Bulkmail.Info
Help Topics:

Getting Bulk Rate Discounts
Barcoding and CASS
Delivery Point Barcodes
Is it a Letter or a Flat?
Bulk Mail Postage Prices
Presorted First Class Prices

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Mailers with large quantities of bulk mail can save by barcoding that mail. For smaller quantities, the savings are not as certain after the costs involved in barcoding are included.

To get barcoded discounts in addition to the regular discounts for bulk mail, your mail must be able to pass through automated sorting equipment. Mail that is thick, irregularly shaped or too stiff to bend is not eligible for barcoding discounts since it cannot be sorted on automatic machines. Check with your postmaster if you think your mail might not be eligible.

You don't need CASS certification to get bulk mail postage prices!

Despite what you might have heard, many bulk mailers do not need CASS certification. CASS certification is required only when a bulk mailer wants additional discounts for putting barcodes on the mail. Most of the savings from bulk mailing comes from sorting, not from barcoding. If you don't barcode, you do not need CASS!

What does CASS certification do?

Actually, CASS certification is the USPS' procedure for verifying the accuracy of commercial zip code matching software. But most mailers and many postal employees think of CASS certification as the actual matching process that the software performs, rather than the postal service's testing procedure. So, we'll use the common meaning of the term here.

CASS certification is the process of matching your address list to the USPS master list of zip+4 codes. CASS software is tested by the USPS to make sure it can perform a correct match even when there are errors in the address. That's why this process also helps you fix incorrect addresses.

Of course, if your wrong address happens to match another valid address, the software will not make the correction. Similarly, if there are several good choices for the correct address, or no good choices, the software will not match the address to a zip+4 code or attempt to correct the address.

When would I need to do CASS certification?

Bulk mail that is also barcoded is eligible for additional discounts. But, the USPS does not allow you to put barcodes on your mail if you can't prove that the barcodes are based on accurate 9-digit zip codes. They don't want to give you a discount and then have to handle the mail by hand anyway because the barcode is inaccurate.

The USPS will accept your barcodes as accurate if you show that you have recently matched your address list against their master 9-digit zip code list. Software that is approved to do this matching will print a special "CASS report" (Form 3553) when it runs your list, showing how many addresses were attempted, how many were matched, when the matching was done, and the date of the master zip code list that was used.

You are no longer required to submit the CASS report to the USPS unless they ask for it, but you must keep it on file. You must also show the date of the CASS report on the postage statement that you turn in to the USPS with your mailing.

How much do I save?

Most of the savings in bulk mailing comes from sorting. Barcoding typically reduces your postage cost by anywhere from 0.3¢ to 3.5¢. The largest barcoding savings are for mailings that have more than 150 pieces going to the same 5-digit zip code, with smaller savings for mailings that are scattered among many zip codes without 150 pieces to any one zip code.

For a typical one-ounce letter, card, tri-fold, etc., here are the postage prices you can expect:

Regular First Class mail: 42¢

Standard bulk mail - sorted - no barcodes:
21.6¢ to 26¢
Standard bulk mail - sorted - barcoded:
18.3¢ to 25.7¢

Standard bulk mail - sorted - no barcodes - nonprofit:
11.8¢ to 16.2¢
Standard bulk mail - sorted - barcoded - nonprofit:
8.5¢ to 15.9¢

Because the quantity discount categories for barcoded mail are different from those for nonbarcoded mail, an address that gets the lowest nonbarcoded price will often not get the lowest barcoded price. This means the savings for a barcoded mailing will often not be as large as the differences in prices would seem to indicate.

Here's what you need:

A CASS report (Form 3553) is produced only by CASS software or by online zip code matching services using CASS software. You cannot fill out a blank form yourself.

If you are claiming a barcoding discount for a bulk mailing, you must keep a CASS report on file for the addresses in the mailing, and provide the report if the USPS asks for it.

To keep you from using outdated matching software, the USPS requires that matching software automatically disable itself if it is not updated on time.

To get the barcoded prices, you must do everything you need to do for regular bulk mail prices, plus:

Accurate 9-digit zip codes for as many of your addresses as possible. You don't need to do this every time you prepare a bulk mailing, but you must do this the first time you mail using barcodes and at least once every six months thereafter for every address on your list.

Those that you cannot match with an accurate 9-digit zip code cannot be barcoded. If you are mailing flat-sized pieces, you can mail nonbarcoded and barcoded pieces in the same mailing, in which case it is called a "co-sacked" mailing. If you are mailing letter-sized pieces, any pieces you cannot barcode must be mailed separately, either at nonbarcoded prices if you have 200 pieces, or at the regular 42¢ First Class price.

There are two ways to get accurate 9-digit zip codes. The easiest is to use an online matching service. Some we have used are Qualified Address, Anchor Computer, Lorton Data, and MailNet Services. You send them your list through the Internet. They run your list through their matching software, and then return the matched list to you through the Internet along with the required CASS report. They charge according to how many addresses you run, with an inexpensive minimum charge.

If you are mailing to a large list, or if you regularly get new lists that need to be matched, it might be more economical to purchase list matching software. One source many of our customers use is Semaphore. The software tends to be expensive since the master zip code list it includes has around 30 million entries and must be updated every two months.

Labels wide enough for the barcodes to fit. Delivery point barcodes are anywhere from 2.6" to 3.1" wide, depending on your software. Plus, the USPS requires that there be at least 1/8" between the barcode and the left and right edges of the label.

That means that labels that are 3-across on a standard-size sheet won't work! Make sure your labels are at least 3 1/2" wide to allow for variations in software, printers, and alignment.

Software to create the barcodes. Once you have the correct 9-digit zip code, you still need to add a few digits. Some mailing list software will create the barcode for you, but beware: the barcode that Microsoft Word automatically creates is not the barcode you need for bulk mailing discounts!

If your mailing list software does not create the barcode, and you're good with databases, you can probably program your database to create the barcode. See our barcode technical page for details.

Or, you can buy inexpensive software to do it for you. Our product, called Secret Barcoder Ring (it's a pun..) is only $25. If you buy the Pro version of our Postage $aver bulk mail sorting software, we'll give you Secret Barcoder Ring free as part of the package.

A barcode font to print the barcodes. When you print a barcode on an envelope or label, what you are really doing is printing a string of digits using a special font that prints the each digit as a set of 5 bars. You may have this font already on your computer. Look for something called "USPS bar code" or something similar.

If you don't have the font, you can buy ours for only $12, or we'll include it free when you buy either Secret Barcoder Ring or Postage $aver Pro.

Sorting software that can handle barcoded bulk mail. Bulk mail that is barcoded goes to different postal sorting centers than nonbarcoded bulk mail, and uses different postal prices. If you are using sorting software to prepare your mailing (and we strongly recommend that you do), make sure it can handle barcoded mail. Postage $aver Pro handles barcoded mail, but Postage $aver Lite does not.

What to do to get the discounts:

Follow the same procedure as you would for nonbarcoded bulk prices, except:

Print the barcodes on your mail per USPS rules. There are particular places on your mail where the barcode can go. You must always use black ink for the barcodes, and you must not make them larger or smaller than their required size. Check with your post office for complete specifications.

Sort the mail according to the rules for barcoded prices, not the rules for nonbarcoded prices. (The USPS calls these "automation prices" and "nonautomation prices".) The sorting procedures are different and your mail will not be processed if you use the wrong procedure.

If your mail is the size that fits in trays, rather than sacks, you should not make "bundles" of mail. That means no rubber bands and no little stickers for the top of each package.

The exception is if you have a tray that is partially full. In that case, you must hold the mail together with rubber bands to keep them from getting loose. But even in that case, they don't need to be banded in any particular groupings except as necessary to keep them upright and together.

When you take the mail to the post office, you must certify that you have a CASS report on file for the addresses in the mailing. Also, make sure that you use the "automation prices" when you calculate your postage on the Mailing Statement.