Postal services look for their online niche

Neither snow nor rain can stop the mail, but the expanding Net is forcing it to evolve

THE START OF the e-mail explosion prompted a now familiar prediction: that the new messaging technology would quickly kill off any need for old-fashioned postal mail. But just as radio didn't knock out newspapers and television didn't replace radio, people still send "snail mail" in hefty volumes.

Nonetheless, most postal services, including the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) and Canada Post, are accepting that the Web will soon absorb large chunks of their mail service.

"We just have to be smart to understand what our consumers want, what the technology can offer," says John Nolan, deputy postmaster general of the USPS, in Washington, D.C. "In that sense, we're ready for the Internet to be a disruptive technology and completely disrupt our normal volumes. How much and to what extent remain to be seen. But it's also a supportive technology; we see tremendous opportunities in being able to reach more customers in a much richer fashion through the Internet."

In order to grab a slice of the e-business pie, postal services will not only have to create and offer useful online services that make existing postal services simpler or more convenient, but also make consumers aware of the new Web capabilities.

"[Right now], if I want an encrypted e-mail service, I'll go to an encrypted e-mail company. It's not my first thought to go to the post office for that kind of service," says Eric Arnum, editor of Messaging Online, in New York.

Changing the image of the USPS from that of a traditional, stodgy government institution to an e-services player will be a feat similar to moving a brick-and-mortar store online, but on a much larger scale.

"The role of the post office [currently] is as trusted third party with an unparalleled workforce and physical locations," Arnum adds. "Who else can claim so many countertops and employees, and the trust of virtually every merchant in the country with their money, with their bills, with everything?"