IPN Forum: The Future of Royal Mail

[TrueBlueTerrier]

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Independent publishers gathered at the PPA offices in London yesterday to hear a keynote presentation on the future of Royal Mail and magazine distribution.

Royal Mail’s Head of Media Products Tim Cable headed the forum that offered valuable insight into the company’s future strategies and the implications for publishers.

Cable was joined by colleagues who collectively covered off a wide range of issues facing the postal sector that impact on the media.

Topics included the race postal companies face to become operationally efficient, as well as the latest postal developments affecting publishers such as product development and pricing.

Cable talked candidly on the strategy that Royal Mail intends to implement that includes its current process of modernisation and restructuring in order to generate commercial growth.

“Royal mail has been around a long time and our world like yours is changing rapidly. We’re in an unprecedented period of change but we are aware that we do need to be more customer-centric,” said Cable.

Due to increased regulation and competition Cable said that Royal Mail had suffered an ongoing trend of declining revenues.

Those factors, combined with the implementation of the modernisation process, he added, had resulted in a series of double digit price rises for customers, including publishers.

Cable said the rises were regrettable but Royal Mail was working to mitigate the recent increases.

“Our aim is to lowers costs, operate more efficiently and continue to deliver some of the highest levels of service in Europe,” he claimed.

As part of the cost reduction process the company is looking at ways of increasing its revenue streams, which includes the launch of a new media business.

The new business includes advertising products and web tools focussed around direct mail with the aim of capturing a greater share of the advertising market.

Aside from pricing, Cable said that Royal Mail was mindful of recognising the additional challenges that publishers now faced and questioned what would help drive value for the publishing industry.

Royal Mail is currently working with the PPA to develop more sector-specific pricing structures.

He added: “Within the pricing work we’re currently working on we absolutely need to do separate sessions with the consumer, business and content publishing markets.”

To receive a copy of the Royal Mail report contact IPN Rose Benjamin. Full details on the next IPN Forum will be available on the IPN section of the PPA website soon.



Royal Mail In Numbers

59m letters and packets to delivered in UK everyday
Distribution covers 28.8m addresses
89 per cent of letters now sorted my machine
7,500 additional delivery vehicles
18,000 new-style delivery trolleys
44,000 digital hand held devices

[RedBagMan]

89 per cent of letters now sorted by machine

... in what way ??? Don't reckon we get 89% sequenced ...

[demon]

no were near that much sorted and only a handfull of them trolleys been used

[Lounge Lizard]

Firstly, does Royal Mail’s Head of Media Products Tim Cable by any chance have a relative called Vince ?
Secondly, did Timmy explain that there's no limit to the magazine distribution that Royal Mail can do now that van sharing has taken the weight off the shoulder ?