Since 2003, letter carriers have used Customer Connect to take advantage of their special relationship with businesses, encouraging business patrons to ship with the U.S. Postal Service instead of with a private delivery service.

Click here to download the Customer Connect lead card.

Regional success stories

	Patricia Kee of the Huntington Station Post Office in Branch 6000, Long Island Merged recently identified a $2.5 million opportunity. See full details below.

Region 1

Branch 70 letter carrier Robert Buchanan from Santee 92071 saw his Customer Connect customer Kathy every day receiving and sending out UPS boxes from her supply company of rabbit cages and supplies. Robert asked Kathy if she knew of our prices, that he came every day for free and could pick up. The answer was yes, and thanks to Robert’s Customer Connect lead, this customer uses USPS to the tune of $19,000.

Branch 70 letter carrier Laura Mullen saw her customer Yuriy Khalmuratov receiving a lot of boxes from a UPS truck, and she asked Yuriy if he was opening or starting a new business and whether the Postal Service could assist. Yuriy replied that he would be more than open to hear what USPS had to offer to assist his electronics business. A Customer Connect lead was submitted. The customer’s needs included Priority Mail flat rate shipping of 45-50 packages per week, and the estimated new revenue generated is $42,000.

Region 2

Branch 82 member Michael Khamsot of Forest Park Station in Portland, OR: His lead from Ellington Handbags turned into $274,560 worth of revenue for USPS.

North Carolina letter carriers celebrate their Customer Connect success.

Region 3

Naperville, IL Branch President Debbie Blake-Moench proudly reports that 113 leads have been submitted year-to-date, with eight sales totaling $4,922,756 in total sales.

• Pensky Chen’s lead generated $4.5 million
• Yung Hsiau had a lead result in a $92,000 sale
• Kwang Lee had a lead result in a $118,140 sale
• Sharon Brown had a lead result in a $35,802 sale

Naperville is one of four offices in the District that is testing a same-day pick-up program where mailers can call before noon and their parcels will be picked up the same day.

Trenton, NJ letter carriers receive accolades for their Customer Connect work.

Region 4

Craig Hardy of Branch 5996 in Highlands Ranch, CO, basically sold his customer Baxter Boo on using the Postal Service prior to a sales representative even contacting them. Baxter Boo is an online pet supply store that specializes in pet supplies and pet toys. After the sale, Baxter Boo was having problems getting their outgoing packages picked up, so Craig would make a special trip to fill up his LLV with outgoing parcels. Craig would sometimes make two trips in order to get all the outgoing parcels. The District Customer Connect coordinator assisted, and soon a permanent collection was established. The original sale was $137,000 in 2010 and expectations are that the revenue will double this year.

Region 5

Victor Hernandez of Branch 373 from West Station in Cedar Rapids, IA, turned in a lead from J. Lloyd International, estimated to increase postal revenues by $1,238,000. J. Lloyd international owns, operates, and distributes toy brands. Hernandez had noticed that J. Lloyd International had been using UPS regularly. He approached them and asked if they would be interested in saving some money, filled out the lead card and turned it in. Meanwhile, the business moved to another location in Cedar Rapids. However, because Victor had turned in the lead, sales was able to track them down and close the sale. Hernandez is enthusiastic about Customer Connect and has approached almost every business on his route (33 percent business). A previous lead now regularly produces up to 300 small parcels per week.

Letter carriers in Mount Vernon, NY.

Letter carrier Todd Viere of Branch 388 in St. Cloud, MN, is the station Customer Connect coordinator, and he has led the St. Cloud office to generate $1,505,758 in CC revenue program-to-date. He has also personally submitted leads that have resulted in sales totaling $386,380 in revenue just this fiscal year. He is a strong leader in promoting the CC program in his office and, due to his efforts, the St. Cloud office reached 100 percent carrier participation for FY 2010. He has even taken the initiative to help the St. Cloud station establish a Rural Reach coordinator as well.

Letter carrier Jim Eidem of Branch 2942 is a senior carrier at the Eden Prairie, MN, office, and has contributed 64 leads since 2006 that have helped his office generate $1,216,327 in CC revenue PTD. He establishes great relationships with his customers by telling them about our products and offering to bring sample boxes out to them. One out of every four leads that Jim submits results in a sale. His efforts helped the Eden Prairie office to be the first in Northland District to reach the $1 million mark.

Region 8

Gary Cameron of Branch 469, Mobile, AL, states: "I never really thought about Customer Connect until a stand-up talk at our station. I then contacted the pharmaceutical company on my route, which gave me a point of contact in Montgomery. I gave a Customer connect lead, and the rest is history, as the account figures to be around $200,000 annually for the Postal Service."

Letter carrier Bryan Elliott of Jasper Branch 3099 submitted the lead for The Very Idea, a specialty gift shop on his route. A lead for this company was submitted in November 2010, but at that time, the customer wasn't interested and was satisfied with their current shipper. Bryan submitted the lead again after speaking with them and they became interested in looking at USPS shipping products because they became dissatisfied with the surcharges from UPS. After meeting with the customer and discussing pricing for Priority Mail flat rate boxes, the customer was sold and will be using Click-N-Ship to pay for postage. The sale resulted in revenue of $3,000 for the Postal Service.

Region 9

Gary Wilbourne from Columbus, GA Branch 546 immediately developed a great relationship with a new business customer, FedSys, Inc. The primaries of the company were so impressed with the level of customer service provided that they were receptive to Gary's invitation to discuss their shipping needs with the Postal Service. This relationship and outstanding customer service provided by Gary resulted in $1.5 million in new revenue.

Region 11

Letter carrier Kevin Stevens from Branch 29, Albany, NY, provided two leads that resulted in excess of $1 million in new revenue. One of the companies, Merch Now, produces tour merchandise. Kevin just used his relationship with the customers and suggested that they should see what we could offer.

Region 15

Patricia Kee of the Huntington Station Post Office in Branch 6000, Long Island Merged, exemplifies carrier participation in the Customer Connect program. She is friendly with the folks on her route, and this led her to identify an opportunity with Bi-Lo Distributors, a beauty supply wholesaler. It all comes down to communicating with customers. As she puts it, “I like my people, and without the customer, there is no Postal Service.” Pat has submitted a total of 28 leads through the Customer Connect program for a sum total of approximately $2.5 million in new revenue for the Postal Service. Patricia stands as a shining example of exactly why the program was created and her demonstrated success serves to underscore the tremendous value that the Customer Connect initiative continues to yield.