You May Soon Be Able to Check Your Snail Mail via Email

A U.S. Postal Service pilot project that emails customers images of their daily-arriving mail may soon expand from parts of Northern Virginia and New York City.

Called Informed Delivery, the service allows Postal Service customers in participating regions to receive emailed images of the front side of all mail pieces that will be delivered to the home that day.

The concept has proven particularly useful for those who travel frequently but wish to still manage their mail, according to Robert Dixon, director of product technology innovation at the U.S. Postal Service.

Speaking Tuesday at the Customer Experience Summit hosted by Government Executive and Nextgov, Dixon said the Postal Service plans to roll out Informed Delivery to a swath of customers from Baltimore to Richmond by August.

If the expanded pilot proves successful, it could be expanded nationally by mid-2017.

Dixon said Informed Delivery is just one of many ways the Postal Service is looking to continue making mail relevant in an increasingly digital world.

While the Postal Service still delivers some 150 billion pieces of mail each year, digital communications continue to encroach upon snail mail’s territory.

Yet, in a modern world, the Postal Service aims to continue to innovate, often looking to its customers for inspiration and ideas. The agency is tops among federal agencies in providing customer service, according to Forrester Research, adding new services like My USPS, which allows users a dashboard view of all incoming packages.