Amazon accepts seller input on packing slip changes

Based on feedback from Amazon sellers to a proposed design to the "Manage Your Orders" section of its Web site, Amazon has made these revisions (click here and then click again on the image for an enlarged view):

• Added a Pending Orders feature that will allow you to view orders that have not finished processing. You can use this option to help reconcile inventory levels. Previously, you would have needed to access your payments account to obtain this information.
• Updated the packing slip in the following ways:
  • Included the seller contact e-mail address.
  • Added a link to seller feedback.
  • Removed the price information.

Still no word on when the changes will be put into effect. Feedback from sellers is still solicited at sya-changes@amazon.com

Q&A: Why won't the Postal Service take my Media Mail?

QUESTION: I've been selling books online for about three years. The most convenient method for shipping has been Media Mail, leaving them in my mailbox. I carefully weigh each book and affix postage stamps, then stamp the package "Media Mail."

The mailman knows me, and has had no problem dispatching my packages to the Post Office each day. But today, he came to my door and said that he can no longer take the mail, even though he knows me!

Now I have to hand-deliver them to the Post Office. With the thin margins we make, this is a big inconvenience.

ANSWER: It's funny you should bring this up -- I've been having problems with my mailman, too. Sometimes I'll leave him one or two packages, and he never takes it. He's new, and I haven't had a chance to talk with him yet, so maybe he just doesn't understand what's going on.

But usually I go to the Post Office daily anyway. I always have a few crates full, and I've never formally asked for "carrier pickup" because I liked to finish when it's convenient for me, usually in the afternoon, then take my mail to the loading dock of my local Post Office. If I had them pick it up, I'd need to be ready in the morning.

But in any case, Carrier Pickup is one of the basic services touted by the Postal Service. You can even schedule it online. But if you look at the fine print, it seems they may have changed the requirements a bit:

• Carrier pickup is free, regardless of the number of packages you're sending.
• Available for Overnight Guaranteed, 2-3 Day, and International.
• Pickup occurs on the scheduled day when your regular mail is delivered. (Do you need to schedule pickup for a specific time?)
• Packages should be properly sealed and ready for shipment (including postage) at pickup.
• The deadline for pickup requests and changes is 2:00 a.m. (CST) the day your pickup is scheduled.
• Maximum weight per package is 70 lbs.
  

It seems that in the past, you only needed to have one piece of First Class or Priority Mail, and they would take the rest. Now it seems they have some wiggle room to refuse Media Mail. A phone call to your local Postmaster might clarify this.

It seems that will all the rate hikes the Postal Service has been slapping on us, they could afford to improve service instead of slacking off. At the rate they're going though, they could end up putting themselves out of business when it comes to package shippers. Media Mail is still the cheapest option out there, but if the Postal Service wants to keep making it a pain in the neck to deal with them, who knows?

Got that, Newman?

Amazon will raise shipping credits and closing fees

Amazon announced it will adjust Marketplace shipping credits and variable closing fees when the Postal Service changes rates March 14:

To reflect these changes, we will increase Marketplace shipping credits for Books, Music, Movies, Video Games and Software, effective May 14th. The increases will range from $0.39 to $2.51 depending upon the product category and shipping method. In addition, we will implement modest increases to the variable closing fees in these product lines.

A full list of the changes compared with today’s rates is set forth in the charts below. Here is a short summary of the changes:

1. The Books, Video Games and Software standard shipping credit will be increased from $3.49 to $3.99.

2. The Music, DVD and VHS standard shipping credit will increase from $2.59 to $2.98.

3. The Books, Video Games and Software variable closing fee will increase from $1.20 to $1.35.

4. The Music, DVD and VHS variable closing fee will be increased from $0.70 to $0.80.

Shipping credit changes:

Domestic Standard
Current: $3.49, New: $3.99

Expedited
Current: $5.99, New $6.99

International
Current: $9.98, New $12.49

Variable closing fee changes:

	Current	New
Books	$1.20	$1.35

If you have questions about these changes, please contact Seller Support by going to our Help pages and clicking “Selling at Amazon.com,” and then “Contact Customer Service.” If you have feedback about these changes, and you do not need a response, please feel free to write to postage-increase-feedback@amazon.com.

Will the Postal Service sink online booksellers?

Well, here's a new shipping problem that hasn't gotten much attention yet: Next month the Postal Service will eliminate its international version of "Media Mail," which has traditionally been called "surface." This mode of economy shipping is called "surface" because the packages are shipped literally on the "surface" of cargo ships going overseas.

"Surface" mail is certainly slow -- it can take six weeks or more to arrive -- but it's far cheaper than airmail service, and so it's the only option for sending large, heavy books overseas. But it won't be an option anymore next month.

The timing on this really hurts, because:

• The Postal Service is jacking up rates across the board, including Global Priority airmail. On May 14, rates will rise from $9.50 to $11.00 (except for Canada or Mexico, which currently cost $7.50 and will rise to $9).
  

• Marketplaces such as Amazon apparently are expecting sellers to absorb the increased shipping rates. Amazon hasn't announced any plans to increase shipping credits, which are $9.98 for international salees.

This issue got some attention in today's New York Times:

Many thousands of smaller used- and rare-book merchants say they will suffer, since they rely on foreign demand.

"If postage costs as much, if not more, than the book, it'll be hard to sell books," said Rob Stuart, owner of FrenchboroBooks.com, a seller of rare and antique books in Frenchboro, Maine. "And maybe 25 percent or more of my books sell internationally."

"We're already competing with the special deals the Postal Service does with Amazon, eBay and the big book purveyors that get cut rates on postage because of volume," Mr. Stuart said. "So when they drop economy international shipping, they're playing with a model that talks about economies of scale -— one that's balanced by a few huge operations, and wipes out the little operations."

Yvonne Yoerger, a spokeswoman for the Postal Service, said customers aren't yet aware of other options. She said "customized agreements" for surface mail are being developed for higher-volume shippers that will be enhanced over the next several months to address the needs of small businesses. "The Postal Service has a longstanding commitment to small businesses and is working to accommodate customers' needs as the international mail changes take effect," Ms. Yoerger said.

Jordan Gordon, who oversees AbeBooks’s North American bookseller operations, said that from the roughly 8,000 American booksellers who list books on his site, 20 percent of the orders are from foreign customers. “These guys will definitely lose sales, because about half of the international orders they get are shipped at the surface rate,” he said.

Booksellers who specialize in hard-to-find titles will be more heavily affected, Mr. Gordon said. “The Da Vinci Code” will ultimately sell domestically, but there are only a few people in the world interested in, say, an obscure book on medical ethics. And at vastly elevated prices, that book simply will not sell.

Craig Berman, an Amazon spokesman, declined to comment about possible changes in shipping reimbursement policies or on how the new rates might affect Amazon’s business.

Q&A: How much do we have to undercut Amazon to get a sale?

QUESTION: Amazon now shows their book listings at the top of the list, above our Marketplace listings, unless we undercut Amazon by more than $3.49 -- the amount the buyer pays for standard shipping. This is somewhat misleading to the buyer, implying that every purchase from Amazon qualifies for free shipping.

My question: Do you think this is forcing prices even further downward? Are there any statistics showing how many people actually buy more books to get the free shipping deal? Are we effectively now having to give free shipping to compete with Amazon?

ANSWER: I'm not sure if it's driving prices downward -- my guess is yes. But there is no doubt that this policy has made our Marketplace listings less competitive against Amazon's.

There are no statistics on this, all we can do is guess. My guess is that about one-third of customers don't consider our Marketplace listings, even when we've got the best deal. Some people just believe it's "safer" buying from Amazon. And I suppose there's another big chunk of buyers who just buy the first listing they see, regardless of the feedback or the price.

But I would not arbitrarily discount by $3.50 below Amazon's price unless the average price is well below there. If there is any demand for the book, a smart buyer who doesn't qualify for free shipping is going to buy from you. So, if possible, wait for the smart buyer.

It's tough to compete with a landlord that gives themselves top billing and a sign that says "Fulfilled by Amazon." Here's a good example of how tough it is to compete: Currently I'm conducting an experiment by selling some slightly shopworn copies of my book Plug Your Book on Marketplace for $11.99. It's a new title so there's no used copies listed except for my listing. So here's the way it looks:

Now, you'd think I'd be getting most of the sales, right? The buyer saves $7.50 if they buy from me and pick standard shipping, versus buying from Amazon and paying for standard shipping. Even if they qualify for Amazon's free shipping, they still save $3.51 if they buy from me.

But I'm only getting about 30 percent of the sales -- the rest are going to Amazon and the Marketplace sellers who are selling new copies.

How to be a hero instead of a villain at the Post Office

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.

Q&A: How can I deal with customer complaints about Media Mail?

QUESTION: I'm concerned and frustrated by what seems to be a growing number of e-mails about Postal Service delivery problems. Some of the complaints are rather hostile, as in "Refund my money or I'll report you!"

I understand this is a hazard to be expected, but it seems as if the number of inquiries is on the upswing lately. I haven't been doing anything different in recent weeks: I use Endicia (with delivery confirmation for all domestic shipments) and ship an average of four to six books daily. Is there something I should be doing to ensure fewer delivery problems (say, use insurance with every shipment) or am I simply at the mercy of the U.S. Postal Service? And has the Postal Service gotten more slack recently in its handling of Media Mail?

It's getting aggravating having to send so much e-mail either reassuring people to hang tight another day or two, or -- in the case of books that somehow haven't left a Post Office along the way more than two weeks after I shipped them -- issuing refunds and telling people to keep the damn book if it ever gets there (I don't put it that way to customers, of course) with my compliments and apologies for the exceedingly slow USPS service. Am I handling this the right way?

ANSWER: Sounds like you're doing OK to me. I wouldn't change anything, we are at the mercy of the Postal Service. The only way around this would be to ship everything First Class/Priority, and that would be giving away too much profit. Insurance is out of the question, I never use it unless the book is worth more than $200.

I've never been able to discern a pattern in the promptness or reliability of the Postal Service. You would assume that the holidays would be worse than other times of the year, but on average, I notice faster delivery in December than, say, August.

I think the main problem with our customers is that people nowadays don't understand Media Mail. Years ago, when it was called "Book Rate" there was more recognition that it was economy-class, slow mail. Today, consumers have no concept of delivery taking a few weeks or so in some cases. I've had several Marketplace customers all but call me a liar when I've said things like "Media Mail delivery can take a few weeks."

Their response is usually something like, "I use the Postal Service all the time, and they always deliver in 3 to 4 days!"

But did they use Media Mail? Of course not!

So I keep a script handy that I send to people when they ask questions like this. In 95 percent of my cases, I've already sent the customer a shipment confirmation e-mail but they didn't read it.

When I respond to their inquiry, I usually give them the tracking info (again) which tends to reassure them that I indeed dropped the package when they ordered it. I also politely inform them or remind them that they had a choice between slow delivery (standard) and fast (expedited) and they chose slow.

The way I put that is: "For future reference, you can obtain two-day delivery from Marketplace sellers by selecting 'expedited' shipping at checkout instead of 'standard.' 'Expedited' costs $2 extra but it pays for airmail and can be well worth it if you're in a hurry to get the book."

For people who seem to be really concerned that they're going to lose their money, I usually add: "In the extremely unlikely event your book doesn't arrive within 30 days of purchase, please let me know and I'll assist you in getting a refund from Amazon." (That means I'll probably give them instructions for filing an A to Z Refund claim.)

Having a script for inquiries like this is a big time-saver, you just tweak your basic script to fit the situation at hand. And if you're already having a bad day, the script helps stop you from sounding too sarcastic when you're replying to yet another bone-headed customer.

As to the hostile customers, treat them like any other. Give them the same reply as you'd give a polite customer. You'll get used to it when your skin gets a little thicker, and learn how not to take it personally. After all, just because they're a jerk doesn't mean it should ruin your day too.

If anyone has another twist on handling this, please chime in with a comment.