2025 USPS Promotions & Incentives: Here’s What to Expect
Postage rates may be on the rise, but mailers able to innovate might have the opportunity to save. A topic discussed heavily at workshops, sessions, and roundtables at this year’s National Postal Forum, the 2025 Promotions and Incentives Calendar was announced alongside Market Dominant Price Increases in April.
Following recent articles on the price increases taking place and a few tips on how to mitigate their impact, we’re looking at some easy ways to design your mailing programs and plan your strategy around cost savings opportunities.
Update (8/30/2024): The USPS has released all guidebooks for the following Promotions & Incentives on PostalPro.
We will be breaking each of these down in detail over the coming month, so stay tuned by subscribing to our newsletter.
The Promotions and Incentives encourage mailers to test new things that might enhance the value of a mail campaign. And in the coming year, mailers can expect new programs, some repeats, and a few updates:
Rather than existing on a fixed schedule, the Integrated Technology promotion will offer a flexible 6-month period.
Two ‘add-ons’ were introduced that must be paired with four of the five promotions.
Starting in 2025, all per-piece discounts will be applied before calculating promotional discounts.
Details will be finalized and explained in Guidebooks and webinars on PostalPro later this year.
And when they are, we’ll be there to break them down.
Integrated Technology
Discount: 3 Percent
Registration Period: November 20, 2024 – December 31, 2025
Active Period: A Maximum of Six Consecutive Months in 2025
Available Classes: First-Class Mail letters, cards, and flats; USPS Marketing Mail letters and flats.
About Integrated Technology Promotion 2025
Referred to as the Emerging and Advanced Technology Promotion in 2024, Integrated Technology is expected to be similar—with a flexible schedule and without the multi-tier discount.
One of the more interesting promotions, the decision will allow mailers to register as early as November 20, 2024, select their own start date, and take advantage of the promotion for six consecutive months.
A Word of Caution
As with all promotions listed below (you’ll hear this a lot), many of the caveats are yet to be hammered out. For example, the USPS is considering mandating personalized QR codes (instead of General QR Codes), and Mobile Shopping may or may not be included.
USPS Guidebook: Integrated Technology Promotion 2025
The Postal Service has released guidebooks on the specifics of the Integrated Technology Promotion. Read it here, or stay tuned for Leanne’s analysis in the coming week.
Tactile, Sensory, & Interactive
Discount: 4 Percent
Registration Period: December 15, 2024 – July 31, 2025
Active Period: February 1, 2025 – July 31, 2025
Available Classes: First-Class Mail letters, cards, and flats; USPS Marketing Mail letters and flats.
About the Tactile, Sensory & Interactive Promotion in 2025
An extremely popular promotion throughout 2024, the Tactile, Sensory, & Interactive Promotion encourages mailers to incorporate a multi-sensory experience into mail. Sight, smell, touch or even taste—mailers have the opportunity to create something special and get rewarded for it.
If anything like the current promotion (running through July 31), there should be a wide variety of ways to use inks, treatments, or elements meant to make mail more memorable:
Specialty Inks: Metallic and Optically Variable Inks, Inks that change color in the presence of UV light, temperature-influenced inks, and even conducive inks.
Sensory Treatments: Add sight, sound, or smell with textured papers meant to feel soft, leathery, or crinkly; scented varnishes; or paper that can incorporate special effects.
Interactive Elements: Provide a dynamic experience with three dimensional elements, pop-ups, infinite folds, or die-cutting.
A Word of Caution
As in recent years, the use of gloss paper stock alone will not allow a Mail Owner to qualify for this promotion. Other changes could be on the way. Additionally, this will require a mailer to have a sample approved by the USPS Promotions Office.
USPS Guidebook: Tactile, Sensory, & Interactive
Looking to see the ins and outs, ups and downs of the Tactile, Sensory, & Interactive Promotion in 2025? Check it out on PostalPro and stay tuned for our analysis coming next week.
New in 2025: Continuous Contact
Discount: 3 Percent
Registration Period: February 15, 2025 – September 30, 2025
Active Period: April 1, 2025 – September 30, 2025
Available Class: USPS Marketing Mail letters and flats.
About Continuous Contact Promotion 2025
Communicate throughout the buyer journey and get rewarded at each step. Pertaining to mail defined as ‘iterative or complementary’, the discount applies when a mailer sends a qualified mailpiece two or more times within the promotion period.
Discounts will apply to the second, third, and other subsequent mailings in a sequence, and sequences will need to be approved by the Promotions Office.
A Word of Caution
As this is a new promotion, there will be a lot of things to hammer out by the time Guidebooks come out.
This promotion, specifically, resulted in a spirited discussion at the National Postal Forum and will continue to receive clarification.
From approvals to the household vs. address determination, to the definition of iterative, this promotion will evolve and change—so stay tuned.
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Continuous Contact Guidebook Coming Soon
As mentioned earlier, this is going to be an extremely nuanced and somewhat challenging promotion—and the guidebook for it will be on the way. We will link it here and provide analysis as soon as it’s available.
Reply Mail Intelligent Mail Barcode Accounting (IMbA)
Discount: 3 Percent OR 6 Percent
Registration Period: May 15, 2025 – December 31, 2025
Active Period: July 1, 2025 – December 31, 2025
Available Classes: First-Class Mail letters, cards, and flats; USPS Marketing Mail letters and flats.
What Is the Reply Mail Intelligent Mail Barcode Accounting (IMbA) Promotion?
Returning in 2025, the Reply Mail Intelligent Mail Barcode Accounting (IMbA) promotion should be similar to the current promotion taking place in 2024. Though this year, participants will have all their QBRM quarterly fees removed.
The Postal Service plans to offer a 3 or 6 percent discount on First-Class Mail Qualified Business Reply Mail (QBRM) letters and postcards that meet the Reply Mail IMbA Promotion requirements.
To Receive a 3 Percent Discount: Mailpieces Must Use a Static IMbA.
To Receive a 6 Percent Discount: Mailpieces Must Use a Serialized IMbA.
For more information on what you might be able to expect, check out the 2024 Reply Mail IMbA Guidebook on PostalPro.
A Word of Caution
This is a unique promotion and is not eligible for add-ons listed below. As with other promotions this will require an approval process in the Mailing Promotions Portal. This specific promotion will require permits for QBRM and IMbA as well.
USPS Guidebook for Reply Mail IMbA Now Available
Looking to understand more on how Reply Mail IMbA will work? The USPS released more details on the processes that go into it on August 30, 2024. Check it out on PostalPro and stay tuned for our deeper look.
First-Class Mail Advertising
Discount: 3 Percent
Registration Period: July 15, 2025 – November 30, 2025
Active Period: September 1, 2025 – November 30, 2025
Available Class: First-Class Mail letters, cards, and flats.
What Is the First-Class Mail Advertising Promotion?
Built to expand the value of transactional First-Class Mail, the “First-Class Mail Advertising” promotion encourages mailers to add marketing content to transactional documents.
Expected to be a slightly broader variation of 2024’s Personalized Color Transpromo Promotion, this should be an exciting and lucrative opportunity for those looking to get more from First-Class Mail.
A Word of Caution
The term comparable has been used a lot when discussing the move from Personalized Color Transpromo to the FCM Advertising promotion. The Postal Service states that it “expects a close overlap of users” between the two promotions because both promotions encourage marketing and advertising content on First-Class mailpieces. This could be broader, and things will be finalized in guidebooks this fall.
USPS Guidebook: First-Class Mail Advertising
This looks to be one of the most interesting promotions in the 2025 calendar. And if you’re looking to learn more, check it out on PostalPro. As with all the others, we’re diligently typing away our analysis and can’t wait to share it when it’s available.
Add-Ons
Available only when combined with other promotions listed above (except for the Reply Mail IMbA promotion), mailers can get an extra, stackable, 1 percent discount per add-on.
For example, a mailer participating in the Tactile, Sensory & Interactive promotion would get 4%, plus 1% for Informed Delivery and 1% for Sustainability, totaling 6%. Once that promotion runs out, they could combine those add-ons with Integrated Technology (3%) for 5% off.
Informed Delivery Add-On/Upgrade
Discount Amount: 1 Percent
Active Period: Through Life of the Promotion
Eligible Classes: First-Class Mail automation letters, cards, and flats and USPS Marketing Mail automation letters and flats.
What Is the Informed Delivery Add-On/Upgrade Promotion?
An ‘add-on’ promotion, the Postal Service plans to offer a 1 percent discount on First-Class Mail and Marketing Mail mailpieces incorporating “best practices and techniques in their Informed Delivery campaigns.”
This replaces the 2024 Informed Delivery Promotion running August 1, 2024 – December 31, 2024, and must be combined with another promotion (excluding Reply Mail IMbA).
Sustainability Add-On/Upgrade Promotion
Discount Amount: 1 Percent
Active Period: Through Life of the Promotion
Eligible Classes: First-Class Mail automation letters, cards, and flats and USPS Marketing Mail automation letters and flats.
What Is the Sustainability Add-On/Upgrade Promotion?
Another ‘add-on’, the Postal Service plans to offer a 1 percent discount on both First-Class Mail and Marketing Mail mailpieces if it meets specific sustainability requirements.
Like the Informed Delivery promotion, the sustainability add-on needs to be combined with another promotion (excluding Reply Mail IMbA).
Though details are yet to be finalized, the requirement sounds simple: Mailers need to simply demonstrate that paper used for the abovementioned mailpieces “is responsibly sourced and sustainably produced and therefore bears a certification from a recognized entity.”
Sustainability: We Can Help
If you’re looking to get a head start on your sustainability goals, look no further than Sepire. Every roll of paper we use is FSC certified, which should be enough to meet the promotion requirements. But that’s only the beginning of our sustainability-focused operations. Water-based inks, zero-emission presses, an extremely lean manufacturing environment—it’s all there.
Plus, through our partnership with PrintReleaf, every ounce of paper consumed is offset and replanted.
Get More from Your Mail: We’re Here to Help
Promotions and discounts are important for many reasons. First, they save you money. Second, they enhance the value of your campaigns. Third, they provide affordable ways to test some of the most innovative and underrated add-ons.
In the coming months—and hopefully as soon as each playbook is finalized—we intend to release an in-depth look at how to make the most of the 2025 Promotions and Discounts. And it’ll be available first to our customers and newsletter subscribers. So be sure to subscribe to our newsletter for all the latest.
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Whether we’re helping you take advantage of discounts, ensuring that each mailpiece goes where it’s supposed to, or simply advocating on your behalf, Sepire is here to help. Secure, diverse, and sustainable, we help brands of all sizes make meaningful connections both through direct mail and omnichannel communications.
Get to know more about who we are, how we help, and when you’re ready to get started, drop us a line.