The Long Leaf Pine meeting room at UNCW was the setting for a recent GWAPCC event. The Greater Wilmington Area PCC (GWAPCC) held a Lunch & Learn event on Informed Delivery – Informed Visibility in a venue named after Wilmington's own nickname as the Port City. Attendees had views of the Fisher Student Center and the Campus Life courtyard.
The participants were welcomed to the University of NC Wilmington by Samuel Nevarez, UNCW Postal Services Supervisor and GWPCC Secretary.
GWAPCC Postal Co-Chair, Chris Spann (Wilmington Postmaster) and GWAPCC Industry Co-Chair, Brad Donnell (Owner Linprint Company) welcomed more than 24 participants; some who came from as far away as Cary, Jacksonville and Fayetteville, NC. Attendees included printers, marketers, large mailers and independently owned mailroom executives.
The GWAPCC Co-Chairs spoke on the benefits of membership and sponsorship of the PCC organization. On hand to answer questions from the audience were Josh Kelly, USPS HQ Sr. Account Rep. and GWAPCC Treasurer, as well as Beverly Hall, USPS Mailing Standards Specialist.
USPS Mailing and Shipping Executive, Linda Gordon, explained to the audience how Informed Delivery integrates hardcopy mail and digital marketing, providing interactivity for customers. She shared how the USPS is responding to consumers’ increasing desire to interact and communicate digitally with their mail. One marketer indicated, on his event evaluation, that the information provided will be very beneficial for his clients.
Special guest speaker, USPS Postal Inspector and Wilmington/Raleigh Team Leader, Michael Carroll was introduced and spoke on the topics of Identity theft and security. He addressed security concerns of the Informed Delivery application and program. Mr. Carroll had the full attention of the audience, as he engaged them with questions, statistics, and prizes.
During a lunch break, attendees participated in a networking challenge to collect as many business cards as they could from each other. They also listened to an informational video about the upcoming National Postal Forum (NPF) and received registration booklets and coupons.
The event closed with the selection of a door prize winner and a networking challenge winner, as well as new GWAPCC members and potential sponsors. Feedback from event evaluations was extremely positive and encouraging. The GWAPCC is excited to get busy planning its next event. Stay tuned……