Wherever on the planet you live, the decline in postal mail volumes is an accelerating reality that bodes ill for the local postal service. New Zealand Post is talking reduction in home deliveries and other services to counter falling revenue. These changes may eventually be necessary, but putting them forward as the first and best options shows a lack of vision. Innovation and service enhancement may offer a better path back into profit.

Now that all mail is electronically scanned when it enters the mail system, it seems to me that the door is open to a new level of customisation. Here are some ideas for value-added services I would happily pay for.

1. When I was commuting daily to a city office, parcel deliveries to my home address were a frequent cause of frustration. Some senders insisted deliveries had to be sent to my credit card billing address and be signed for on arrival, yet I was never at home when they arrived. If only I could have gone online and given NZ Post an alternative delivery address!

If mail processing and delivery is fully computerised, there would be no hit and miss approach to such a system. There'd be a one-time registration process to establish my identity, probably including a mail-out confirmation code, and then I'd gain complete control over my mail deliveries through an online interface. I could elect to have Monday to Friday parcel deliveries made to my work address; I could have all mail sent to my work address if I wanted. When I went on holiday I could use the online interface to have my mail put on hold ... or delivered to another New Zealand address or addresses on specified days. These are services I'd happily pay for.

2. I'd like to know what mail is on its way to me and when it will arrive. I don't necessarily need to know the sender; that would be a bonus; but I'd love to receive text alerts so I know there are three letters from Auckland arriving Thursday, one from Christchurch on Saturday and a parcel from Dunedin next Monday.
    
3. Perhaps I'd like to speed some of these deliveries on their way. If I've been sent an important parcel at the lowest and slowest rate, I'd be delighted if I could opt for priority delivery and pay the difference. A key part of the online interface would be presenting me with the applicable added-value options for every mail item that's entered the postal system with my name on it.

These ideas rely on the scanning of delivery addresses when mail enters the system, a simple lookup on the computer system and redirection if required. We're not talking here about putting stickers on mail when it's readied for delivery at the local post office and the consequent loss of time in forwarding it to a different destination.

Having a user-driven mail management system provides other revenue benefits too. Let's be pessimistic and envisage home mail deliveries reduced to twice a week. Some of us would be content with that, but others would be prepared to pay for all mail to be delivered immediately. And for some of us, the ability to identify an important expected letter when it enters the mail system and flag it for immediate delivery at an additional cost would be a useful feature.

Once you start to look at postal mail as a user-driven experience (and once you start thinking of recipients as users), a whole new world of revenue options opens up. I'd like to think there are some visionaries in New Zealand Post who are thinking outside the square red mailbox.

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