Method
Four research notes, one evidence standard
The SOW is specific: benchmark against foreign posts, benchmark against domestic competitors, review the UX of revenue-generating tasks, and identify revenue opportunities that survive the Postal Service's legal reality. Our method treats each note as a queryable evidence base first and prose second.
T1 · SOW 3.a
Research note: USPS digital channels vs. foreign postal operators
Postal, non-postal commercial, and non-postal government services offered digitally by foreign posts; how posts monetize their digital channels; which offerings are common vs. emerging. Max 5 single-spaced pages plus attachments.
See the working previewT2 · SOW 3.b
Research note: USPS digital channels vs. domestic competitors
Digital offerings from Amazon, UPS, FedEx, and other domestic parcel operators; how competitors monetize their websites; comparison of digital revenue-stream types (not amounts). Max 5 single-spaced pages plus attachments.
See the working previewT3 · SOW 3.c
Research note: UX of revenue-generating tasks on USPS digital channels
Broad heuristic review (not usability testing, not 508 review) of purchasing postage, stamps, and merchandise on usps.com and the USPS Mobile App; barriers and friction that suppress completion. Capped at 20 percent of the overall budget by the SOW.
See the working previewT4 · SOW 3.d
Research note: revenue-generation opportunities from USPS digital channels
Modifications to existing streams and entirely new digital revenue streams with estimated revenue, explicitly screened against the Postal Service's status as a government agency. Builds on Tasks 1-3.
See the working previewEvidence standard
How the benchmark holds up under audit
Every cell carries a source
Each entry in the benchmark matrices records what the capability is, the operator's own documentation for it, and the date we captured it. When the OIG's white paper cites a comparison, the underlying evidence is one click deep, not reconstructed from memory.
Common vs. emerging, explicitly
The SOW asks for common digital offerings plus non-common offerings that signal emerging trends. The matrix encodes provision status per operator, so 'common' is a computed fact (how many of the set offer it), not an impression.
Revenue mechanics, not revenue amounts
Tasks 1 and 2 compare the ways digital channels generate revenue, not the amounts. We catalog monetization mechanics (transaction fees, subscriptions, advertising, commissions, government service fees) per operator and map which mechanics USPS does and does not use.
Fresh capture, not recycled surveys
Digital channels change quarterly. Everything on this portal was captured in August 2026 from operator sites, annual reports, and UPU research; under the engagement each fact is re-verified at fieldwork time.
Task 3 method
A heuristic review by people who build checkout flows
The SOW rules out usability testing and 508 assessment. What remains is expert review, and expert review is only as good as the experts' scar tissue. HSG ships digital products; we review the purchase path the way an operator would.
Task walkthroughs
We complete each revenue-generating task end to end (buy stamps, print a Click-N-Ship label, file a change of address, renew a PO Box, enroll in Informed Delivery) on desktop web, mobile web, and the USPS Mobile App, recording each step, decision point, and failure mode.
Heuristic scoring
Findings are scored against established heuristics (Nielsen's ten, plus e-commerce checkout benchmarks from published Baymard Institute research) with severity and revenue exposure ratings, which is exactly the 'broad, heuristic review' the SOW specifies in place of usability testing.
Comparative friction
The same tasks are completed on competitor channels, so every USPS friction point is stated with a concrete contrast: the number of steps, fields, and identity gates a customer faces here versus there.
Budget discipline
Planned allocation against the published ceiling
The SOW publishes a $100,000 not-to-exceed price and caps Task 3 at 20 percent of the overall budget. Our plan holds Task 3 at 18 percent and weights the evidence-heavy benchmarks.
Method summary prepared for RFI 6HQOIG-26-A-0008. Allocation percentages are planning figures against the SOW’s published not-to-exceed ceiling; firm pricing would be provided at the RFP stage.