<VV> Magazine delivery

[Ken Wildman]

I am on the publication oversight committee for the Newfoundland Club of 
America.  We publish a quarterly magazine of about 100 pages.

The biggest concern for subscribers is magazine delivery.  It's practically 
an insurmountable problem.  Once the magazines leave the printer and enter 
the postal service the publisher has absolutely no control over delivery.

Typically, first class mail has priority.  For some distribution centers or 
for some local post offices that gets interpreted to mean that magazines 
will only get moved forward when there is a slack time.  Complaints from 
subscribers were almost always from the same or adjoining zip codes.  We 
followed the same process that CORSA does, with UPC coded mailers, bagged 
by zip, and palletized.  It made no difference.  There were always late 
deliveries of some magazines.

The internet has made the appearance of the problem much worse.  People 
find it necessary to announce the arrival of their magazine which leads 
others to complain about the non-arrival.  Fingers are always pointed at 
the publisher, rather than the postal service (which usually delivers 90% 
in a timely manner).

We always get suggestions about first class mailing, which ignores the 
horrendous increase in cost.  Or suggestions about complaining to the USPS, 
as though we had never thought of that.  In fact, a significant amount of 
time is expended every month in contacts with the USPS in attempting to get 
the service to improve in those regions where we consistently have problems.

My advice is to just relax and wait for delivery.  If your delivery is 
delayed more than two weeks then contact CORSA.

Patience, grasshoppers.   <grin>

BTW, for those agonizing about the cost of rooms in Detroit, be thankful 
you are not going to the Newfoundland National in Boulder, Colorado.  Room 
rates are $142 a night for a week long event in off-season.  Just another 
event that can't be run from Motel 6.

Ken