Merchandise Return Service Vs. Business Reply Mail

Both Business Reply Mail and Merchandise Return Service are ways a business can prepay postal services for customer communications using the U.S. Postal Service. The two USPS services, however, are used at different stages of the merchant-customer transaction process.

Business Reply Mail

• Business Reply Mail typically is used for inquiries or orders for products or services rather than packages. Examples include postcards for requesting more detailed information or preposted envelopes for use with mail catalog order forms.

Merchandise Return Service

• Merchandise Return Service provides a means whereby the merchant can absorb the cost of customers returning merchandise for such reasons as damage or incorrect sizes. A business that has contracted with the USPS for Merchandise Return Service sends a special merchandise return label to the customer for which the business has either prepaid or has account arrangements to pay package shipping costs.

Usage

• A specific business may use both Business Reply Mail and Merchandise Return. For example, a book club may offer a prepaid postcard service for mailing in a book order and a Merchandise Return Service option for returning damaged books or automatic selections the member does not want.