Archive for the ‘Shipping for Less’ Category
Shipping via Priority Mail with Stamps.com is easy & saves you money!
I had to ship something to Ohio that weighed almost 3 pounds. I got on my Stamps.com interface & saw that parcel post would be almost $10! I’m used to mostly sending books & am spoiled with the lower ‘media mail’ charges.
I was wondering if there were any other options when I remembered Priority Mail. It had been a while since I had shipped using it, so I couldn’t remember the flat rate fee.
I rummaged in my closet & found a Priority Mail Flat Rate box (11 7/8″ x 3 3/8″ x 13 5/8″). The stars were smiling on me as the item I needed to ship fit inside the box.
I looked on the Stamps.com interface under ‘packages’ & it’s drop down menu for ‘Priority Mail Flat Rate box’.
I was please to see it was only $9.85 & would get to it’s destination by 3 days or less (as opposed to 2-9 days for parcel post).
The help section @ Stamps.com on Priority Mail said that you saved up to 11% off the retail rate by purchasing the Priority Mail postage from Stamps.com rather than the Post Office!
Also, you can arrange to have it picked up from your house or location if you set it up the night before.
I had errands to run, so I just zipped into the post office & deposited the Priority Mail Flat Rate Box (with the postage on it already) in the ‘packages to mail’ bin.
As I was walking out, I thought about getting a couple more Flat Rate Boxes to keep on hand for next time. I was amazed to see that the postage listed for the same sized Priority Mail Flat Rat box was about $10.50 (I didn’t write it down).
So not only did I save money, but I didn’t have to stand in line to buy the postage. That just made my day! 
You can even go to the USPS.com website to order Flat Rate boxes to be mailed to you. You don’t even have to pay shipping & handling!
That’s great cuz my Post Office was out of the size I wanted to get. You don’t have to order large quantities, either. This way I can get a variety pack of each size shipped directly to me. What a convienence!
P.S. I just went to www.USPS.com to get the flat rate boxes shipped to me. I got 10 APO boxes for sending items to soldiers, 10 small Flat Rate boxes & the variety pack of 4 different sized Flat Rate Boxes.
I was totally shocked when I ‘checked out’ and had no shipping charges! I am flabergasted that they’ll send them straight to me totally free of charge.
When shipping books using the delivery confirmation for quick credit, do NOT tape over the bar code.
If the bar code is covered in tape, it cannot be scanned, so you have wasted your 27 cents.
I like using the delivery confirmation so I am a. more likely to get a quick credit, & b. not having to rely on the person receiving the book to promptly go to their pc & mark the book received.
Most of the people using PaperBackSwap.com are wanting the system to work well so they will mark books received in a timely manner. But I figure it is a small cost for me to pay and it might get my credit posted faster so I can find another great book to request.
So always pay attention with barcodes & stamps when you are adding tape to the package to make sure you don’t make them useless by covering these with the tape.
I love being able to ship off books from home & not having to go to the Post Office. It makes my life so much easier!
I was concerned when I saw a notice on a postal drop box that packages over 13 ounces had to be accepted by a postal worker in the Post Office, not dropped into a mail box.
I told a Post Office Supervisor that I shipped using Stamps.com, and asked if that rule applied to my packages. He said “No. Your packages are tracked via Stamps.com with your information listed & recorded. You can put them in your mailbox or a drop box without concern.”
Another reason why I love using Stamps.com to print my postage on my home pc & printer!
I’m excited. I found a tough, durable, waterproof mailer that will speed up my processing of books I send out.
I have been pleased with recycling the poly bags that I recieve when I order from online clothing sites into book mailers. One drawback is that it is a bit labor intensive to cut the bag down to the correct size and tape it shut.
The other concern is that of supply. I don’t always have a bag to use. I sometimes have padded mailers I received books in, but often times I don’t. PaperBackSwap.com does have directions to use paper printed in the pc printer to wrap the book, but it takes even more time and is not waterproof.
I searched online and came up with a couple of great, low cost options. I like having a self sealing pouch on hand that cost less than $ 0.08 – $ 0.30 each. I immediately ordered them. Check it out:
I just saw that I have 4 books to mail to 1 person at PaperBackSwap.com. At first I was flustered, as I am rushed today & didn’t see how I could add going to the post office to my errands list.
I’m so glad I have the account with Stamps.com. I realized that I don’t have to leave to mail the books! I plopped the books in a small box, went to stamps.com, clicked ‘media mail’ and filled in the information.
It was a snap! Time & again being able to print postage with my pc has been a lifesaver for me.
