Sent
flowers to wedding ceremony Section 4 Facing the Market, Enforcing Operation, Actively Developing Business.
A. Enforcing business operation according to market requirements
Sent
flowers to wedding ceremony
Post faced the intense competition in the market, arid the rapid development of telecommunication distributed some post business. In 1990s, traditional business of mails, parcels dropped. To accelerated business development, most of post administration bureau of each province, especially post office in provincial capital took some measures to enforce operating system, which were mainly to transfer post operation functions; It changed the business and regulation management system in the past to market, operation and new business development management system, giving prominence to the functions of marketing. Some modified staff structure according to the principle of emphasizing business development and marketing, enforced marketing work and weakened non-marketing work, which greatly improved productivity. Some were equipped with full-time and part-time marketing personnel to actively develop post business. Many enterprises carried out large customer strategy of scale- operation in business development. They went deep into offices, factories, mines, enterprises, enforced investigation to grasp the disciplinarians and situations of all kinds of post customers and set up archives of large customers. They served the customers according to their requirements, solved the difficulties of large customers to send large amount of mails, help them to explore their potentials in post and enlarge business resources. Such services were appreciated by customers.
Some enterprises changed the method of separating issue and delivery to organize a company of issue and delivery, which tightly related the benefits of these two businesses to each other, greatly promoted business development and service modification.
B. Widing business area, developing post business
--Energetically developing commercial advertisement business. In 1990s, many new businesses were derived from traditional mail service. Especially, mail advertisement business developed rapidly. Many post enterprises set up post advertisement company, developed software and database of the name and address of enterprises and foreign enterprises, imported post processing system, equipped with computers, high-speed printers and automatic sealing machines, assisted customers to analysis market, provided name and address of appropriate customers. They could also Provide enterprises with "pipeline" services of design, production, sealing and delivery advertisements, which reduced customer's labour, combined traditional mail service with commercial advertisement and obtained unexpected effect. Shanghai Post Office developed mail services of enterprise postcard, address-changing postcard, personal festival postcard, real estate postcard, arts introduction postcard, overseas communication postcard and information feedback card. Many enterprises also opened up postal protocol services, including sending flower, cake, greeting card, gift and protocol services for society occasion and opening ceremony.
--actively developing business parcel and mail order business as well as point-to-Point transportation of special merchandise. In Shanxi province, 3 business parcel markets were formed in Guanzhong, Shannan and Shanbei which undertook the mail order of medicines, nuts and health care articles. Inner Mongolia broke the regulations on the mail range and size for Parcels. All legal merchandises could be sot by post it carried out direct transportation and opened a new scope for parcel business. Meanwhile, it also set up mail order business, acted as the agency for the enterprises, especially enterprises of famous merchandise. In the past, in the harvest season of areca, post departments in Hainan province would sent large amount of parcels of areca tO Changsha, Hu'nan Province. Because there were many transferring links, they were overstocked and delayed, which caused the dissatisfaction both of senders and receivers, limiting the development of this business. Microeconomic merchants seized the opportunity to compete for this business. At the beginning of 1990s, the Post Office Department of the Provincial Post Administration Bureau organized all cities and counties to draw in areca parcels, then organized delivery manpower or by local post departments to deliver in time. This business continued to be flourishing for several years.
--actively developing postal savings business. Post department took postal savings as the new increasing point of post business and supported it as a key point. It took the advantages that post network spread all over urban and rural areas to undertake postal savings network construction. According to the requirements of the customers for safety and privacy, it set up separated rooms or closed windows to Provide customers with safe business environment. It opened up special business, such as acting as agency for telephone fee collecting, agency for wage paying out. It developed extended business of loading savings, stamp collecting savings, Young Pioneer savings. So postal savings greatly increased year by year and gained the achievement that since 1986 when postal savings were opened up, its increases exceeded the increasing level of savings. In 1998, post savings had reached 313.3 billion Yuan, business income had reached 7.09 billion Yuan, becoming the second large business in post industry.
--Steadily and actively developing newspaper and periodical issue business. It carried out the policy "to carry out newspaper and periodical issue business, make post continue to be the main channel of newspaper and periodical issue". In 1990s, it took newspaper and periodical issue as the key business of post. It carefully organized and improved services, to carry it out earnestly, consolidating the issue position of major party newspapers and periodicals. To fit for the new situation of market competition, it transferred the operation authority to lower level, increased the authority of taking over the issue of local newspapers and periodicals, the authority of setting down issue fee and the authority of determining the issue fee of page-increased newspapers. This effectively mobilized the enthusiasm of all level post enterprises to develop newspaper and periodical business and to increase income. It made some local newspaper which had been self-issued for many years return to the issue channel by post.
The important measure to promote the development of newspaper and periodical business was to change the method in the past that "mails and newspapers were sent together" and morning paper couldn't be delivery early. It carried out the method in cities that morning paper was delivered early, which enforced the competition of newspaper issue by post. According to the situation of rapid life rhythm, large amount of floating population in cities, the requirements of readers for obtaining information in time and diversified life and hobby styles, it energetically developed newspaper and periodical retail business. In recent years, some provinces also made use of post network to open up rent business of audio and video products.
--EMS business developed rapidly. On the basis of the rapid development in "8th Five-Year Plan", EMS business continued to develop rapidly. By 1996, its business income was 2.24 billion Yuan, by 1997, 2.9 billion Yuan, increasing 22.4% and 24.86% respectively comparing to that of the last year. Its proportion in the total POst income increased from 7% in 1994 to above 10%, and 12.5% in 1996.
The construction of EMS tracing inquiring system made great progress. Over 200 cities had been linked and the exchange of tracing inquiry information with 22 countries had been realized. In 1996, MPT also decided to set up special telephone service of EMS "185". Many provinces and cities also made use of airlines and self-operated express truck mainlines to open up multiple night time express postal routes to promote the development of EMS business.
Providing
excellent services for
foreign friends.
--Accelerate development at international business. To coordinate with the open up policy, MPT paid attention to the development of international post network and international post business. Considering the situation that the traditional international post mail, parcel business dropped, post department attached importance to the developing of new international post business. Besides EMS, it also undertook international electronic mail services, international remittance services, international express money deliver services, collective services of international EMS, extraordinary mail services, parcel services to USA and Australia, international commercial mail services.
--Energetically developing philately business. Since reform, philately became a "key" business. Especially in 1990s, it develop rapidly, increasing average 50% per year. It reached 7.79 billion Yuan in 1998, increasing 65% comparing to that of the last year, becoming the first large business in post industry.
"Huangshan Mountain"
The main measures taken to promote philately business in this period included: (1) At the same time of consolidating and developing urban philately market, post department energetically expanded rural philately market in counties and lower level. (2) To enlarge stamp selling, ensure stamp Provision, prevent from sharp rising and dropping, it carried out new stamp subscribing system. (3) Increase the types of philately business, developing from selling only stamps to producing stamp collecting gifts and stamp collecting works. (4) Make use of major social activities to carry out diversified philately activities and exhibitions, carry out the selection of best stamp, expand the effect of Chinese stamps, promote the development of philately business. (5) In 1996, MPT decided to Publically destroy some over Printed stamps, which affected the raising of the reputation of China post and stamp and the prosperity of post philately. 1996 and 1997 were the two years when philately business developed most rapidly, and also were the two years when export of Chinese stamps increased sharply.