Postal Service Finally Tells a Story Too Little Too Late?

I have long questioned why the ubiquitous U.S. Postal Service has so passively accepted its whipping-boy status from so many for so long? Wrongly thought as an inefficient government agency (since 1971 it has been an independent, self-sufficient operation under Congressional oversight), USPS has suffered from an image problem for years. Historically it has done little to combat this—until now.

Finally, someone with some strategic communication sense has come to the table and compelled the agency to craft a new persona in its “this is our season” campaign that is both provocative and attractive. The resulting “story” is the first in recent memory where USPS finally asserts who it is and the public value it provides. Done just in time for the Holiday season, the agency taps into its “…nor sleet nor snow” icon to craft a message artfully blending service utility with heart-warming tradition. Kudos to the Post Office—but hey what took you so long?

The problems are many at USPS and some of the whipping is justly deserved. But these problems are hardly new. Conventional volume continues to decline, operating costs are high and combine that with balky management response and you have a classic recipe for an agency in distress.

But in recent years the Postal Service has tried to shake off its stodginess with a host of changes including limited Sunday service, relaxing rules on the shipment of alcohol (long a grating issue for California and other wine-producing states), fixed-price stamps and other efforts. Seemingly this now includes, finally, communicating its value in the effective story-form. But is it all an effort that is too little and too late?

_______

John Durante is marketing services director for WordWrite Communications.