Canada Post has made a few holiday tweaks to its online offering in a bid to further evolve as a digital service provider.
Picture Postage’s users can upload and edit photos from either their computer, phone or Facebook account using one of several holiday designs. These cards can then be sent to the user’s home or, using the web version, directly to the recipient’s address.
The cards are emblematic of a larger shift towards digital products at Canada Post, which is dealing with a quickly changing market. Letter mail – once the bread and butter of the crown corporation – is on a rapid decline while online shopping has provided a boost in parcel delivery revenue. The gains in the parcel business, however, aren’t enough to offset the loss of letter mail revenue, according to Canada Post director of media relations Anick Losier.
Losier said the cards are one of many small digital initiatives the company is rolling out as part of an effort to reinvent its business. “Canada Post is trying to remain relevant in the digital age,” she said. “Continuing to offer products that people want, but in a different format.”
Canada Post decided to offer greeting cards through its digital platforms after conducting a survey in 2011 that showed many Canadians intended to send holiday cards but didn’t follow through. Ninety per cent of Canadians said they planned to send 19-20 cards but only 50% actually sent them. By offering a more convenient way to create and send cards, the company is hoping to convert those intentions into more purchases.
Losier said changes in consumer behaviour demand that Canada Post come up with this type of initiative to complement its current offering. Compared to 2011, there are 2 million less letters in the Canada Post system per day. An increase in 15,000-20,000 parcel shipments per day has helped Canada Post recover some of that loss, but Losier said Canada Post has been forced to look for additional ways to strengthen sales.
“Letter mail decline means that half of our revenue source is declining rapidly. We need to find ways to continue to compensate for this decline,” she said.
