Concerning Postage - Part 2 - Shipping Charges

Many customers  worry about shipping costs which is understandable.  I say "understandable" because when I'm on the ordering end of things, so do I. 

At smARTworks our basic shipping policies are outlined on the official website, but I realize I have never taken the time to explain the details of assigning these charges...

smARTworks has an "exact postage" policy, meaning to the best of our abilities a customer's shipping costs mirror exactly what it costs us to mail their order.

To compute the shipping we use an official postal scale and the chart mentioned in the final note of Concerning Postage - Part 1

Here's how we do it:

• Assemble a given order.
• Determine the most appropriate packaging materials.
• Weigh order & packaging together.
    -- 13 oz. or more - Priority Mail
    -- Under 13 oz. refer to First Class chart.
• At designated weight, does order qualify for Letter/Card, Large Envelope, or Package rate?
• Charge customer accordingly.

Of course, as with all things, one finds sticky wickets:  Sometimes we call it an "envelope," and the postal clerk considers it a "package" ~ouch!  smARTworks eats the difference...

Sometimes we call it a "package," and the postal clerk says, "Envelope."  ~groan...   An overcharged customer -- usually not more than forty cents, but certainly not our intent...

There are even the times when different postal clerks make different calls on exact pieces of mail...  As you see, the element of human subjectivity makes a perfect solution impossible.

Personally, I think this may be why many stamp companies have adopted flat shipping rates.  Of course, there are other factors - cost of packaging, ease of mailing, less time to process, etc., but basically, "flat rate" is easily understood, and overcharges are unlikely. 

smARTworks, however, can't justify charging the person who wants one item the same amount in shipping as someone ordering twenty things... It makes us uncomfortable, and in our eyes, discriminates against "the little guy." ~And, boy! Do we know what that feels like!!!

Now that our policy, process, and philosophy have been shared, here are a few additional FYI tidbits about our shipping:

Except for custom block orders, we generally ship within 24-48 hours of receipt of payment.

Any "free" item included in a smART order is added after the shipping has been calculated. (Come on, making someone pay the shipping on a freebie is, well, kind of tacky...)

As implied in the Concerning Postage - Part 1 post, "flat" is generally cheaper.  That's why a customer might find the packages in a "stamps only" order taped together -- Doing so keeps the packages from shifting and "bunching up," so costs less to send... The tape strips peel right off without damaging the packaging... they only look a little strange.

Well, there you have it, a glimpse into the world of smART shipping.  Hope it answers your questions, and puts some of those worries to rest... When you shop with us, we promise to work really hard at keeping your shipping as inexpensive, and as "exact" as possible.

Comments

[Linda C.]

I for one appreciate that you charge actual shipping & going the extra mile for your customers!