International examples of mail profitability are driven by multi-faceted strategies, of which pricing is one part

The USPS Office of Inspector General recently released a research report on the profitability of mail in other countries. It concluded that several smaller nations have found ways to make mail sustainable, albeit at much lower volume levels than in the past. They also have found that mail can be the leading revenue and profit generator with posts that have other business lines such as package shipping, logistics and financial services.

To try to determine the drivers of the mail profitability the OIG looked more closely at five posts–Australia Post, bpost (Belgium), Deutsche Post DHL, Swiss Post, and Royal Mail. While the study found that raising postage prices can compensate somewhat for lower volumes in these countries, they also noted several major differences with the USPS. Pricing is not a standalone solution to falling volume without employing a robust, comprehensive strategy. USPS has a long way to go to equal successful strategies elsewhere.

    
Examples of differences from USPS

• Privatization
• Majority contract, non-civil service employees
• Pension costs covered by government
• Reduced pension benefits for new employees
• Government compensation for public services
• Debt forgiveness on condition of a restructuring plan
• Revenue from more services at retail, such as supplies, tickets, mobile subscriptions, identity services, banking, insurance, travel, etc.
• Outsourcing or franchising retail
• Centralized sorting
• Automated mailbag preparation.