I don’t know what I’d do without online postage. My pet peeve is standing in line, and there’s nothing worse than standing in line at the Post Office, if you ask me.
To make it even worse, some of the sourpuss postal clerks just hate to see us online booksellers lugging our day’s worth of sales up to the counter. That’s another pet peeve of mine: Being hated for bringing someone business.
And there’s more: In the past year or two, Post Offices have been outfitted with a new postage printing system that works much slower than the older system, which can make your time with the clerk even longer. Another pet peeve: New, “improved” technology that makes tasks harder to do, not easier.
I’ve been using online postage practically since I started selling books six years ago. I print my postage at home and drop my packages at my Post Office’s loading dock — half the time, they don’t even know I’ve been there. And hardly a day goes by when the thought doesn’t go through my mind, “What will I do if Endicia is down and I can’t print postage tomorrow?”
But believe it or not, there are some people who actually enjoy going to the Post Office. Here’s a note I received from Carlos Sandoval, who looks forward to taking in his mail every day. If you take your mail to the counter too, pay attention, because Carlos a great idea for making your trip more pleasant, especially during this holiday season. He’s been through the drill so many times, he knows the Postal Service’s computer system better than most of the clerks:
Call me old fashioned, I still like the interaction with people and like to talk with the people behind the postal counter. And so it goes for the many years I’ve been selling books, CDs, and movies online.But a funny thing happened just a month before the busy holiday season — the USPS decided to outfit all their Post Offices with a new system complete with new software and touch-screen display units. This was supposed to streamline the processing of mail. But, alas, it did the opposite — many counter personnel complained that it slowed down processing with answering of many questions, slow refreshing of many screens of information, just to process one piece of mail. And, of course, there was learning a new system in a short amount of time.
So standing there with stacks of mail to process was starting to wear on me and the counter person. I could see the frustration they were experiencing, and what was once a pleasant visit was fast turning into drudgery. But I noticed what was going on with the new system. The clerk put on a piece of mail, typed in the Zip code, and proceeded to punch at the flat screen before them, waiting five seconds for the next screen and punch another response, wait for the next screen, and so on. Finally it would spit out a label and it would be applied to the package. On to the next.
Want to be a hero to that person behind the counter? Here’s the secret. Tell them to quit punching the screen, keep their hands on
the keyboard. Each of the “buttons” they have to “push” on the screen correspond to the F keys (function keys) on their keyboards. So on a particular display, F1 equals the first button, F2 is the second, F3 the third, and so on. By memorizing or writing down the series of F keys you are hitting for each type of mailing (Media Mail, First Class, Priority), you can speed up the processing dramatically. For instance, I know the “code” for processing First Class mail is: Put in the zip code, F2, F4, F8, F1 (the first screen of information the second button is always pushed, the second screen the fourth, etc.). So instead of waiting for each screen to come up, the clerk types Zip code, F2, F4, F8, F1. And as he is waiting for the label, he takes the package off the scale and is ready to enter the next package as soon as the label is dispensed. The “code” is different, of course, for all the other kinds of services, especially if there is Delivery Confirmation or insurance. Caution the clerk when entering Priority Mail, the different screens for regular Priority Mail and Flat Rate Priority.Processing time for my Post Office visit used to average about a half hour for a box of miscellaneous packages; it’s now reduced to as little as ten minutes. I still have postal clerks thanking me for teaching them this shortcut that isn’t in any of the postal manuals.
Related posts:
![[Google]]( http://www.weberbooks.com/selling/wp-content/plugins/easy-adsenser/google-light.gif)
10 Comments
Carlos Sandoval. I know that guy! He got me started in this crazy online selling biz almost 10 years ago. Thank you, thank you, thank you.
I enjoy the interaction at the post office as well. Great tip on how to speed up the “new” postal processing system. My time at the counter has increased tremendously since it was introduced. I’m going to copy the info Carlos shared and hand it out as Christmas presents to my counter people. I’m just surprised I had to read about it here. I thought I was on the fast trak for his selling tips : )
Carlos, see ya at the Stanley in Estes Park for Christmas.
All you guys who would rather print postage at home/office and drop the book, what do you do with internatioanl posting. I hate to stand in line just to send my international packages out. Is there any faster or shorter way around it ? I use endicia postage and send most of my mail by either Global Priority mail or M-Bag. Any input or help would be highly appreciated.
I also swear by online postage; I have used Endicia for 1/1/2 years, but there are several others, including USPS’s own free system, at USPS.com – except that it still won’t produce labels for Media Mail! Before then, I used the USPS Shipping Assistant program to produce my labels and applied stamps – but that called for waiting in line for all items over 1 lb.
I now drop off everything already labeled (with my color logo on them as well) at the loading dock, including most international items. They will take care of postmarking the form (I attach the part they keep with a small piece of tape), or give me back my copy. Admittedly I haven’t used M-Bags yet, so I might have to take them in , but out of courtesy/selfishness I see no/little reason to delay other customers with my waiting in line and having the clerk do what I can do at home. Lastly though, I will take the time to pass on a copy of Carlos’s info, since it is terrible that USPS DIDN’T put in their own user’s manual!
We use ebay/paypal labels and it has worked really well for us. I love not having to type in the address, the automatic notices sent to buyers and the item being automatically marked as shipped. The only thing you can’t print is economy shipping for international.
We use media mail, so for free pick up at the door, we upgrade the lightest package to priority and wha-la for a dollar and change, we don’t go to the post office except on the rare occasion of a economy international. By the way, a Global Priority Envelope counts as a Prioiry box for free pick up!
So to recap, thats one priority box the post office picks up and 32 media mail boxes ride along with it! LOVE IT!!
I am a fairly “newbie” only been doing this since March. But,I quickly discovered AOB and Endicia and Post Office pickup. My Post lady picks them up without Priority everytime. Sometimes I have 2 or 3 and sometimes none. We figured it averaged out. Of course we are on first name basis and I give her books on Antiques – that she loves. What is a M bag?
The post office has opened several “contracting offices” in my area. The local copy store is my daily visit. Thank God they do not have the “new” system. This is how I get out of there in a jiffy: Media mail postage is set up as one price for each pound. My clerk weighs each package and makes 1,2 and 3 pound piles. Then she simply counts how many are in each pile and prints the amount for that pile all at once. ( example: 10 books at 1 pound and 10 stickers print pronto!) Then she gives me the stickers to put on while she prints out the next pile. The customers behind me are sure relieved when they thought they would be standing there forever!
The clerks also smile and greet me warmly each day.
One PO clerk told me that their performance is rated by the percentage of Priority Mail packages they process. So, if during the day one clerk has 50 packages, 10 of them being Priority, and the other has 100 packages, 12 of them being Priority, the first clerk’s performance is rated higher! Thus, they hate Media Mail packages because they drag down their performance numbers.
I use a contract post office too and have gotten to know those who own it well…personal touch makes all the difference and agree it is a blessing they don’t have the ‘new improved system’…
Read about new USPS legislation here
http://reform.house.gov/GovReform/News/DocumentSingle.aspx?DocumentID=54110
It sounds like the USPS will be able to raise rates without Congress’ approval. And they say they are losing money on media rate. ..so are we to assume media mail may be on the way out? Just wondering if anybody has heard anything.
If you are in a small town, it helps to become known to the clerks. Some will just say “all Media?” and process my books without weighing them, because they know my weights are always accurate. I use stamps since I don’t have enough volume to justify a meter or an online service. If you just put the correct postage and the clerks know youi, the process takes muich less time and effort.