Killing two birds with one stone is ideal, but tackling many problems with one solution is even better. That is precisely what Zipinmail, an address-based digital delivery platform, accomplishes. It reduces waste from paper production and disposal while slowing down deforestation. It problem-solves inefficiencies in traditional paper mail. Globally, the solution helps people in remote places access critical written communications. And for businesses, it provides a compelling alternative marketing channel with the ability to track results.
A Personal Mission
Zipinmail's innovator, founder, and CEO, Vijay Chetty, has spent almost 25 years working to minimize the vast amount of paper consumption and waste. "Our vision is to save the trees and preserve our environment for future generations. Paper mail is a cumbersome, tedious, time-consuming, and archaic process for consumers. Businesses burn a trillion of dollars yearly for paper mail without gaining any measurement metrics or ROI, and almost all of it is thrown in the trash. Our solution is to take the physical mailbox to the cloud."
The Zipinmail patented, cloud-based mailbox platform works similarly to email. Vijay explains, "Instead of a one-line email address, you will get a pop-up to type the full brick-and-mortar mailing address of the recipient. And that Zipinmail is transmitted through the internet to the virtual mailbox of the recipient with that physical mailing address."
Imagine being a heating and air conditioning service provider. One way to cold-call and generate leads is by sending 5,000 flyers to physical addresses with little to zero tracking ability. The cost of producing those mailers is high, and most are thrown in landfills. With Zipinmail, those 5,000 consumers will receive that flier on their phones, saving paper and allowing the business to track consumer interactions. Now imagine being a homeowner or company and being able to scroll through one's mail on their smartphone and not leaving any trash behind. Additionally, Zipinmail customers can streamline the management of their sensitive documents and file them securely in the app.
Vijay's vision also extends globally, addressing mailing system issues in regions like the Middle East, Africa, and Asia, where the lack of infrastructure makes it inefficient. In some Asian countries, physical mailboxes are absent, which leads to haphazard mail delivery. "With a high percentage of cell phone ownership in the Middle East and Asia, Zipinmail's platform provides them easy and time-saving access to their mail."
Launching Zipinmail
Are you wondering when this world-changing service is coming to your neighborhood? It may not be too long. Zipinmail completed its MVP and launched in four cities a few months ago. They have been upgrading and tweaking the technology, and it is going to market. "Since we started selling, about half a dozen businesses signed up, about 800 consumers signed up, and we're generating revenue as we ramp it up." Vijay explains, "We are seeing strong responses from both consumers and businesses. Our initial digital marketing ads produced a 4.14% click rate, which is almost three times the industry average, and we are experiencing about a 25% close rate with local businesses. The key component of our technology is the fact that it has all the necessary ingredients to eliminate paper mail in terms of sending and receiving. There is no need to print or mail anything to anyone anymore."
Vijay Chetty's Start
"For years, I have been working to reduce paper consumption." With his first start-up, ScanAps, Vijay envisioned electronic coupon distribution, redemption, and clearing for CPG Manufacturers that were dropping over $400 billion worth of paper coupons a year. "That was my first venture, and I raised $10 million and built the technology." Then Vijay started an ad agency. "...We were selling direct mail and printed coupons to local small businesses in the West LA area." It opened his eyes to the incredible amounts of time and money that went into print mail. "And our customers got zero metrics from them. They had no clue who opened it, read it, or took action based on their mail. And I saw that whole process, and it bothered me."
The A-Ha Moment and Beyond
"Two and a half years ago, one fine day when I was picking up my mail, it just dawned on me. I would say it was a eureka moment. And I said, 'Why can't we take this physical mailbox to the cloud?' And there started my Zipinmail journey." Vijay went right to work creating the technology, the patent, and the company. "The moment I got the idea, I started building it. I started drilling down. I asked: Can this be done? Does this product exist in the market? How do we make it happen? We had to be very creative, thinking of delivering mail digitally to a physical address. It took us a while to even figure out how to design this like an email and transmit data based on a mailing address. It wasn't just given to us."
Vijay and his team have gone through many iterations. "Anytime you have something new, it is difficult. We had to figure out how to create that mailbox in the cloud, what components were needed, and what the system configurations would be. It took us six months just to figure out data transmission based on a mailing address." All data transmission in the World Wide Web today is based on an IP Address, URL, domain name, one-line email address, sharing links from Dropbox or Google Drive, social media, text, etc. Zipinmail has created an alternate form of communication based on a mailing address that has multiple lines of data, including their first & last name, street number and name, city, state, and zip code.
"We are the first company to develop a vision and technology to transmit data based on a mailing address with multiple lines of alphanumeric characters packaged in your address. Ultimately, we have created an alternate communication platform that minimizes waste and saves trees. Trees are the lungs of planet Earth. Trees give us oxygen and absorb carbon dioxide and heat. And globally, we are destroying 400 million trees yearly for paper mail." shares Vijay passionately.
Vijay Chetty's Zipinmail is killing many birds with one stone as it completes its MVP and launches in various cities. And with it, a world without printed and physical mail inches closer. The platform's early success demonstrates its potential to minimize paper waste and money and reduce the staggering loss of millions of trees annually. The mission is not only an admirable one but one that makes total sense.
To sign up for Zipinmail, click here.
