When you think about the Post Office, you probably think about the building downtown with Old Glory flying proudly overhead. About the letters and magazines you get in today’s mail. About the friendly letter carrier who brings them to you-rain or shine.

One thing that may NOT come to mind is the Internet. Yet the U.S. Postal Service operates one of the busier sites on the Web, averaging more than 21 million visitors a month at its award-winning website-usps.com.

At usps.com, you can:

– Submit a change of address request.

– Place your mail on hold.

– Find a Zip Code.

– Purchase stamps and order free Priority Mail and Express Mail shipping supplies.

– Use Click-N-Ship service to ship items without having to leave your home or office.

– Calculate postage rates, print shipping labels with or without postage, even purchase Online insurance, all at one online location. Create letters, booklets, fliers, postcards, greeting cards and more, and have them printed and mailed.

– Schedule a free package pickup for your Express Mail or Priority Mail shipment (available in most locations nationwide).

– Learn how to use the mail to attract and keep new customers and grow your businesses, just as the Fortune 500 companies do. Find out more about Postal Service products.

Give it a try. Go to www.usps.com and check out the many mailing functions you can perform online. It’s quick, easy, and convenient.

For more information about purchasing stamps, stamps by mail, postal regulations, a free subscription to USA Philatelic magazine, Post Office events, the location of the nearest postal store or contract unit, or for answers to your specific Postal Service questions, contact USPS at 1-800-275-8777, or visit www.usps.com.

To schedule a presentation for your community, club or group on how the Postal Service brings the Post Office to your home or office computer, call 573-9638.

Mr. Zip’s Tip: Keeping up with its customers is no small feat for the U.S. Postal Service. Some 14 percent of the nation’s population moves every year. The USPS handles 45 million address changes annually.

An independent federal agency, the U.S. Postal Service is the only delivery service that visits every address in the nation 146 million homes and businesses. It has 37,000 retail locations and relies on the sale of postage, products and services to pay for operating expenses, not tax dollars. The Postal Service has annual revenues of $75 billion and delivers nearly half the world’s mail.