stamps.com ?
- Thread starter eshell
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Help Support Soapmaking Forum:
Do you want to ship USPS first class? If so, then stamps.com or endicia.com are two online options. If you just want to ship USPS priority or express mail, then try the free Click n Ship service at USPS.com. I tried endicia.com some years ago, and it works fine. Almost all of my shipping is priority mail or UPS, howeer, so I couldn't see the point of paying for the ability to ship USPS first class if I don't use it. --DeeAnna
paillo
Well-Known Member
I tried it. Nice to be able to stamp and send first-class pachages, but to me it wasn't worth the $15 per month, I just don't send enough. I use either Etsy's internal shipping or the USPS Click and Ship, both of which are free. For the rare times I need to send first-class I make a trip to the PO.
What volume and type of packages do you ship per week? If you are doing a fair amount of first class, stamps.com might be worth the cost. I hate standing in line at the PO, so if I had to do that, the stamps.com subscription would start looking real nice. If you do only a first class package or two every few weeks, like I do, a good postage scale, a postage rate table, and a good supply of stamps might be plenty good.
I have taken the time cultivate a good relationship with my local postmaster. If I have a question, problem, or concern, she is very happy to talk with me about it, because she knows I want to work with the PO to make the work as easy as possible for all concerned.
My shipping costs in my little business (not soapmaking) are about $4000 a year, but it's almost all Priority Mail or UPS. I can make Click n Ship really fly after years of using it.
Say, last time I checked, "flat rate" packages are Priority Mail, not first class. Has USPS added "first class" flat rate shipping now?
--DeeAnna
I have taken the time cultivate a good relationship with my local postmaster. If I have a question, problem, or concern, she is very happy to talk with me about it, because she knows I want to work with the PO to make the work as easy as possible for all concerned.
My shipping costs in my little business (not soapmaking) are about $4000 a year, but it's almost all Priority Mail or UPS. I can make Click n Ship really fly after years of using it.
Say, last time I checked, "flat rate" packages are Priority Mail, not first class. Has USPS added "first class" flat rate shipping now?
--DeeAnna
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usps.com is free and flat rate priority shipping is cheaper online than at the post office. You also have the option of using regional boxes (which you have to order but they are free). I would say check there first and see if that meets your needs.
sweethavenarts
Well-Known Member
I just have to say that priority mail is a JOKE right now. My in laws sent my bday present a week before my bday and I got it close to two weeks after my bday. :-( We also just had a package come within an hour of our house, only to turn around and get shipped back to the sender. So beware of priority mail!
If you look long enough, you will find stories about problems with every shipping company, whether USPS, UPS, FedEx, or whatever. Even I have a few stories to tell. Most of the shipping business we do every year is with USPS, a modest amount with UPS, and a little bit with FedEx. We have occasional problems with every one, but not enough for me to give up on any of them.
Our main problems are weather related delays (especially around Christmas time), customers giving us incorrect addresses (transposed numbers, wrong spelling, etc), packages going to large businesses (packages get "lost" in the mail room), unrealistic expectations (customers who expect premium 1- or 2-day service, but only want to pay for standard shipping), and the occasional customer who ignores UPS and USPS delivery notices. We also have a few problems every year with USPS packages that go through Kentucky routing facilities. Go figure.
I can't speak to your issues with your two USPS shipments, Sweet, and I don't mean to downplay your troubles. Just sharing my experiences.
--DeeAnna
VanessaP
Well-Known Member
I agree with DeeAnna. All carriers have problems.
I ordered my color laser printer from HP on a Sunday. They have a warehouse in the Memphis area, so it shipped quickly and would have been a next day delivery for me. Except the shipping label fell off the box. So I called FedEx Tuesday afternoon to find out the box had already been sent back to the HP warehouse. So I have to call HP and tell them what's going on, wait while she confirms with FedEx, then have a new printer shipped out. Guess what? Thursday afternoon, I check tracking and the label on the second shipment had to be reprinted due to illegibility. I did receive it that Friday though.
I've not had an issue with priority in a long time. One of the few things the PO seems to be doing right here lately.
i use stamps.com for the last few weeks actually and have had a good experience. if you call and ask to be changed to below a pro. level so the charge is 9.99 a month after the trial period. you get shipping credit worth $10 for a few months so it cancels out. by then you will figure out if you like it or not 
Okay, I shipped my first two packages via Priority using the Click-n-Ship which surprisely was very easy to use. The only issue I ran into was that I had to type out every address. Is there an easier way to do this? Is there a way to import them that I'm missing?
Thank you guys for all your help!
P.S. DeeAnna, you were right. Flat rate pkgs are priority. I don't know what I was thinking.
Thank you guys for all your help!
P.S. DeeAnna, you were right. Flat rate pkgs are priority. I don't know what I was thinking.
Unless you are using an e-store that has an "app" that dumps the shipping info into USPS or you're using PayPal or eBay to ship, I am pretty sure you will be stuck typing everything. It's been a long time since my endicia.com trial, but I think that was true for endicia too.
My e-store is based on ECT Commerce software (no affiliation with the company, except for being a pleased customer). There is an add-on option for this software that makes Click n Ship so easy -- I just click on a button and my customer's shipping info magically appears in Click n Ship.
My e-store is based on ECT Commerce software (no affiliation with the company, except for being a pleased customer). There is an add-on option for this software that makes Click n Ship so easy -- I just click on a button and my customer's shipping info magically appears in Click n Ship.
Hmmmm. . . . I'm using WooCommerce and PayPal for card processing. . . . I tried using the PayPal, but it said there was no address to capture (even though it was listed right there). I'll have to look into this some more. If anyone has any suggestions, please don't hesitate to let me know.
Thank you!
Thank you!
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I ordered several sheets of unattached rubber stamps from them. Several of the stamps did not have enough detail on the stamp to make a good imprint.
outlawsoaps
Member
I use stamps.com and found it a lifesaver. I ship about 40 or so orders per month and it's really great to be able to just print out everything at home and have the tracking info all stored in one place. I also email the customer from stamps.com pro when I send out their order.
Where I live, the post office is really shady. It's nice to not have to spend any time at all there. And I can schedule pickups through stamps.com, so that's been nice.
I tried Endica (sp?) but found their software very hard to use.
outlawsoaps
Member
One side note that I was amazed and excited to find out... you can go on USPS.com and order free priority mail boxes. Free is a pretty dang good price.
Kleine Teufel
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I've never understood why anyone would use stamps.com. Why pay for the exact same services you get free of charge through USPS.com and paypal? Priority (including regional rate) can be done through USPS.com and first class can be done through paypal (with a discounted delivery confirmation, to boot!)
Last year, I looked into stamps.com for work related shipping, not for shipping soap as I am not quite ready for that yet. When I started to enter stamps.com into the search box, one of the search suggestions was "stamps.com scam". Surprised, I clicked on it and found many search results for it stamps.com being a total scam and a waste of money and horrible customer service. I didn't continue looking into them as a shipping option. We decided to go with the good old fashioned USPS instead.
