It’s a great new USPS service that remains one of maildom’s biggest secrets. It’s USPS’ Informed Delivery and it is great! (Just think about how many times you see the words USPS and great used in the same sentence). Right now, this is sort of a secret service because not many residential customers know about it. Hopefully, that will change soon. It is probably the most impressive Postal Service innovation in recent memory. (Just think about how many times you see the words Postal Service and innovation used in the same sentence)
Here’s the deal: Informed Delivery is a new and innovative feature from the Postal Service that allows residential consumers to get digital previews of their incoming mail each day. So you don’t need to check your mail everyday because the USPS will send you a picture of each envelope in your box…every day. And it’s free. Free as in, no cost, no requirements….just free.
Each morning, the Postal Service will send you scanned previews of the exterior of everything from personal letters to junk mail to bills before it hits your doorstep. These mail images can be sent via email, text, or viewed on the USPS Mobile App on Android or Apple phones. You can also see tracking information for USPS packages, add delivery instructions for the mail carrier, and request redeliveries if you weren’t home. And, if Informed Delivery tells you you’ll get a letter and you can’t find it, they’ll track it down for you. An added bonus: this service works for everyone living at the household, not just the person who signed up. It even works for P.O. boxes.
If you love the idea of Informed Delivery, but you want even more there are some paid services that take it even further. Earth Class Mail is a paid service that offers content scanning, unlimited storage, check deposit, and virtual addressing. While this service is clearly targeted to business customers (who aren’t eligible for Informed Delivery), it can be used by residences or people who have home offices. Best to start with the USPS service and then go from there.