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Student Housing and the Cloud-Based Education

Mar 08

Posted by Postal Solutions in Blog

Classes on the cloud

Are online classes the next big move for university education? There is a growing trend for online classes and workshops and students of all ages are taking advantage. Online platforms like Coursera and Khan Academy have received favorable reviews and are seeking options for course credit options for the classes they currently offer and new classes moving forward. Online colleges like University of Phoenix have already made it possible to receive your entire education online, and now traditional universities are looking at that model.

How it affects student housing…

There is still nothing like physically attending a classroom, discussing course material with classmates, and asking the professor to clarify some confusion. However, with the economy waning and the cost of education going up, it’s no surprise that there is a trend for university classrooms to be hosted on the cloud. What would that mean for student housing, if students could get their education from home? Currently, admission is up, so there is little expectation for the moment for student housing to wane. However, if cloud-based university credits take hold, there is a real possibility for traditional enrollment to ebb enough to have an impact on the student housing industry. Only time will tell… For the moment student housing is a booming industry, but keep an eye on the horizon, just in case. No one want to get caught with an empty property or worse a half-built property without an exit plan.

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US Postal Solutions is the nation’s leader in the student housing mail management industry, for both on/off-campus mail management services. The US Postal Solutions, Inc. companies offer mail delivery management, delivery services and package logging / package management software. For more information regarding US Postal Solutions, please call us today at (866) 378-8157 or visit us online at www.uspostalsolutions.com.

Tags: association of college and university housing officers, classes on the cloud, cloud-based education, national apartment association, online classes, student housing, student housing boom

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Postal Service Stops Mail Delivery on Saturdays

Feb 07

Posted by Postal Solutions in News Releases

No mail on Saturday

In an attempt to cut over $2 billion from their budget, the United States Postal Service has announced that they will no longer be delivering regular mail on Saturdays, beginning August 5, 2013. However, they will continue to stay open on Saturdays to handle the ever increasing number of packages now dominating their delivery routes. This is primarily due to the 14% increase in package volume since 2010 and projections for strong package growth in the coming decade, according to the PCC Insider. This moves comes as the Postal Service continues to face challenges trying to stay solvent and competitive in the mail and package delivery market.

70% of people approve

The Postal Service has unsuccessfully proposed a five-day delivery schedule in previous years, so this seems to be a pre-emptive announcement in an effort to push Congress to pass the measure. The Postal Service, while an independent agency that receives no tax dollars to operate, still requires congressional approval to make such a move. According to market research from both the Postal Service and major media outlets, 70% of people approve this service shift, which is what the Postal Service will likely leverage to affirm their position.

Legislative approval from the 113th Congress is what the Postal Service is waiting to hear. Having already slashed about $15 billion from their operating budget since 2006 (source PCC Insider), while continuing to provide uninterrupted service should be a compelling argument to allow this mail delivery shift.

Volume will be overwhelming

Single-point delivery designated properties like military and university housing are expected to be impacted with higher volumes of mail on Mondays and with the continued increase of package deliveries throughout the week. Both FedEx and UPS have seen a 14% increase in package volume since 2010, partially attributed by the 16% increase in online shopping since 2011 with projections expecting to increase by about 7% every year through 2016. If it was busy before, then this shift combined with high overall package volume, properties can expect some additional challenges with this unprecedented move by the Postal Service.

If you have anything you would like to add or an experience you would like to share, please comment below.

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Tags: association of college and university housing officers, bulk mail delivery, bulk mail drop, business officer, campus mail center, campus post office, College and University Business Officer, college mail, college mail delivery, college mail services, mail delivery, Military Housing Mail, national apartment association, no mail on saturdays, postal service, single-point delivery, student housing mail, student housing mail delivery, university mail, usps

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Building Relationships Beyond Social Media

Feb 01

Posted by Postal Solutions in Blog

More than social media

Social media has become the “go-to” technology to develop relationships; however, while social can be most definitely quantified, the quality of those relationships can end up superficial. There is still an art to personal interaction that continues to persist in industries like Student Housing and Multifamily, as well as other industries. Exposing oneself to these opportunities is well underrated and has in recent years taken a back seat to social media. There is no doubt that social media an amazing tool for cultivating relationships, but these industries decisions are not made on Facebook, Twitter, or LinkedIn, but rather in person. Human interaction still rules business, social just makes it easier to cultivate those interactions.

Get involved

There are always opportunities to get involved within your industry locally, nationally, or internationally, it just a questions of which will work best for your business goals. Joining industry associations or local civic organization are a great way to get recognized, so long as you actually attend meetings and participate. Many professionals will become members to these organizations and either not attend events and activities, or do the least necessary to keep their active status. It does no one any good to be a part of something and not participate.

Learn something new

Workshops and seminars that are relavent to your needs are a good way to both learn something and interact with others in your industry. Not only are you learning the latest trends, but others in your industry see that and begin to associate you as a knowledgeable professional who is continuing to hone his/her craft. If you have the knowledge and expertise, presenting a workshop or seminar is even better as it establishes you as an expert in your field and instills confidence in those thinking about doing business with you.

Share your expertise

Without a doubt, social media is by far, one of the best tools in your arsenal for building relationships and you would be foolish not to use it to develop the future of your business. However, direct personal interaction can galvanize your authority within your industry. So, if you have the time get more actively involved, if you have need to learn attend your industry workshops, and if you have the expertise share your knowledge with others. Your business will thank you.

If you have anything you would like to add or an experience you would like to share, please comment below.

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Tags: association of college and university housing officers, building business relationships, business officer, business relationships, College and University Business Officer, multifamily, national apartment association, social media

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US Postal Solutions welcomes our newest client The Continuum

Nov 30

Posted by uspostal in News Releases

US Postal Solutions, Inc. – The Student Housing Mail Delivery Management Experts! - welcomes our newest client, The Continuum (A Provident Community for University of Florida Graduate Students). The Continuum is a 571-bed community located in Gainesville, FL managed by The Capstone Companies near the University of Florida. Mail delivery management services began November 30, 2012.

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Tags: association of college and university housing officers, bulk mail delivery, bulk mail drop, campus mail, campus mail center, campus post office, College and University Business Officer, college mail, college mail delivery, collegiate mail delivery, mail delivery, mail management, national apartment association, Off Campus Mail, outsource mail, package logging service, package management, package tracking software, packagelog, postal solutions, residence hall, residence hall mail, residence hall mailroom, residence hall mailrooms, save money, single-point delivery, student housing, student housing mail delivery, student mail, student mail delivery, university mail, US Postal Solutions

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Log, Alert, and Deliver Packages in Seconds With Your Existing Equipment

Nov 26

Posted by Postal Solutions in News Releases

If you are still managing your package delivery manually without package logging software, the only question I have for you is “Why?” With all of the advances in technology today there is simply no reason this relatively simple task should take up a large portion of your day.

You see, we understand the dilemma… we have been managing package delivery for over a decade and know how frustrating it is for package logging and notification to take up so much time.

For years, our Mail Managers logged and notified recipients of on-campus residents halls, student housing, and mailrooms manually. We tried some of the package logging software, parcel tracking software, package tracking software and every other variation under the sun and we were just not satisfied with the results. Limited capability, one-size fits all designs with no flexibility, and a non-user-friendly interface that required way too much training… so we went back to doing everything manually. Until we came up with the bright idea to use our 13 years of experience to develop the most comprehensive internal package logging and notification software on the market. Initially, this was simply software that was to be designed for us to use internally, but we found during the development processes that this application far exceeded our expectations and have decided to make this application available to the public.

Imagine an increase in efficiency of 75%. A single packages takes on average 4-6 minutes to process and deliver… How many packages do you deal with on a daily basis? Weekly basis? Monthly basis? Is the time adding up yet? What if you could change that to seconds using the equipment already in your offices? Using any mobile device including your phone and tablet without anything to download or install…

PackageLog is the ultimate package management solution that is fully customizable and makes logging packages easy, automates notifications and return-to-sender status, with fully controllable permissions, sophisticated reporting, and is so easy to use my 8 year old can operate it.

SCHEDULE YOUR 15 MINUTE DEMO TODAY!

We can set you up with a no obligation trial that will allow you to test drive PackageLog, so you can experience for yourself how our technology can streamline your package delivery process.

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Tags: campus mail, campus mail center, campus post office, College and University Business Officer, college mail, college mail delivery, college mail services, collegiate mail, collegiate mail services, dorm mail, hand delivery of packages, inbound package tracking, mail management, Military Housing Mail, national apartment association, Off Campus Mail, outsource mail, package logging software, package tracking software, packagelog, postal solutions, residence hall mail, residence hall mailroom, save money, student housing, student housing mail, student housing mail delivery, student mail, student mail delivery, US Postal Solutions

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