Sendle as eBay's preferred carrier

[1076johnw]

Sendle has been the default postage method for local eBay sellers for some time now.

Sellers should be aware that Sendle are not couriers, they are courier brokers who farm out a vast proportion of their parcels to Aramex (formerly known as Fastway) and Couriers Please. At the moment, I have two separate parcels that are 

“currently being processed at a sortation facility” by Aramex for the seventh day in a row.

Aramex are not so much couriers as an invitation to grief.  Here is their feedback .

https://www.productreview.com.au/listings/aramex-courier

94% of the 1,446 reviewers rated them one star out of five (and many of those lamented the lack of a zero star option) Pretty impressive, huh?

And if you’re wondering how they went in their previous incarnation as Fastway Couriers, well here you go:

https://www.productreview.com.au/listings/fastway

93% of the 7,929 reviewers rated them one star.

So, my question to sellers is, do you care enough about your buyers to refrain from using Sendle or is it a case of  hey, they'll pick up my parcel and they’re cheap – who cares?

For my part, as a seller, I'll use Australia Post every time - they're not perfect by any means but still a whole lot less likely to result in complaints from buyers over postage time. As a buyer, I'll be checking the seller's postage details to make sure they're using Australia Post and not Sendle or Aramex.

[springyzone]

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@sugar249 wrote:

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Hmm, you said the site was built for complainers.

I don't think that is necessarily the case.

I think the site was built for reviews.

It is the same as feedback on ebay. That wasn't built for complainers either. In fact I imagine ebay hopes they will have lots of buyers singing the praises of various sellers.

But it is a fact of life I think that people in general are more inclined to complain when things go wrong than they are to praise when things go right and that is true of writing reviews or giving feedback.

In their defence, I have to say productreview does encourage proof of purchase and that is shown next to any review.

My experience on the site is that a review doesn't have to be 5 star to be overall positive.

[jteh001]

I should clarify that Sendle do have an online chat option that was a bit of a chore to find (standard procedure for big brand outsourced companies). It was not a good sign, though, that Sendle call their reps "Customer Happiness Champions".
Companies who do **bleep** like that have all sorts of marketing wonks running things who've made a career out of being loose with the truth, and backstabbing competent people who can actually do the work.
I mean, look at how our country is doing with Scotty from Marketing...

Anyway, when I chatted to their "Champion", they just rattled off textbook scripted responses instead of doing anything constructive to get my parcel to where it was supposed to be even though it was clear it was in limbo for almost a week, and we were 1 day off their late parcel enquiry date.
Now that another "Champion" has just told me that they've lost my package, and I have 10 business days to lodge a claim provided I jump through more hoops for them - 3 weeks since I dropped off the parcel, and a week after I started the late parcel enquiry - I have to wonder whether "happiness" is overrated.

[sugar249]

All good, but no different to dealing with Australia post,  you still have set time periods,  process's to follow, customer experience people (that was 2 weeksago, could be happiness guru today),  etc, etc.

What I am saying be it Sendle, Australia Post, Toll, etc, etc, etc.  Its all the same

[davewil1964]

 Its all the same

No it's not.

AP carry their own parcels and will refund the sender if the item shows as non-delivered. Without too many hassles, from my experience.

[sugar249]

I was more relating to the quality of service and process for lost parcels.  Yes they do carry their own parcels but thats the only difference.  They (AP) still loose parcels (I know from experience).

And I know a few people who have had refunds from Sendle.

[sugar249]

Just a PS to that,  The majority of Australia Post delivery people are independent contractors,  and they are paid a pittance,  and the care factor is very low (I have inside contacts).

[davewil1964]

Irrelevant.

Ap will refund if their system shows non-delivery.

Anecdotally, from many members (except you, of course), Sendle and many other couriers leave a lot to be desired.

Go your own way, I suppose

[denhams]

It's worth noting however that every time I've had an issue with Australia post regarding a delivery they have solved it whereas with Sendle you can often hear nothing back, period. If it doesnt work out with Sendle they basically ignore you.

[cam-2793]

it doesnt work out with Sendle they basically ignore you.

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@denhams wrote:

It's worth noting however that every time I've had an issue with Australia post regarding a delivery they have solved it whereas with Sendle you can often hear nothing back, period. If it doesnt work out with Sendle they basically ignore you.

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Or say they have fixed the problem when they haven't!

This is a problem with outsourcing generally, the more layers and double-handling, the greater the chance for things to go wrong.

If you are going to use a courier, use a courier. Not an outsourcing business, which sendle is.

[dacam-2441]

your 100% right,sendle has broken the items I’ve sold & still delivered them to the buyer-(many times),I’ve had to offer to send a replacement at my own cost, it’s the time I’ve got to spend messaging the buyer & resending a replacement + the time i wasted to send the broken item that really annoy’s me