The large majority of consumers prefer to get bills through the mail even though they may pay them electronically, according to a white paper by the postal IG that suggests that demand for such mail will continue even as transactions continue to migrate online.
The IG examined transactional mail, consisting mostly of household bills and payments moving as First Class Mail, including interviews with executives who manage bill delivery and payment processing. It found that 91 percent of customers prefer receiving their bills by mail and that even among a selected utility’s newest customers — those expected to be more digitally savvy — 89 percent opted to have their bills mailed to them.
“People like having a physical mailpiece as a reminder to pay and as a record-keeping tool,” the IG said, adding that consumers “want options in just about everything, including bill delivery and payment. So, in addition to being good news for mail, our findings suggest that a company offering a variety of bill delivery and payment options will keep customers happy.”
It added, however, that only 37 percent of consumer bills are paid by mail, down 45 points from 1998. The trend from paper to online transactions has been a substantial contributor to financial difficulties of recent years at USPS, particularly since much of the loss in business came at the cost of one of its most profitable services, First Class mail.