Advising customers of postal delays

[padraicpaul91]

Whilst ebay and Australia have  finally recognized the severity of delays in deliveries, I have found many customers are not aware of it's extent. Several customers have asked what's going on or started 'item not received' disputes. 

My most outstanding item, lodged September 3rd, was delivered Monday October 4th, to Port Macquarie. Of the five items I lodged September 15th, only one has been delivered, here in metro Melbourne. The others  had the message 'delayed- waiting to be processed'.  Strangely, most items for the rest of that week  have now been delivered.

From a fortnight ago, I have been contacting customers, outside metro Melbourne, advising of likely severe delays for most items, and offering cancellation if the time frame doesn't suit. Only one cancellation, as it was to be a gift. The others that do respond are accepting of the situation.

I'm wondering how other sellers, experiencing the same sort of delays, are communicating with their customers.

[jellybirddesigns]

What is your handling time? Mine is currently 3 days, but I'm going to go back to 10 days to give myself a buffer.

I'm in Perth and last year when I had orders on the east coast, I would contact them before sending and thank them for their order and also mention that mail was taking at least 2-3 weeks and possibly longer. I didn't have anyone come back and say they wanted to cancel - most just were happy that I let them know. Items had tracking anyway, so people could certainly log on and look for themselves.

[twyngwyn]

I'm in Adelaide and have a 10 day handling time (even though I post every day) since Covid started. My f/b reflects 'fast postage', as I've found most people don't look at handling times.

I sent a 5kg parcel to Melbourne last month, and it was missorted via Perth (showing clearly on the tracking) - good job it was to one of my repeat buyers, who understood.

[motor*magz]

I'm wondering how other sellers, experiencing the same sort of delays, are communicating with their customers.

I just wait for a message from the buyer or if an item not recieved case opens..

Which happened recently

Complained he didn't get tracking updates too.

I put in the tracking number and saw It was delivered soon after (this data isn't accurate in ebay's system.

Responded to the case accordingly, AP delivery drivers in his area have been sick (shortage) & due to covid restrictions in melbourne, and asked the buyer to close the cases (3) he didn't which holds my funds longer.

I had to call ebay to have the case closed for him.

[motor*magz]

I'm wondering how other sellers, experiencing the same sort of delays, are communicating with their customers.

[digital*ghost]

So far I haven't really needed to, eBay's ETAs seem to have been relatively ok, and with everything being tracked, buyers may be a bit more patient because they can at least see I've posted it. Last week I did have a couple of messages re: delayed items, and earlier I got a message just asking me why the package said it was delayed, but it's easier for me to deal with those as they come in than try to message all buyers up front. 

I'm in Adelaide, though, so sorting and dispatch delays don't seem to be occurring much from here, and it may just be that those in the most affected states are more aware that extensive delays can / will happen so won't query it until delays really become noticeable. Could be that sellers who sell non-essential or at least non-urgent items have it a little easier, as well. 

Tangentially related, I received an email yesterday from a carrier I used to send with for international parcels - it seems someone else is considering doing domestic deliveries in Aus (they only do international at the moment, the email just had a survey asking what were the most important factors when looking at / for delivery partners). If they get in the game and can be competitive and consistent enough, maybe they will pick up some of the slack. 

[springyzone]

I can only tell it from the point of view of a buyer.

I recently (sept 12) made an ebay purchase from someone on the other side of metro Melb. That person messaged me next day to say they had posted it. There was a 10-14 day delivery window which would normally be plenty of time.

As it turned out, the item only arrived at the end of last week, so it was overdue.  I knew about the postal delays and I had good vibes about the seller so i was prepared to wait it out quite a bit longer if I had needed to.

So.. what makes me more confident about a transaction?

* When an item is marked in My ebay as 'sent' fairly promptly. It might seem a little thing but it is one of the easiest ways to 'communicate' with a buyer as to what is happening. If that doesn't get marked, buyers wonder if it has even been sent.

* Tracking number. My last purchase didn't have one uploaded but it was a parcel and when it arrived I noticed it has one stuck on the prepaid bag. If I were selling at the moment, I would make it my business to upload a tracking number if I had one.

* Messaging. I don't know that it is necessary on every sale you make. Depends on how many thing you sell, I guess. If it is an occasional sale, you might have the time to just drop a quick note to say an item has been posted but please be aware there are possible delays in delivery at the moment. As I said, my last item had no tracking but what made me more confident in the transaction was the fact the seller had messaged me the day after sale. Had I not had that message, combined with the fact there was no tracking, I might have become concerned a lot earlier.
* delivery date range. Set it back quite a ways, if you can. It is only human nature for buyers to look at the ETA and anything that doesn't come by then is in their mind, running 'late'. Some buyers will be fine and allow extra time, some won't; people are a mixed bag, so pad out the delivery range so you won't look 'late' too early.

* If the worst happens and a buyer messages you about something running late, respond within 24 hours, giving details such as date sent and explain the situation then. Nothing is more likely to cause doubt than an untracked parcel not delivered by ETA and a seller not responding to messages. Try to mitigate those 3 things.

[lynne8221]

I send this message when I post my items & have not had one complaint re: late delivery - obviously change state to where posted - if it's WA or NT I use 3-4 weeks.

Thanks for the prompt payment.

Posted your book this morning, hope you enjoy it!

Please note this advice from Australia Post:-

DELAYS DUE TO REDUCED CAPACITY...

"Due to increased parcel volumes and temporary staff reductions at processing facilities we’re experiencing additional delivery delays, and Victoria is particularly impacted. VIC to NSW is taking between 1-2 weeks.

We are processing items as fast as we can, and will keep you updated as your item moves through our processing facilities.

For more information please check Australia Post coronavirus impacts page."

Regards
Lynne

[bmanly3]

Could sellers please advise. at what point to you contact Australia Post with a stuck item? In my case I sent a registered letter and it took a week to go from Sydney to Perth Airport. Since then it just keeps showing Perth Airport. Then a week later it came up with the 12:00 Noon notice Perth Airport "Delayed - waiting to be processed for delivery". It is now 2 weeks and 4 days and there has been no further updates. So how long before you lodge a missing parcel enquiry?

[padraicpaul91]

My handling time is 3 days. I would prefer longer but I found that any longer and my listings were disappearing from international sites, with the exception of the UK. International sales did make almost half my turnover, pre covid.  For close to a year I did have a 10 day handling period which seemed to become redundant earlier this year.

This may be a particularly Melbourne problem. Since mid September, many, many of my parcels are taking up to 3 weeks to be processed before transit begins. The complaints I have received are from that time.

[padraicpaul91]

At the moment, I have set 5 weeks as the time to contact AP. That is how long my outstanding parcel took to get to Port Macquarie from Melb. I have several parcels due to reach that period in the next week. Not sure that will help anyone now that AP is no longer publishing delivery estimates.