free pricing is offered upfront,” said Reblin.

2nd Ounce Free can be used to inform, educate and strengthen customer loyalty by providing additional information, such as announcements, disclosures and notifications. The extra ounce also can be used to conduct consumer research with surveys and reply cards.

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Solution: Our new aqueous coater, built into our Heidelberg Speedmaster 74. If you’re into protecting the environment, you’ll love it, because we use a water-based coater as part of the printing process that is tougher than an oil varnish and better prevents post office wear and tear. And the cost is pennies.

This coater is just one of the many tricks of the trade we know to make your marketing pieces shine. (or not, since the coatings comes in gloss or matte). Another reason we’re one of the top 20 direct marketers in the U.S.

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At PrimeNet, Wilson will be developing accounts with retail businesses in the Tampa, St. Petersburg and Orlando areas.

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PrimeNet has a special direct mail program just for people in the auto business. Our customers are seeing a big uptick in both new car sales and repairs as a result of the program.

Jump on board! We think 2012 is going to be the “Year of the Car,” and I’ll bet you can figure out why. Because of the recession, people haven’t been trading in their cars. The average vehicle on U.S. roads is 10.6 years old, up from 10 years old in 2008, according to RL Polk. Older cars need more repairs. And because we are crawling out of recession, Americans are buying new cars at the fastest rate since 2007. These trends mean business for you.

If you sell new cars, have a service department, are an independent repair facility, or are an aftermarket parts supplier, 2012 will be a time when you can grow. We have just the direct marketing program to help you.

It’s called our “Checkbook” program. We customize a checkbook with several time-sensitive offers from your dealership, parts store or repair facility. Offers could be “checks” for repair discounts, service discounts, parts purchases or new car purchase incentives. If a prospect presents a “check” from the booklet to you, we have a system by which you can track the results and tie business back to the mailer.

This direct mail checkbook offer has boosted sales and service at auto dealerships, aftermarket suppliers and independent auto repair centers. Ask me how we can help you. My number is 727.812.5178.

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Rates are shown for 1st class mail, postcards, standard mail and non-profit mail.

This handout is a handy reference guide as you prepare your mailing programs. We can help you create mailers that reduce your postage costs.

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Because we have a U.S. Postal Service “full service provider” at our onsite mail facility, we can more accurately monitor and time in-home arrival dates. How? We prepare the mail with the full specs required to expedite delivery. Our services include free address correction to reduce undeliverable mail, which in turn increases response rates and cuts promotion costs.

What is more, as a U.S. Postal Service “full service provider” at our onsite mail facility, we offer you significant postage discounts:
• Bulk mail receives .1 cents postage reduction per piece
• 1st class mail receives .3 cents postage reduction per piece
Customers also qualify for destination entry postal savings because of our on-site USPS postal verification services and drop-shipment expertise.

It’s another way we are bringing order to the chaos brought on by the possible service changes from the U.S.P.S.

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To avoid this mass confusion, PrimeNet is offering “Drop Shipping” of your direct mail. We will truck your direct mail directly to a network distribution center, avoiding the possible mess at the mail processing centers and speeding up your in-home delivery time.

The result, we are able to control your in-home date better that the United States Post Office! Just ask us to DROP SHIP. It’s another way we are bringing order to the chaos brought on by the fiscal stress at the U.S.P.S.

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