In January of 2013, the United States Postal Service mandated the use of Intelligent Mail barcodes for automation price eligibility and Full-Service discounts and perks. Full-Service Intelligent Mail offers mailers elimination of permit fees, address correction and undeliverable as addressed piece handling options, as well as visibility and tracking.
A lot can change in a dozen years, and a lot stays the same. The Intelligent Mail piece, tray, and container barcodes are a well-established barcode, used in every facet of mail processing. From the early days of Mr. Zip numeric coding, the postal service has used codes to manage a behemoth of delivery addresses. The IMb, at its most basic, does the heavy lifting of getting your mail from Point A to Point B in the most efficient manner possible.
A grave mistake I have seen many mailers do in their quest for quality control – although their hearts are in the right place – is to scan their production barcodes to make sure the barcode is read. And that’s where they stop. But the content of the barcode matters! The Service Type ID and the Mailer ID used can have financial and service implications that, once the pieces have entered the mail stream, are difficult, if not impossible, to correct. It is imperative to catch barcode errors early and avoid costly mistakes.
The IMb: A Tutorial
The first two digits of the Intelligent Mail piece barcodes are known as the Barcode Identifier and are usually “00.” This is a presort/shape indicator, determined by presort software, and there are no options to have to consider. The exception is for automation-rate eligible flat mail with an optional endorsement line, where the Intelligent Mail barcode must contain OEL coding corresponding to the correct sortation level of each piece.
The next element in the barcode is critical. It is the Service Type ID, a three-digit code between the Barcode Identifier and the piece Mailer ID. This code is partially determined by the class/type of mail and Full-Service or Basic presort qualification, but there is also a myriad of options available to mailers, simply by choosing the STID that matches the outcome they wish to achieve. Options for Address Correction physical piece handling, and activation of Informed Visibility – Mail Tracking & Reporting (IV-MTR) data need to be considered.
Address Correction Service STIDs have come a long way since they were first implemented. Manual address correction options for Full-Service pieces are a thing of the past, bringing an old, physical process in line with digital address correction processing. The use of a generic ELECTRONIC SERVICES REQUESTED endorsement on pieces requiring ACS give mailers the flexibility to determine what flavor of ACS services they want to use at the last minute, as the endorsement itself instructs USPS to “look to the STID” for instruction on how to handle the undeliverable as addressed pieces.
There are many sophisticated piece handling and ACS data options that mailers may not be taking advantage of simply because they aren’t aware. There are also mailers choosing the wrong STID for their mailings, because they don’t understand the options. ACS options like Address Service Requested Opt 1, Address Service Requested Opt 2, Change Service Requested Opt 1, Change Service Requested Opt 2, etc. – are enabling different options for both handling and data delivery.
Other Considerations to Remember
Did you know you could have Marketing Mail forwarded, for a fee? Or that you have time-based handling options? Or that you could have the Postal Service securely destroy your First-Class sensitive mailings for free (the USPS does not charge additional for this service)? Or that you could get an electronic representation of the mail USPS forwarded or was unable to deliver? Or that you could even choose to use an ACS Service Type ID on only some pieces in a mailing? Yes, there is certainly more to IMb than may meet the eye!
There is a potential trap if you are using the STID chart, as there are STIDs that DO NOT APPEAR on the main chart. Specific to ACS services are a group of First-Class mail STIDs specific to Secure Destruction options that do not appear on the STID chart. They are only provided to you after you sign up for Secure Destruction. There are sometimes additional STIDs used for promotions and incentive programs, buried within the promotion guides themselves, so it’s important to become STID-savvy.
Remember, these aren’t the original STIDs, although the barcode symbology has remained constant. If you have previously printed out an STID chart and you now have it hanging prominently on your bulletin board for reference, throw it away. Now! Even if your chart is current, mailers should reference the STIDs on PostalPro, so if anything changes and/or new options become available, you’ll be prepared and ready.
After the STID, the next six or nine digits of the barcode will be the Mailer ID. While the Mailer ID embedded into the Intelligent Mail barcode can be that of either a mail service provider or a mail owner, the main consideration must be “Who/how will the unique ranges associated with this Mailer ID be managed?” Managing uniqueness can be done even on a single mail owner Mailer ID used by multiple vendors. It is all about setting up a good process to start with. Duplicate IMbs can result in penalties and loss of visibility, tracking data and unintended ACS consequences (which can be costly).
Next comes the Barcode Range, sometimes referred to as the “uniqueness.” The unique range will be either nine or six digits, depending on the Mailer ID used (six-digit MIDs have nine digits for uniqueness, while nine-digit MIDs have six digits of uniqueness). Uniqueness must be maintained for 45 days per postal regulations, but the longer the timeframe for the unique rage, the better.
Our last field is the real payload: the hard-working Routing Code. This is the Zip+4 + delivery point if available. This code tells the Postal Service where the delivery address is located, so the mail can be routed efficiently and quickly. If you have ever seen mail processing equipment reading barcodes, you know how fast the machines read and sort mail.
There is a reason that the first menu item under Mailing and Shipping on the USPS Postal Pro website is “Intelligent Mail barcodes.” That’s how important they are. In this era of rapidly rising postage rates, squeezing every ounce of value and potential out of your mail is more critical than ever before. Break out of the “this is the way we’ve always done it” mold. Explore new options that you may not even be aware existed.
Adjust and analyze your data in a more effective way by looking not just at what was delivered, but also at what did not deliver, why it wasn’t delivered, and how to remedy that situation. Seek out subject matter experts that can help you make educated choices. Get creative, maximize mailing potential.
Intelligent Mail barcodes still deliver!
Lisa Bowes is Director of Postal Affairs and Product Insights at SnailWorks.
This article originally appeared in the May/June, 2025 issue of Mailing Systems Technology
