Now, I wonder if they are all required to go through some customer service training because I get asked things like: "Would you like some stamps with that?" "Any insurance, certified mail, return receipt needed?"
Yes, totally - it's all about the up-sell now. Insurance, certified mail, and return receipt are all big profit centers for the P.O. as well - all those added services barely cost more than just regular delivery, so they all end up being a significant markup. USPS insurance is a huge ripoff - companies like U-PIC will insure your USPS packages for less than half of what the USPS charges, and yet they still make money on it - so clearly the USPS could charge much lower rates than it actually does. They also like to push as many stamps on you as they can, because, well, people lose stamps (that's money that you pay the PO for a delivery they never make - how great is that!), and even if they don't lose them, if you buy more stamps than you need it's basically as if you're loaning the post office that amount of money, until you actually stick the stamps on something and mail them out. The PO sells far more in stamp postage each year than it receives back on mailed parcels (stamp collectors contribute to this as well, of course). All in all, it's a win-win for the PO.
The increased emphasis on retail has also come as the post office has gone through successive rounds of belt tightening as the increased use of e-mail and online bill payments has drastically cut down the amount of first class mail being sent. First class mail used to be the #1 revenue earner for the post office, but now it's slowly sliding down on the list. The biggest earner now is bulk mail (junk mail). This is one reason we should all be happy to get junk mail - it helps keep the rates of FCM down, as the profits from that subsidize some of the other rate classes.
Back when I was selling a lot on eBay I spent far too much time mailing parcels out of my local post office, and got to know the local post master really well. She was constantly being pressured to increase her sales and cut down on her costs to help keep the PO within budget. The USPS is completely self-supporting now - it gets no taxpayer subsidies - so if revenues go down, costs have to go down too, somehow (which is difficult, since the USPS still has a universal service mandate - they can't just cut back service in unprofitable areas like UPS or FedEx can). On thing they've also done is to really cut down on the pension benefits and other perks that postal employees used to get, as well as pushed a lot of old-timers into early retirement so they can hire younger, cheaper workers at lower pay grades. They've also moved to sub-contracting out a lot of rural delivery to private contractors (rather than hiring people directly) to further cut down costs.
A few tips and tricks for mailing with the USPS. First off - if you're sending a parcel, send it by Priority Mail. Priority Mail is usually only a little bit more expensive than Parcel Post if your recipient is close, and if your recipient is far away, Parcel Post will probably take two or three weeks for delivery (if the item doesn't get lost). Priority Mail is just plain more reliable and it's really the way to go. Finally, if you ship Priority Mail, you can get free boxes and mailers. That said, if your item is light enough, send it First Class Mail instead of Priority Mail. The deliver times are almost exactly the same (both Priority and FCM are shipped via air for long distances, while Parcel Post always goes on the ground, via truck), but FCM can be up to two or three dollars cheaper. FCM doesn't have to be in letter form - you can ship small boxes that way as well. Finally - if you're selling something on eBay, make sure to get delivery confirmation and insurance (I would recommend U-PIC, but USPS insurance is fine too). That's the only way to protect yourself - if you don't have insurance or proof of delivery, if your buyer says the item wasn't delivered, eBay and PayPal will side with them every time. If you have DC and insurance, then you can at the very least file an insurance claim, and if you're doing that the buyer will be much less likely to mess with you (since it will put them on the hook for insurance fraud, if they're lying and actually did receive the item).
Ce n'est pas une pipe. C'est une signature.
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Re: Chatty Postal workers
Fri Feb 15, 2008 at 09:03:06 PM EST
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If you get insurance isn't delivery confirmation effectively duplicative?
It is easy to buy small plaster models of what you think life is like.
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Re: Chatty Postal workers
Fri Feb 15, 2008 at 10:23:24 PM EST
5.00 (informative, informative)
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No, it's not. Believe it or not, USPS insurance does not provide proof of delivery. The insurance tags do have barcodes on them, but they're not always scanned when the item is delivered, and in any case, whatever information can be had from those bar codes is only for "internal use" - they won't reveal that information to third parties. So, if your buyer claims that he or she did not receive the item, your insurance claim is much more likely to be honored if you have paid for delivery confirmation. If you don't have DC, you're protected against damage to the package, but not necessarily protected against non-delivery (or at the very least, it'll be more difficult to collect than if you have DC). It's a ripoff, but there it is. Also, eBay and PayPal will not accept insurance as proof of delivery - so if someone files a complaint against you, you really need a delivery confirmation number (or even better yet, signature confirmation). If it bothers you, ship by UPS, DHL or FedEx - they're held partially liable by law (a law which the USPS is exempted from, actually) for their shipments. They can limit this liability to $100 (and they do), but that means that you effectively have $100 "free" insurance on your shipment. Plus, they all have much more effective online tracking & delivery confirmation than the USPS does (all USPS DC gives you is proof of delivery - it doesn't really allow you to track the package's progress or give you an expected delivery date).
Ce n'est pas une pipe. C'est une signature.
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Re: Chatty Postal workers
Sat Feb 16, 2008 at 02:22:09 AM EST
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all USPS DC gives you is proof of delivery - it doesn't really allow you to track the package's progress or give you an expected delivery date
You can say that again. I once had a priority package with delivery confirmation take THREE MONTHS to get across the country. Until it gets delivered, the online tracking also says simply "Your package has been accepted at [city where you mailed it]." Moron customer thought that meant it had been delivered to someone else but thankfully paypal actually finally returned their payment to me once the package was successfully delivered THREE MONTHS late. Hey, it happens. At least it got there. I've had some things never arrive.
It is easy to buy small plaster models of what you think life is like.
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Re: Chatty Postal workers
Fri Feb 15, 2008 at 10:10:58 PM EST
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Is it? I was downselled from buying delivery confirmation on a men's watch I had to return for repairs last month. I insured it for market value ($350) and also tried to get delivery confirmation. The woman said to forget it because I would be throwing my money away. Something about a mandatory internal paper trail on all parcels insured above ~$200?
Spread it on!
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Re: Chatty Postal workers
Fri Feb 15, 2008 at 10:31:48 PM EST
4.00 (informative)
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Yeah - that's one caveat I should have added. If it's insured over a certain amount then DC is more or less redundant. I believe that they require a signature for delivery for any item over $200 (although that may have changed, it's been about two years since I quit doing heavy mailing). Also, if you ship it via Express Mail, there's $100 insurance automatically included, plus good online tracking functions. I'd highly recommend Express Mail for shipping any insurable valuables. It is important to keep in mind that some valuables aren't insurable (cash, some jewelry - I forget the other items, I'm too lazy to look it up) - those (as well as anything that needs to be insured for more than the standard insurance limit) need to be sent Registered Mail if you want to have any chance of getting your value back if the shipment is lost. Registered Mail is damn expensive though, and actually a bit slower than most of your other shipping options.
Ce n'est pas une pipe. C'est une signature.
