Swiss Post sells 1.4 billion stamps a year in Germany. For a few months now, they have also been particularly safe with a special license plate.
15 months after the introduction of the first matrix code stamps, Deutsche Post has already sold more than a billion such postage stamps.
There is a “high level of customer acceptance,” says Post Manager Ole Nordhoff in a statement from the company, who is satisfied with the introduction.
Counterfeit-proof thanks to the matrix code
In February 2021, Swiss Post launched the first stamp that is counterfeit-proof thanks to the code. Because even if the stamp is only faintly on it or is washed off illegally, the letter will not arrive if the stamp is used again. Reason: The matrix code on the edge of the stamp was already digitally recorded when it was used for the first time.
In addition, shipping with the stamps is becoming a little more transparent: customers can use the “Post & DHL” app to see when the letter will arrive at the mail center in the addressee’s region. It is not possible to see when the shipment was delivered. “We as a company also benefit from the greater transparency in our mail system,” said Post Manager Nordhoff.
Post sells 1.4 billion stamps a year
Swiss Post sells around 1.4 billion postage stamps in Germany every year. In 2021, alternating new motifs with and without matrix code came onto the market. Since this year, however, all commemorative stamps have carried the code – meanwhile, the matrix imprint has become a matter of course when buying stamps.
However, the code on the right-hand side is confusing for some consumers, as the Swiss Post statement shows. The group reports that “customers have cut off the matrix code or simply torn it off, probably under the mistaken assumption that it does not belong to the brand”. Then the validity of the stamp can no longer be checked and the letter has to be returned to the sender, emphasizes the post office.
Post wants to become more customer-friendly
The matrix code is another step for Swiss Post to get the letter business, which is shrinking in the internet age, on a digital course and to make it more efficient and customer-friendly. Another step was the introduction of the mobile postage stamp at the end of 2020. Consumers receive a code made up of numbers and letters via the “Post & DHL” app, which they then write on the envelope with a pen – after that the letter is considered franked and can be sent mailed without the customer having to buy new stamps in a post office beforehand. As an additional franking option, this has so far only been a niche business.
Source: Stern
Jane Stock is a technology author, who has written for 24 Hours World. She writes about the latest in technology news and trends, and is always on the lookout for new and innovative ways to improve his audience’s experience.
