The Post Office may be a much-loved neighbourhood landmark, but the extent of diversity in the products and services offered by this nation-wide network is still largely unknown to the public. It is no surprise then that when India Post introduced itself through a sales counter and a series of information panels at the Dalit Indian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (DICCI)’s Trade Expo in Mumbai, the visitors were pleasantly surprised to see what was on display.
The 5th Industrial and Trade Expo of DICCI was held at Goregaon Exhibition Centre, Mumbai, from 25-27 March 2016. The Department of Posts (India Post) participated in the fair, by putting up a stall at the event. The stall had two counters – the first one dedicated to the MY STAMP product, and the other to the promotion of premium products and sale of philatelic items.
The first counter garnered quite a bit of attention and excitement from the visitors. The instant print outs of MY STAMP sheets, where one could get oneself pictured on a sheet of postage stamp, delighted them and raised their curiosity. Many of them were unaware about this unique personalisation venture of India Post. The helpful postal staff were ready with explanations and clarifications on the procedure of acquiring MY STAMP. The initial reaction of the visitors was typically surprise, which soon gave way to appreciation, and even pride in such an endeavour from the Post Office, which was an institution they all had faith in. For the India Post team led by Abhishek Jain, the Senior Superintendent of Mumbai North-West Postal Division, it was a gratifying experience that dozens of successful transactions were made on the spot for MY STAMP.The second counter was a philatelist’s paradise. It displayed albums of philatelic stamps, stock books, white and black cardboards – everything required by a stamp collector. The twin objectives were to draw the attention of existing philatelists, and also to attract the Gen Y into the fascinating world of stamp collection.
The display boards at the stall showcased the ongoing transformation of the Post Office, wherein Information Technology is being inducted on an unprecedented scale to modernise the postal services. It also elaborated upon the wide spectrum of services offered by the Post Office, ranging from the post card to Postal Life Insurance.
In the 3 days of the Trade Fair, around 1500 guests visited the India Post stall. A team of Marketing Executives were present from the start to the finish, approaching the guests individually, explaining to and educating them about the role and services of the Department of Posts. This team made it a point to use the opportunity offered by the Trade Expo to spread awareness about the various services on offer at the post offices. Pamphlets and books of various premium products (especially Speed Post), Retail Post, Savings schemes, Atal Pension Yojana, Postal Life Insurance and Sukanya Samridhi Yojana were distributed to the guests at the India Post stall, and also to the general visitors to the Trade Expo. In addition to this, cards were distributed to create awareness about the importance of writing correct pin code for prompt delivery of parcels.
The participation of the Department of Posts in the 5th Industrial and Trade Expo turned out to be hugely successful and productive. It brought forth the extent of trust reposed by the people of the country in this 160-year old institution, and gave an opportunity to the postal staff to reach out to their valued customers in a relaxed context different from the normally busy environs of the post office.
