“First pass, second pass, one pass, two pass.” It almost sounds like something straight out of a Dr. Seuss book, but these terms hold great importance when it comes to how efficiently mail is handled, and the postage discounts that come with it.
Most commingling vendors sort mail using a two pass system. During the first pass, barcodes or address blocks on the mail pieces are read by machines to determine where these pieces eventually need to go. Then, the same mail is run through again in a second pass, where the mail is finalized and sorted into the proper five-digit zip code presort bins.
OnePass mail eliminates the first step of information gathering, and instead goes straight to the heart of the matter: getting mail sorted to the proper zip code levels. As you can imagine, getting mail down to just one pass reduces job time significantly, but it’s rare to find a mailer who can offer this level of efficiency! Midwest Direct is one of less than twelve commingle vendors that does OnePass mail.
How does OnePass work? By working with the Midwest Data team prior to printing, we are able to show you how to complete the first pass digitally, and separate the mail physically into the second pass sort. We then feed your data into our sorters and complete the first pass without actually feeding the mail through the sorter. This helps mail pieces maintain their look –as less equipment has touched it—as well as helping predetermine the outcome of the mailing.
The increased efficiency of OnePass mail has made it popular with our accounts and has grown exponentially. When Midwest first started doing OnePass two years ago, the sort was averaging 150,000 pieces per OnePass. As of June 2017, that number skyrocketed to 4.8 million pieces in one mailing!
With mail being picked up 5-6 times a week, Midwest Direct is fully equipped to take on large mailing projects for companies interested in greater postage discounts. Contact us to get started.
