1. The data desk
Your list arrives as a spreadsheet. It's standardized to USPS address formats, checked against change-of-address records, and stripped of duplicates. You get counts back, often with savings estimates.
2. Printing (if they print)
Some mail houses print in-house. Others take finished pieces from your printer.
3. Folding and inserting
For letter packages, machines fold the letter and insert it, with any reply card, into the envelope, then seal it.
4. Addressing
Each piece gets its address and an Intelligent Mail barcode, printed directly or on a label.
5. Presort
The mail is sorted into the order the postage price requires and bundled and trayed to USPS rules. Presort software decides the order. The machines and staff carry it out.
6. Postage and paperwork
Postage is paid, usually from the mail house's permit account, and the postage statement is prepared.
7. Out the door
The mail goes to USPS, either to the local Business Mail Entry Unit or further into the network for extra discounts.
Common questions
What is a mail house?
A business that prepares mail for USPS: data processing, addressing, inserting, sorting, postage and delivery to the Post Office.
Is a mail house the same as a printer?
Not always. Some do both. Many work alongside printers.
What's a lettershop?
Another name for a mail house, especially one that folds and inserts letters.