The Courier Nightmare Season (and how to survive it)

I'm going to give it to you straight: The last two months of the year suck for small business owners that rely on couriers. Then again, I’m sure it's no fun for the couriers either!

They are overbooked and rushed off their feet during the high-season of Black Friday and the lead-up to Christmas. This means that mistakes happen. A lot of mistakes. They deliver late, make empty promises, blatantly lie to save face, lose parcels, damage parcels, drive over parcels with a truck… The support staff are either unavailable or just shrug it off. The Big Wigs take zero responsibility. Money and tempers are lost. With every parcel I send out, I say a little prayer, knowing full well that that parcel’s fate is entirely out of my hands.

This is why I have aptly and not-so-fondly dubbed November/December “The Courier Nightmare Season”.

For this reason, I feel it is my duty to implore you not to leave your Christmas shopping for November or December! Yes, many businesses have crazy sales, and that’s tempting. But, keep in mind that those businesses have zero control over the couriers. ZERO.

Last year, in the midst of the carnage, a friend told me about a company that literally stops all shipments during the week of Black Friday. Even though their sales pick up dramatically, the additional drama just isn’t worth it. The time and money spent on replacing damaged or lost stock, chasing couriers, appeasing disappointed customers, all cancel out any profit made from the sales push.

Although I normally do everything in my power to make my clients happy, I do not believe in making empty promises. I certainly won’t be hiding under my bed during The Courier Nightmare Season. But, I’m going to arm myself against this monster by setting some very clear boundaries and sharing honest information with my prospective customers to manage their expectations:

• During the high season, you can expect the estimated delivery time of orders to slow down by about 2-3 working days.
• If you want your order in hand before Christmas, please order before or on Monday, 8 December. After this date, I can’t confidently promise that your gift will make it down the chimney before Santa!
• My office will be “closed” from 16 December - 7 January. I use quotation marks, since I will be available (within reason!), but many of my suppliers will not. I have certain items in stock at home; out of stock items and personalised gifts will have to wait until everyone is back to Reality.
• It’s also important to remember this if you are looking forward to a trip abroad in January, and would like to take a special gift with you. One cannot pull a bunny from a hat if the hat is on vacation… Best not to put off ordering until January!

Although I have no control over the couriers, there are some things that I can control:

• I will continue to take my customer service very, very seriously.
• Even though it is an exceptionally busy time of the year, the time and care that I invest in each order will remain unchanged.
• I pride myself on good, open, honest communication — you will be kept in the loop, even if the loop has become super loopy…
• If something does go awry (Heaven forbid), ie. your order goes missing or gets damaged en route, I will replace it free of charge as quickly as humanly (and courier-ly) possible.

Let me wrap up this cautionary tale with these three golden-oldie-proverbs:

• Early bird catches the worm (and get's their Christmas gifts under the tree with time to spare!)
• Patience is a virtue (especially when your order is stuck on a sleigh somewhere between Cape Town and Joburg…)
• All’s well that ends well (as long as you order before 8 December!)
  

PS. During my Black Friday Sale, I offer you 10% off, and donate a further 10% to a worthy non-profit. If you sign up for my awesome, non-spammy, super entertaining newsletter, you get 10% off on your first online purchase! Use it now to beat the Black Friday rush!!!