Talkies trumped silent films. Video killed the radio star. But your local post office doesn't intend to be the next victim of progress.

"The majority of people don't write letters anymore. They don't send greeting cards. They text and Twitter and a lot of people pay their bills online," said North Bend Postmaster Carter Clark.

In fact, less than half of Pacific Power customers pay their bills through snail mail these days, said spokesman Tom Gaunt. Each year, more people are opting to submit payments online.

With a recession compounding those trends, Clark and his fellow postmasters are making changes to improve customer service. They're streamlining routes and teaching business owners what the postal service has to offer. A recently launched campaign allows customers to mail anything 70 pounds or less for a flat fee.

"It's not like we have stuck our heads in the sand as an organization, and think that we can continue to do business the way that we have for the last 230 years, and still be viable," Clark said.

In some ways, the Web is a boon. The Postal Service is pushing its online services, such as Click-N-Ship and Pick Up on Demand, particularly to small businesses. Customers are also directed online to change addresses, buy stamps and print postage.

"A lot of people who use eBay and mail priority packages" are using those services, Coos Bay Postmaster Kelly Muntifering said. "A lot of business customers use it now, too."

One local businesses that depends on the mail is We Sell It For You in North Bend. The shop puts items on eBay for clients who don't want to cope with auctioning and shipping items themselves. Steve Wilson, co-owner of the nearly two-year-old business, said he mails at least five packages per day, six days a week. He said he also schedules pickups and takes advantage of special deals such as the flat-rate boxes.

For domestic sales, he sends about 80 percent via the postal office and 20 percent through UPS. For international shipments, Wilson uses the post office nearly 100 percent of the time. He explained that eBay customers generally choose the cheapest shipment option, and the post office generally fits the bill.

That's a big deal for customers, who sometimes decide whether to bid on an item depending on the shipping cost.

"It's not unusual for the price to ship to be higher than the cost of the item," Wilson said.

Though Wilson conducts an online business, he couldn't do it without the Postal Service.

"It's absolutely critical simply because I probably could not sell the volume that I do now."

Not everyone is so reliant on the Postal Service. The agency saw an unprecedented decline in mail volume this year.

Third-quarter mail totaled 41.6 billion pieces, down 14.3 percent from a year ago. The Postal Service reduced expenses by cutting 88 million work hours so far this fiscal year - the equivalent of 57,000 full-time employees.

In Coos Bay, Muntifering said his carriers are packing lighter loads. He has noticed fewer catalogs and magazines. His office's volume is off by about 1.4 million pieces this year, or about 17 percent.

In response to the decline, the Coos Bay post office cut routes twice in the past eight months. Where there were 20 mail carriers for city deliveries, now there are 17.

"Because there has been less mail per delivery, we've had to make the routes longer," Muntifering said.

There haven't been any layoffs, but those who have retired or left have not been replaced, he said.

North Bend likewise has reduced routes. Myrtle Point's post office has made a route adjustment and reduced employee hours, said Karen Olsen, officer in charge.

Those reductions affect communities. According to federaljobs.net, full-time mail carriers earn between $41,000 and $54,000 annually. Rural carriers can make even more.

 "For every postal job you lose, you lose half of another job in the community," said Bruce Sorte, community economist for Oregon State University's Rural Studies Program.

Clark said a civilized society will always require postal delivery. People need to ship packages, and the mail is part of the fabric of American life.

"We could ask our American soldiers what they'd rather get: an e-mail or a letter? You can ask grandmas what they'd rather get: an e-mail or a card?" Clark said. "You can't ship someone's forgotten blankey through the Internet."