The Andalusia Star-News has implemented a new system in its circulation department to help serve subscribers better.

That new service is a telephone number set up specifically for subscribers who don't receive their newspaper on Saturday mornings.

"We established this number, 222-8887, extension 337, so that subscribers can call in and tell us that their paper was missed," said Jeff Moore, circulation director of the Star-News. "That number will be checked several times between 7 and 9 a.m. Our carrier will check the messages and deliver the missed paper to the customer."

That's a step in better customer service Moore said.

"In the past, we may not have always been able to reach everyone on Saturday, but as long as a subscriber calls in before 9 a.m., we will be able to get their paper to them. We're doing all we can to continue to improve our quality of service. This system has been in place for a few weeks now and is working great. There are fewer complaints over the weekend and fewer missed papers."

In addition to the new telephone number for missed papers, the circulation has a new address to remit payments to.

"We have centralized our circulation payment center," he said. "The new address is printed on the subscription statements and some people may not think it's the right address because it's in Birmingham."

The new address, Andalusia Star-News, P.O. Box 2153, Birmingham, Ala., 35287-5030, is actually a faster way to renew your subscription than physically bringing it into the Star-News office.

"This new address in Birmingham is easier and better for subscribers," Moore said. "When a subscription renewal is sent to that address, it is updated daily, directly into the computer system. People can still bring their renewals in, but it takes longer to get it entered into the system. There's about a two-day turnaround using that method."

Of course, just because the address has changed doesn't mean that the Star-News has changed.

"We still operate completely out of Andalusia, it's just the circulation system that has changed," he said. "All of our carriers are local and still deliver your paper daily. Plus, we still provide the best local news, sports and community events in Covington County. This is just a way we can improve on our service to the people of Covington County."