I belong to a news forum for magazine publishers, in which we trade information, ask questions, lie to each other, and dish out free advice. Here’s one Southern publisher’s query to his colleagues that was made today. Multiply it by all the other businesses who rely on postal delivery, and the financial impact starts to mount rapidly:
The USPS has halted delivery of standard and bulk mail to zip codes affected by Hurricane Katrina. We’re trying to figure out how to get magazines to our subscribers and controlled distribution readers impacted by the storm. Mail service will eventually return, but many recipients won’t have mailboxes for several months. We are quarterly and have an issue being mailed next week…What is the best way to get magazines to displaced subscribers?
The sad answer: there ain’t no way.
